Child Migration - United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The practice of sending poor or orphaned children to British settler colonies, to help alleviate the shortage of labour, began in England in 1618, with the rounding-up and transportation of 100 vagrant children to the Virginia Colony. Prior to the second half of the twentieth century, the Home Children programme was seen as a way to move impoverished children to a "better life" in Australia, Canada and elsewhere, also providing good "white stock" to former colonies. Unfortunately. the children and parents were not consulted, and often siblings were separated. In total 130,000 children were sent from the UK to Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) and Australia. Often children were lied to about their parents being dead and many faced abuse in their new homes.

In February 2010 British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown issued an official apology for the 'shameful' child resettlement programme and announced a £6 million fund designed to compensate the families affected by the "misguided" programme.

During World War II some 3.5 million children were evacuated from areas at risk of aerial bombing to rural locations. (see Evacuations of civilians in Britain during World War II)

A recent study by the University of Oxford's Centre on Migration, Policy and Society (COMPAS) led by Dr Nando Sigona has shed light on the situation of children without legal immigration status in the UK. The study, 'No way out, no way in: Irregular migrant children and families in the UK', estimates a population of 120,000 children without status, of whom 65,000 born in the UK to parents without legal status.