Watchdog raises concerns over high levels of vulnerability and prolonged detention at Yarl’s Wood

The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) has published its annual report of the Yarl's Wood immigration removal centre, raising concerns about the treatment of vulnerable detainees.

You can download the 26-page report here.

Yarl's Wood IRC is located in Bedfordshire and has a maximum capacity of 444. In 2025, the flow of people through the centre increased by 28% compared with 2024. The IMB said Operation Safeguard, introduced to ease pressure on the prison estate, resulted in men with "high vulnerability and risk profiles" being transferred to Yarl's Wood who might previously have remained in prison under immigration controls.

The Board said it continued to have concerns about the effectiveness of the Home Office's Detention Gatekeeper in preventing vulnerable people from being detained.

The report stated: "Throughout the reporting year, the Board has remained concerned about the high number of vulnerable individuals detained at Yarl's Wood, particularly those presenting with complex mental health needs. This has placed considerable demand on the healthcare team. The Board considers that greater scrutiny should be exercised by Detention Gatekeepers in assessing individuals' mental health prior to detention, with a view to preventing the detention of those whose vulnerabilities make detention inappropriate. There is an ongoing issue with people arriving without their relevant medical records and handovers; this seems to be estate wide."

While the IMB found staff at Yarl's Wood generally identified and managed vulnerabilities appropriately using existing safeguarding and care-planning systems, it noted that the centre's care and separation unit had been used to house people with significant mental health problems, despite not being ideal for this purpose. The report says this "again highlights the failure of the Detention Gatekeeper to adequately assess the vulnerability of persons being detained."

Three people detained at Yarl's Wood in 2025 were ultimately sectioned under the Mental Health Act and transferred to psychiatric hospitals. The Board reported that delays of several weeks could occur before detainees with serious mental health diagnoses were moved to appropriate psychiatric facilities.

Levels of violence and self-harm at Yarl's Wood increased during the year. The IMB said stress and anger remained high over the length and uncertainty of immigration detention, particularly among men. It highlighted that there was considerable evidence that prolonged and potentially indefinite detention was having negative effects on detainees' mental health, including poor sleep, depression, volatile behaviour and self-harm.

Detainees experienced further frustration getting information from the Home Office (HO). The report says: "Several times this year, frustration with length of stay and perceived lack of information from the HO has led to some of the men to stage peaceful protests demanding to speak to senior HO staff."

There was also a substantial increase in the number of people detained who were identified as potential victims of trafficking and modern slavery, with 904 such cases in 2025 compared to 436 identified in 2024.

As the report highlights, most men detained at Yarl's Woord are released (58%) rather than removed (42%). The IMB said this was a concern given the negative impact it had observed detention having on detainees' mental health and wellbeing, including its links to distress and behavioural problems.

Regarding release, the IMB also reported continuing frustration among detainees over lengthy waits for bail accommodation to be approved. The voluntary return scheme operated inconsistently. Many detainees told the Board they did not understand the administrative steps involved or why they remained detained when they wanted to leave.

The report notes: "[L]ength of stay remains a concern and causes a great deal of frustration and distress to those held at the centre. This is especially the case for those who want to return home voluntarily and cannot understand why it takes so long. The Board feels that in some instances the dissatisfaction is created by the fact that the detained persons do not fully understand the removal administration process. Length of stay is one of the main issues that detained persons raise with the Board."