Half of migrants council workers believed were children were adults | UK | News

Figures obtained under Freedom of Information laws showed that half of unaccompanied migrants who claimed to be children and were retested by a local local authority were found to be adults, The Sun reported.

The FOI data relates to 19 migrants who were admitted into Kent County Council’s care as under-18s but are subject to new assessments in 2025 after frontline workers expressed doubts that they were actually underage.

Ten of these were reclassified as adults. They all had to be placed in foster care or children’s homes.

How many migrant children does Kent County Council look after?

As the council covering the coastline where most small boat crossings come ashore, Kent has a legal obligation to receive and care for unaccompanied minors who arrive without legal permission. There were 2,656 migrant children in the council’s care in 2025.

What did Chris Philp say about child immigrants becoming adults?

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said the findings revealed a serious safeguarding risk. “This is completely wrong,” he said. “This puts children who are already in foster homes or children’s homes at risk.”

He added: “We have seen ridiculous cases of illegal immigrants behaving like a child when clearly an adult, a Sudanese man with a receding hairline and beard.”

Philip also warned that the situation was likely to worsen following the passage of the Labor Limits Act, saying the law “no longer allows illegal immigrants to be treated as over 18s if they refuse to take an age assessment test”.

What did the Ministry of Internal Affairs say about child immigration age checks?

The Ministry of Internal Affairs said:

“The safety and welfare of children in care is paramount. We have robust processes in place to verify and assess an individual’s age.

“We will continue to streamline and strengthen this process by testing Facial Age Estimation technology in the coming months.”