Home Office contractors are exercising excessive restraint in immigration detention centers and failing to tackle the toxic culture behind bars, according to the findings of a new watchdog report described as “deeply worrying”.
By force of habit: How the use of force in immigration detention has lost sight of necessity and dignity This article was published by the Independent Monitoring Boards (IMB), which investigates conditions in prisons and immigration detention centres. The findings revealed that force was being applied disproportionately, inconsistently and without adequate justification, adding that it undermined the dignity and well-being of extremely vulnerable individuals.
It highlighted how routine handcuffing, particularly during hospital transfers, has become the default rather than the exception. In one case, a frail 70-year-old man was handcuffed despite having paperwork in place because there was no evidence of risk. The report described the practice of allowing detainees to be taken to hospital only if they were handcuffed, calling it “a form of coercion”.
The report comes as the government has promised to expand immigration detention so it can deport more people.
Elizabeth Davis, national chair of the IMB, said: “This is about the operational force used to facilitate operations.” He said he had written to the Home Office “several times” raising concerns about the high level of handcuffing and the lack of clear justification provided.
The report cites examples of restraints about which the IMB is concerned, including a man who was on constant suicide watch who was screaming and resisting being removed. He removed his trousers and was escorted to the plane naked from the waist down. The staff took turns pushing his head onto his seat. The report found the impact on his dignity to be “profound”.
It also reprinted a note on the detention center staff’s whiteboard, which said: “Today’s thought: Handle stressful situations like a dog. If you can’t eat it or hump it, pee on it or walk away.”
Davis said the sign was not hidden in any way. He has called for a change in staff culture and said the sign is an example of staff culture: “I think it provides a bit of reassurance.”
Another example of the concerning employee culture highlighted in the report involved an incident where a personal protection trainer told officers: “If someone is coming near me, I will keep myself safe. I don’t worry about what is proportionate, I won’t worry about Serco or my job, my priority is to look after myself.”
A spokesperson for government contractor Serco, one of the private contractors used by the Home Office to manage detention centres, said: “This report is full of unsubstantiated claims and unfounded comments that do not reflect our professional training or how we treat people in our care. Our officers only use reasonable and proportionate force as a last resort, and the use of force is closely monitored.”
The report also identified missed opportunities to de-escalate, including a case where a man was stopped after failing to comply with an instruction to stand down. Despite many of those detained having experienced trauma, including torture and trafficking, the report found no evidence of a trauma-informed approach, with nothing to indicate that this was being considered when planning or executing force interventions.
Significant gaps in force recording were identified, with incomplete documentation, inaccurate records and ineffective review processes, raising concerns about governance and accountability.
Davis said: “The findings of this report are extremely worrying. To legitimize the use of force, it must be necessary, reasonable, proportionate and justified, but what we are seeing is a system where restraints have become routine, monitoring is weak, and the dignity of detained individuals is often disregarded.
“We need meaningful cultural change and stronger accountability to protect the rights of extremely vulnerable people in custody. As National Chair, I call on the Home Office to act urgently to strengthen oversight, embed trauma-informed practices and ensure that force is only used when absolutely necessary.”
A spokesperson for Medical Justice, which supports the health of people in immigration detention, said: “The findings of this report are disturbing. The Home Office continues to preside over dangerous use of force and restraints while demonstrating an inexcusable disregard for the safety of vulnerable people in its care.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “Last week, the Home Secretary announced the most sweeping reforms to tackle illegal migration in modern times, which will make it easier to remove and deport migrants. As part of this, we are reforming human rights laws and replacing the broken appeals system.
“We will consider the report’s findings carefully. The Home Office reviews all incidents of use of force to ensure that techniques are used proportionately.”
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