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<p>The Home Office does not specify a ratio of detainee to detainee custody <br>officer
(DCOs) within immigration removal centres (IRCs) and this information is therefore
not recorded. Instead, IRC suppliers are required to provide a safe and secure environment
for detainees in their care and all IRC contracts require a minimum staffing level
based on the size and layout of each individual centre. The Home Office and its suppliers
do not release information on staff deployment as doing so could compromise security
of the removal estate.</p><p>In the period ahead, new contracts will set high expectations
for the quality of the management and staffing in IRCs. The current re-procurement
of the contract for the Gatwick IRCs includes provision for increased staffing in
key areas, including residential units, to improve welfare and safety.</p><p>The dignity
and welfare of detainees across the entire detention estate is of the utmost importance
and the use of periods of time where detainees’ freedom of movement is restricted
contributes to the maintenance of a safe and secure environment in our centres.</p><p>Detainees
at both Harmondsworth and Colnbrook immigration removal centres (IRC) have a rest
period following lunch and curfew period at night, where the total hours of confinement
cannot exceed 12 hours a day during the week and 12.5 hours a day at weekends and
on bank holidays.</p><p>Information on the number of people detained in Harmondsworth
and Colnbrook IRCs on the last day of each quarter is available in table dt_12_q of
the <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/803188/detention-mar-2019-tables.ods"
target="_blank">detention </a>tables in the latest release of ‘Immigration Statistics,
year ending March 2019’.</p>
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