The Home Office does not publish data on the deaths of asylum seekers in its housing...
... despite calls from experts and campaigners to do so. We set out to gather as much information as possible about each of them. Here, we tell their stories.
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entries
Name unknown
Male
/
38
/
Zimbabwean
died on or around:
8/11/2017
11/8/2017
Cause of death:
Accident at work
housing provider:
G4S
Location:
Midlands and East of England
,
Birmingham
2017/11
20171108
This 38-year-old Zimbabwean man appears to have died as the result of an accident at work. He may have been working illegally at the time; notes on the Home Office's Incident Database mention the need for a "possible referral to Enforcement Intel".
Asylum seekers are normally unable to work while their claims are being considered and the notes go on to say that the man's employer could not be identified due to sub-contracting. The man's mother agreed to collect his belongings from G4S.
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Name unknown
Male
/
68
/
Afghan
died on or around:
22/2/2018
2/22/2018
Cause of death:
Not known
housing provider:
Clearsprings Ready Homes
Location:
South
,
London
2018/02
20180222
This Afghan man arrived in the UK by lorry with his family and died in accommodation provided by the Home Office the next day. His family claimed he had medical issues but notes from Barry House, where he stayed, state staff weren't "specifically aware" of concerns.
Despite this an inspector at Lunar House, the Home Office's London-based visas and immigration hub, said that on arrival and prior to going to his accommodation, he vomited. Notes in a High Profile Notification form state "he was Diabetic, had a Kidney operation to remove stones and a chest infection".
The man had no medication with him. After he vomited, the High Profile Notification form notes that no paramedics were called to assist him.
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Name unknown
Male
/
33
/
Palestinian
died on or around:
20/11/2017
11/20/2017
Cause of death:
Suicide
housing provider:
Clearsprings Ready Homes
Location:
South
,
London
2017/11
20171121
On 20 November 2017, police received reports of a suicide near a bridge. A day later, this 33-year-old Palestinian man's body was found. He was provided with Clearsprings Ready Homes housing in London at the time.
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Name unknown
Male
/
41
/
Bangladeshi
died on or around:
16/8/2017
8/16/2017
Cause of death:
Cardiac/suspected cardiac
housing provider:
Serco
Location:
North West
,
Rochdale
2017/08
20170816
This 41-year-old Bangladeshi was diabetic and was found seriously unwell by his spouse before passing, according to the Home Office's Incident Database. A post-mortem found he died of a heart attack.
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Name unknown
Male
/
41
/
Iranian
died on or around:
5/9/2017
9/5/2017
Cause of death:
Suicide
housing provider:
Unknown
Location:
North West
,
Manchester
2017/09
20170905
Although the date of this 41-year-old Iranian's death is listed in the Home Office's Incident Database as 5 September 2017, the record also contains notes relating to housing needs dated a month later - perhaps the records were mixed up. The man died by suicide.
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Name unknown
Male
/
50
/
Pakistani
died on or around:
21/9/2017
9/21/2017
Cause of death:
Not known
housing provider:
Clearsprings Ready Homes
Location:
Wales
,
Swansea
2017/09
20170921
Notes in the Home Office's Incident Database about this Pakistani man, who died aged 50, refer to a female asylum seeker's housing needs, suggesting the Home Office may have mixed up two records. It's not clear how he died.
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Name unknown
Male
/
25
/
Vietnamese
died on or around:
7/2/2018
2/7/2018
Cause of death:
Not known
housing provider:
Clearsprings Ready Homes
Location:
Wales
,
Cardiff
2018/02
20180207
This 25-year-old was due for assisted voluntary return to Vietnam in February 2018 but died two days before his flight. It's not clear how. Home Office notes state the locks to his property would be changed immediately and a woman who was supporting him would not be allowed to enter.
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Name unknown
Male
/
42
/
Pakistani
died on or around:
24/5/2016
5/24/2016
Cause of death:
Suspected alcohol-related causes
housing provider:
Clearsprings Ready Homes
Location:
South
,
London
2016/05
20160524
Police were called following a report of this 42-year-old Pakistani man's death, according to the Home Office's Incident Database. A post-mortem found he died of cirrhosis caused by alcoholic liver disease.
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Name unknown
Male
/
30
/
Ethiopian
died on or around:
5/7/2019
7/5/2019
Cause of death:
Drowning following pursuit by police
housing provider:
Serco
Location:
Scotland
,
Glasgow
2019/07
20190705
This 30-year-old man was on bail awaiting trial the following month. Police were called to an address he was staying at following reports of a disturbance, causing him to flee, according to internal records. The man jumped into a river to avoid the police and drowned.
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Name unknown
Male
/
76
/
Sri Lankan
died on or around:
3/4/2020
4/3/2020
Cause of death:
Covid-19/possible Covid-19
housing provider:
Clearsprings Ready Homes
Location:
South
,
Hounslow
2020/04
20200403
This 76-year-old Sri Lankan man passed away at Ealing Hospital from Covid-19, according to the Home Office's Incident Database. It states he had been living in dispersal accommodation in Hounslow.
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Name unknown
Male
/
36
/
Iraqi
died on or around:
5/2/2019
2/5/2019
Cause of death:
Suicide
housing provider:
G4S
Location:
Midlands and East of England
,
Birmingham
2019/02
20190205
Staff at accommodation in Birmingham found the body of this man, who'd died by suicide in his room. Internal records state they were interviewed to find out what contributed to the suicide, but notes in the Home Office's Incident Database do not give details of what was discussed.
The man had previously been deported to Italy from the UK but made his way back, according to records. At the point of claiming asylum, he said he suffered from asthma, depression, and memory loss.
Notes state he wasn't on medication but was receiving an ACDT support package, as he had expressed a desire to self-harm or die by suicide. ACDT appears to refer to Assessment Care in Detention and Teamwork, a self-harm reduction strategy created by the government.
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Name unknown
Female
/
7
/
South African
died on or around:
8/3/2018
3/8/2018
Cause of death:
Accident
housing provider:
Clearsprings Ready Homes
Location:
Wales
,
Cardiff
2018/03
20180308
This seven-year-old caught their hood on a door handle and died from pressure to the neck, Home Office notes state. Police deemed it an accident or self-inflicted prank. Officials noted the death received press attention but that media didn't identify the family as asylum seekers.
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