• Brighton and Hove City Council’s deputy leader writes to immigration minister.
• Hannah Allbrooke claims Home Office ‘failed in duty of care’ to asylum-seeking youngsters.
• 76 children living in the city are now missing, according to Sussex Police.

The Home Office “failed in its duty of care” to asylum-seeking youngsters, according to a letter from Brighton and Hove City Council’s deputy leader to the immigration minister.

According to Sussex Police, 76 children living in the city are now missing.

According to councilwoman Hannah Allbrooke, there was just a 24-hour notice before placing asylum applicants in Brighton.

The Home Office declared that protecting children’s wellbeing was “an essential priority.”

Between July 2021 and August 2022, 116 children who had been housed in motels across the nation went missing.

Ms. Allbrooke, a councilor for the Green Party, claimed in a letter to Robert Jenrick that the Home Office was trying to “shift the guilt onto local bodies” by claiming in a newspaper article that local governments have a legal obligation to protect children.

She said: “We believe this is an overt attempt to shift responsibility.

“The Home Office has chosen to use these hotels. The Home Office has been repeatedly clear to us as a local authority that it is the responsibility of your department to care for the welfare of these children.”

Referring to a letter sent to previous Home Secretary Priti Patel in July 2021 calling for clarification on who is responsible for child asylum seekers, Ms. Allbrooke wrote: “Our concerns today are the same, that the department has failed in its duty of care to these children and young people.”

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A Home Office spokesperson said: “The wellbeing of children and minors in our care is an absolute priority.

“Any child or minor going missing is extremely serious, and we work around the clock with the police and local authorities to urgently locate them and ensure they are safe.

“We are determined to stop the use of hotels for all minors. To achieve this goal, we are providing local authorities with £15,000 for every unaccompanied child they take into their care.”

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