Health services at ‘breaking point’ as self-harm rises at immigration centre

Health services are at “breaking point” as incidents of self-harm have more than doubled at an immigration detention centre which feels “like a prison”, inspectors have warned.

Fights and assaults on staff at Brook House immigration removal centre had increased more than five-fold since the last inspectors’ visit in 2022, rising from 14 to 80 assaults and eight to 50 fights, but inspectors said leaders were not using data effectively to understand the cause of it.

More than a third of approximately 330 detainees at Brook House, near Gatwick Airport in West Sussex, told officials they had felt suicidal at the site at some point and incidents of self-harm had more than doubled to 12 a month since the last inspection, the report from HM Chief Inspector of Prisons found.

Chief inspector Charlie Taylor said: “In this context, it was a matter of serious concern to find a deterioration in health care provision: the inadequacy of health services was one of the biggest complaints from detainees and it was clear that the service was stretched to breaking point.”

The concerns come as a man died in hospital after being detained at the centre in November 2023 while another detainee was discovered dead at Brook House in what is believed to be unnatural circumstances in October 2024.

The latest inspection that took place over August 5-22 this year found a “concerning and substantial rise” in violence and self-harm while safety and respect had also declined.

Concerns were also raised over staffing, culture and morale of the health services team which was “not delivering a good enough service” to detainees, while inspectors highlighted “pockets of immature and unprofessional behaviour” from operational staff, half of whom had less than two years’ experience in the job.

Drugs at Brook House were also becoming increasingly available but planning and resources to tackle the problem were “inadequate”, the report said.

All immigration detainees at Brook House, who should be held in relaxed conditions with minimal restrictions, were instead in an institution that looked and felt like a prison

On living conditions, Mr Taylor added: “A longstanding and fundamental problem was that all immigration detainees at Brook House, who should be held in relaxed conditions with minimal restrictions, were instead in an institution that looked and felt like a prison.

“Not enough had been done to make clear the distinction between immigration detention and criminal imprisonment and, as at the last inspection, it was clear that the Home Office had to reduce the numbers held in the centre to relieve pressure on critical services and give staff more time to care for the most vulnerable.”

The length of detention had also risen since the last inspection, with 10 people held at the centre for more than a year and one man held the longest period for 519 days.

Mr Taylor said this was an “unacceptably long time” to keep people in administrative detention and the longer stays meant higher needs and frustrations of detainees.

He added the average cumulative detention, including before someone was transferred to Brook House, was 78 days, which was “too long” as 58% of detainees leaving the centre in the last six months were released into the community.

In the last year, at least 20 people, including those assessed as vulnerable, had been released from the centre homeless, the report added.

Inspectors praised efforts to improve activities at Brook House and discovered there were more jobs and spaces for physical and recreational activities, while welfare work remained good despite the service being “fragile and understaffed”.

The centre has been the subject of a public inquiry which found 19 incidents of mistreatment against detainees at the detention centre over a five-month period in 2017.

Inquiry chair Kate Eves has called for a “reset” on an “inadequate” Government response to her recommendations on preventing a repeat of the Brook House immigration centre scandal.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We recognise standards need to improve across immigration detention facilities, that is why we are taking robust action to improve conditions and safeguards, informed by the findings of this report.

“We are reviewing current practices around preventing violence and use of force within the site, and have introduced a programme focused on improving the overall culture, as well as a mentoring scheme for newly recruited officers.”