Detention Centre and Short-Term Holding Facility Rules
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The statutory Detention Centre Rules (2001) are a piece of legislation which govern day to day life in IRCs.
The Detention Centre Rules set out that the purpose of detention is:
“3.—(1) ….to provide for the secure but humane accommodation of detained persons in a relaxed regime with as much freedom of movement and association as possible, consistent with maintaining a safe and secure environment, and to encourage and assist detained persons to make the most productive use of their time, whilst respecting in particular their dignity and the right to individual expression. (2) Due recognition will be given at detention centres to the need for awareness of the particular anxieties to which detained persons may be subject and the sensitivity that this will require, especially when handling issues of cultural diversity.”
The Rules set out what services and conditions should be provided for people in detention, including welfare services, legal advice, communication and visits, ministers of religion, washing and bathing, and time in the open air.
The Short-Term Holding Facility Rules (2018) are a piece of legislation which set out the equivalent rules for Short-Term Holding Facilities. They give the Home Office wide powers in designating a place as a short-term holding facility. The publication of these rules came after years of lobbying from AVID and others in the sector on the lack of rules governing these facilities. Much of the Short-Term Holding Facility Rules are lifted directly from the Detention Centre Rules and mainly apply to residential short-term holding facilities (RSTHFs), for which there is a time limit on detention of 5 days (with the possibility of extension to an absolute maximum of 7 days). In 2022, following controversy in Manston camp where people were held unlawfully, these rules were amended to include a new category of detention centre - “residential holding rooms” – where people can be held for up to 96 hours (unless a longer period is authorised by the Secretary of State) and for which many of the Short-Term Holding Facility rules are disapplied.
Examples of:
Equivalent to:
Detention Centre Rules
Short-Term Holding Facility Rules
Rule 28 sets out that people detained should receive as many visits as they would like (with some limitations).
Rule 25.
Rule 34 sets out that there should be Medical examination with a registered medical practitioner on admission (within 24 hours) and thereafter. Read more in
Rule 30.
Rule 35 Special illnesses and conditions (including torture claims) sets out the circumstances under which “the medical practitioner shall report to the manager on the case of any detained person whose health is likely to be injuriously affected by continued detention or any conditions of detention” and “the manager shall send a copy of any report under paragraphs (1), (2) or (3) to the Secretary of State without delay”. Read more in
Rule 32.
Rule 40 and Rule 42: sets out the arrangements for the use of removal from association and segregation of people detained. They require that the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB), medical practitioner and manager of religious affairs to be notified without delay and visit within 24 hours of being placed in segregation. Read more in .
Rule 35.
Rule 41 on Use of Force sets out that force should not be used unnecessarily and where it is used it should be recorded and as limited as possible.
Rule 36.
The Detention Centre and STHF rules do not apply to certain other types of places of detention where individuals may be detained under Immigration Act powers including police stations, hospitals, young offender institutions, prisons and remand centres.
People in IRC’s and in STHF’s should be provided with a copy of the detention centre rules. This in the form of a “compact” which details their rights in detention centres and should be in a language which they understand (and a full set of the rules on request).
The intentions expressed in these statutory Rules are put into operation by the Home Office by means of Detention Service Orders and by means of Detention Services Operating Standards for private contractors.
