Mitie Care & Custody (C&C) Ltd awarded Home Office contracts to run Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) and Derwentside IRC

Mitie C&C Ltd has been awarded the contract to manage Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre (IRC) on behalf of the Home Office following a rigorous Competitive Procedure with Negotiation process.

The contractor has also been appointed, following a separate procurement exercise, to manage the new Derwentside for women in County Durham ‘formerly known as Hassockfield STC’.

The Dungavel contract will begin on 25 September 2021 and includes significant improvements to the previous contract. These improvements include:

• More staff on site to improve safety and welfare of both residents and staff.
• A dedicated welfare team available daily to focus on residents’ needs.
• The ability to increase or decrease the number of residents being housed at the IRC at one time.

These improvements are just one part of the Home Office strategy to modernise the immigration detention estate and create a better, safer environment for those in our care in line with Stephen Shaw’s reviews of welfare in immigration detention.

Derwentside will replace Yarl’s Wood as the main IRC for detained women and is a new, smaller, facility that will maintain the standards and high expectations for the detention of women.

The two-year Derwentside contract was signed on 4 June 2021, with the opening of the IRC expected in Autumn 2021.

Mitie C&C Ltd have prior experience in managing IRCs and currently manage Harmondsworth and Colnbrook at Heathrow.

The current operator for Dungavel is GEO UK Limited, who will be working with both Mitie C&C Ltd and the Home Office to ensure a smooth and successful transition.

The immigration removal estate is kept under ongoing review to ensure that the Home Office has sufficient resilience, geographical footprint and capacity for the men and women it is necessary to detain for the purposes of removal, while providing value for money.