Calais’ vulnerable children must be protected

Almost 400 children are alone and living in a no-man’s land of filth, fear and danger, many having fled war zones. And they’re living just 100 miles from London, in the Calais ‘Jungle’.

Yet currently the plan is to bulldoze schools, a library, a youth centre, a health centre and places of worship all within the camp. The only places these children get some semblance of a childhood – before adequate replacements are ready.

A judge will rule in the coming hours whether this can go ahead.

That’s why we are standing alongside organisations like Citizens UK and calling for action to protect these vulnerable children.

Sign the open letter now.

Sticking to promises

Just weeks ago, Prime Minister David Cameron promised to step up efforts to reunite lone children with their families in the UK. Now it’s time to act on his word.

Many children in the camp have a legal right to asylum in the UK. The government should honour its legal obligations and allow unaccompanied children with family in the UK to be loved and cared for by their relatives here.

Children with no family in the UK should be supported to claim asylum in France. But the camp could be bulldozed before it’s clear that France is prepared to cope with the number of children it will displace.

Bulldozing and eviction will force extremely vulnerable children to move to camps with even worse conditions and lose their support network. The number of children risking their lives trying to reach the UK will surely increase.

How we’re helping

Within the Jungle, we’re supporting education programmes and training volunteers to deliver psychological first aid.

We’ve already pushed the government to do more to reunite children with families in the UK; to resettle children who are on their own in war zones and to provide extra resources to make sure that children are safe as they arrive in Europe – particularly in Greece and Italy.

We’ll be keeping a close watch to make sure the government makes good on its promises and ensures that lone children in Calais get the support and protection that they need.