Call for evidence: An inspection of the Home Office's engagement with local authorities in the planning and development of asylum accommodation
The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration has begun an inspection of the Home Office’s engagement with local authorities in the planning and development of asylum accommodation, in line with the 2026-27 Inspection Plan. The review will assess how the Home Office plans, prepares, and engages with local authorities, focusing on the engagement strategy’s effectiveness, local accommodation delivery models, and how providers fulfil their engagement responsibilities, including the impact on local services and community cohesion during site selection. The call for evidence is open until 24 April 2026 and invites anyone with relevant knowledge to submit information to inform the inspection; submissions may be anonymised in the final report and should be emailed to the Chief Inspector. Strategic Migration Partnerships and local authorities will be invited to complete a separate survey and do not need to respond to this call for evidence.
The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration invites anyone with knowledge and experience of the Home Office's engagement with local authorities in the planning and development of asylum accommodation to submit evidence for the inspection.
In line with his 2026-27 Inspection Plan, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration has commenced an inspection of the Home Office’s engagement with local authorities in the planning and development of asylum accommodation.
This inspection will examine how the Home Office plans, prepares, and engages with local authorities in developing asylum accommodation. There will be a particular focus on:
- the effectiveness of the Home Office’s engagement strategy in enhancing the responsiveness, consistency and quality of engagement with local authorities
- local asylum accommodation delivery models and initiatives involving local authorities
- how the Home Office ensures that accommodation providers fulfil their responsibilities for engagement with local authorities on delivery of new accommodation
- consideration of the impact on local services and community cohesion during site selection processes.
This call for evidence will remain open until 24 April 2026.
The Independent Chief Inspector invites anyone with knowledge and experience of how the Home Office plans, prepares, and engages with local authorities in developing asylum accommodation to submit evidence to inform this inspection and would be pleased to hear both what is working well and what could be improved. The ICIBI Inspection Framework will be used to assess the Home Office in this inspection.
The information you submit may be included in the final inspection report, but it is the ICIBI’s practice not to name sources and to anonymise as much as possible any examples or case studies.
Please note that Strategic Migration Partnerships and local authorities will be invited to complete a separate survey and do not need to respond to this call for evidence.
Please click here to email your submission to the Chief Inspector.
Please note: The ICIBI’s statutory remit does not extend to investigating or making decisions about individual cases. This remains a Home Office responsibility. However, the Chief Inspector can take an interest in individual cases to the extent that they illustrate or point to systemic problems.
Data Protection
Information on how we process personal data submitted in response to a call for evidence can be found in the ICIBI privacy information notice available on the ICIBI website.
John Tuckett, Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration
14 April 2026
