Hairdresser is wanted for £31,500-a-year job trimming the locks of illegal migrants waiting to be kicked out of the country at Heathrow deportation centre

Immigration staff at Heathrow Airport hire a hairdresser to provide haircuts to illegal immigrants awaiting deportation from the country.

The position, which pays £31,500 a year, was advertised by Mitie, which has a £290 million contract to run the Heathrow Immigration Removal Centre.

The job requires the hairdresser to work 40 hours a week at the airport, providing services to people about to be deported from the UK.

The job posting sought a candidate who could ‘offer a variety of hairdressing and barbering styles’, including ‘braiding and dyeing’.

And it was stated that the successful applicant would ‘provide hair cutting and barbering services to residents that reflect the cultural needs of the population’.

Applicants were also told they needed to provide a positive and friendly environment so customers felt ‘welcomed and respected’.

This follows the centre’s previous postings for a hospitality and floristry teacher, an art and decorating teacher and a gym manager at the men-only facility.

Salaries for full-time roles were more than £30,000 per year; The gym manager role was advertised for £38,873.66 per year.

The postings were pulled in August after Home Affairs Minister Seema Malhorta sparked outrage when she said the ministry wanted the roles canceled because they ‘didn’t believe all these roles were necessary’.

Two immigration centres, Harmondsworth and Colnbrook, are close to Heathrow for easy transfers to planes.

Harmondsworth can host 658 people and Colnbrook can host 300 people. Immigrants, including asylum seekers, can be accommodated here until their immigration status is resolved.

Asked about the hairdressing job advert, a Home Office spokesperson said: ‘We do not directly fund these roles.’

A Home Office source said there was a legal obligation on the government to allow detained people to cut their hair regularly.

A spokesperson for Mitie said: ‘This role is part of our contractual obligations and is standard practice in secure environments. ‘We continue to work closely with the Home Office to ensure services provide value for money.’

It comes after an immigrant sex offender who was mistakenly released from prison was given £500 in taxpayers’ money to leave the UK.

Footage taken from Heathrow Airport shows the moment 38-year-old Hadush Kebatu was boarded on a plane to Ethiopia last night.

He was mistakenly released from HMP Chelmsford on Friday morning after serving just one month of a one-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old schoolgirl.

Immigration staff at Heathrow Airport hire a hairdresser to groom illegal immigrants

It is understood a ‘discretionary’ payment of £500 was made to Kebatu by the Home Office.

Sources said the money was transferred due to Kebatu’s threat to ‘disrupt’ the transport flight.

Although it was heard at his first hearing that he had a ‘firm desire’ to return to Ethiopia, his compliance with immigration officials is understood to have deteriorated on Tuesday.

He threatened to launch a legal challenge against his deportation and even said he was considering making a new asylum claim with the Home Office.

Stating that he would leave quietly in exchange for cash, Kebatu was forcibly deported from England by a team of five security guards.

Kebatu was supposed to be transferred to a deportation center last week, but unsuspecting prison officers repeatedly told him to leave and take a train to London instead.

The Ethiopian national, who arrived in the UK on a small boat, was arrested in north London on Sunday morning after a two-day manhunt.

He was filmed being detained by four officers in Finsbury Park and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer promising he would be “deported”.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed that Kebatu was taken on a flight to Ethiopia on Tuesday night and arrived here on Wednesday.