Accessing the right to child protection as a declared unaccompanied minor Once unaccompanied minors declare Case study themselves to French authorities, they are legally entitled to safeguarding within French “There was one boy who came to me – child protection services – in practical terms, he’s profoundly deaf, he’d been attacked; this means either a place in a children’s home, he came to me with the blood still on his or with a foster family. However, capacity is clothes. He didn’t feel safe in the camp extremely limited: there are only 45 places within with the way people treated him, and the Saint-Omer accommodation centre, run by wanted safe accommodation. I phoned FTDA on behalf of the French government, while the authorities but they just told me there another centre, Foyer Georges Brassens, has are no spaces available. In the UK, if I just five spaces for asylum-seeking children. phone social services and tell them there’s 72 spaces for unaccompanied children have a vulnerable child in need of care, even if been promised within the existing Jules Ferry there are no spaces in the immediate area, accommodation for women and children, they’ll find a foster home somewhere, even but when these are built, they will not contain if it means a two-hour drive.” Voluntary anywhere near the required amount of spaces youth worker in the ‘Jungle’. to house the 1,022 children known to be living alone in the ‘Jungle’. Construction has yet to The volunteers do their best, running youth begin, though it was planned to be completed by centres, keeping an eye out for particularly the start of September 2016. vulnerable children and referring them to relevant It is the responsibility of the state to find volunteer-run services, like healthcare and legal accommodation for unaccompanied children support. This is not easy work. As one remarked once they declare themselves and request to us, “all the important work is being done by protection. However, voluntary organisations volunteers – this is real work; we’re taking on report a lack of action by the French authorities. the responsibility of the state”. However, there is When a rare space does become available in no denying that conditions remain dire. French one of these centres the authorities are not Defender of Rights, Jacques Toubon, issued a arranging transport but, instead, requesting statement of concern regarding unaccompanied volunteers to bring the children. One volunteer children in the ‘Jungle’ in April 2016, urging the reported that the authorities turn away children 4 state to fulfil its responsibilities . Three months over 14, claiming that younger children are more later, he noted his regret that urgent action had vulnerable and therefore higher priority – while 5 yet to be taken . this may be partly true, it remains a failure of Plenty has been written about the appalling French statutory child protection. “We say to conditions in camp, but the words of one them: if you don’t find them a place, then that 14-year-old Afghan resident sum it up well: means you’re happy to accept that children are “Only animals live in the jungle – everyone living in the ‘Jungle’ with little or no protection, at knows humans shouldn’t live here. We don’t get risk,” we were told. regular food, regular sleep…there’s only one slot each day when we can get food or a shower, but if we miss it, we don’t get to eat or wash. There’s nothing to do in the camp; we just live in constant fear and anxiety. It stinks too – it’s very hard to keep clean, so everyone is sweaty, and the showers run on a ticket system.” 6 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/02/calais-refugee-camp-running-out-of-food-as-donor-fatigue-sees- donations-dry-up 7 https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/sep/02/france-vows-to-dismantle-’Jungle’-refugee-camp-calais No place for children 8