Survey of the illegally resident
population in detention in the UK
Project summary
There is rising interest amongst researchers, policy makers and the media in the
phenomenon of illegal or undocumented migration to the UK, yet there remains
a critical lack of robust research information on this topic. In response, this
project was commissioned by the Immigration Research and Statistics Service of
the UK Home Office to provide more information and understanding on the
situation of illegally resident migrants to the UK.
The research aimed to survey a sample of individuals who had been detained by
the UK government because they were living illegally in the UK. Through in-
depth interviews with a sample of 83 illegally resident migrants detained in one
of three immigration detention facilities (Harmondsworth, Tinsley House,
Campsfield) between December 2001 and March 2002, the project has sought to
explore these individuals’ motivations for coming to the UK, their routes both to
the UK and into illegal residence, and their experiences whilst living in the UK,
including their means of support, their involvement in the job market, and their
use of public services. The research has also considered the extent to which this
group could be seen as victims of coercive ‘traffickers’, their experience of
detention, and the extent to which interviews with immigration detainees
represent an appropriate and valuable form of evidence about the wider illegally
resident migrant population.
Research team
For further information, please contact: Project Leaders: Dr Richard Black,
Director, Sussex Centre for Migration Research, University of Sussex, Falmer,
Brighton BN1 9SJ, tel: +44 1273 877090 fax: +44 1273 620662 email
r.black@sussex.ac.uk, or Professor Ronald Skeldon, r.skeldon@sussex.ac.uk.
Research Officers: Clare Waddington, Michael Collyer.
This research was commissioned by the Immigration Research and Statistics
Service (IRSS), Research Development and Statistics Directorate (RDS) of the
UK Home Office.