Too much violence at migrant centre, report finds

A report found that "commendable progress" had been made on several issues at Brook House

Too many violent incidents happen at an immigration removal centre, a report has found.

But the HM Inspectorate of Prisons added that "commendable progress" had been made on several issues at Brook House, near Gatwick Airport.

It comes after a BBC investigation found self-harm, cases of violence and use of restraint rose at the West Sussex site last year.

The Home Office said it continued to take all action necessary to improve conditions and safeguards at immigration detention facilities.

'Locked up'

Instances of self-harm at Brook House rose from 128 in 2023 to 171 in 2024, according to figures obtained by BBC South East.

A public inquiry was triggered by a BBC Panorama investigation into the centre in 2017 and found detainees had been subjected to unnecessary pain and humiliation, including dangerous restraint techniques and being forcibly moved while they were naked.

A man died in hospital after being detained at the centre in October 2024, while another detainee was discovered dead at the facility in November 2023.

Serco, which runs the site for the Home Office, called Brook House a "safe place to work and live".

"We have a great team who carry out a challenging role with professionalism and who have good relations with the residents at the centre," it said.

The latest report by the inspectorate, published on 1 September, said there had been "limited progress" in supporting the most vulnerable detainees.

"Too many" detainees were being held for excessive periods and mental health safeguards were not "working effectively enough," it added.

However, the report noted improvements in areas including the number and capability of staff, strengthened leadership and the physical environment.

"Detainees were very positive about the way staff treated them", it added.

Ridy Wasolua, from the Gatwick Detainees Welfare Group and a former detainee at Brook House, told the BBC that self-harm went up last year because some residents had taken a drug called Spice.

"That drug hurts you so much that you don't know what you are doing to yourself," he said.

"You want to stop the pain. You put yourself in a room with no windows, locked up there with no windows, you are completely locked up, how would you feel."

Ridy Wasolua is a former detainee at Brook House, near Gatwick Airport

Figures obtained from the Home Office showed that 180 people held at the centre assaulted staff last year, up from 129 the year before.

Staff also used restraint on detainees 791 times in 2024 – 41% more than the year before.