Part 4: Age Assessment Section 50: Persons subject to immigration control: referral or assessment by local authority etc.
Overview: This section confers a power on the Secretary of State to conduct full age assessments on age-disputed persons (as defined in section 49), upon referral from a local authority in England, Wales and Scotland or a Health and Social Care Trust in Northern Ireland.
	Background: There is no single technique, or combination of techniques, that can determine someone’s age with precision. However, where an age dispute arises in relation to a person subject to immigration control, a decision must be made on their age.
	Where there is doubt about whether a person claiming to be under 18 years old is an adult or a child, they are temporarily treated as a child until further consideration of their age is undertaken and they are referred into the care of local authority children’s services. Local authority social workers will usually proceed to conduct a holistic age assessment, known as a Merton assessment.
	As a result, local authorities currently carry the burden of conducting these age assessments on individuals subject to immigration control. The outcomes of these assessments are assigned significant weight by the Secretary of State when making their decision on age for immigration purposes. Merton assessments must adhere to a set of standards that have been set out by the courts in a series of judgments that have considered age disputes. Merton assessments typically involve an interview or series of interviews between the age-disputed person and two appropriately qualified social workers. They should also consider any other information obtained, including the views of other people with a role in the young person’s life. However, local authorities face significant challenges in conducting these assessments.
	This section confers a power on the Secretary of State to conduct full age assessments on age-disputed persons, upon referral from a local authority. Local authorities will retain the right to conduct age assessments themselves if they prefer to do so. This decision-making function, referred to as the National Age Assessment Board, will largely consist of a team of qualified social workers dedicated to age assessments.
	The intention is that the establishment of the board will achieve greater consistency in quality of assessments and reduce the incentives for adults to provide incorrect ages. In doing so, it will seek to reduce the financial and administrative burden of undertaking assessments on local authorities and ensure that the ages of those people are recorded accurately for the purposes of their immigration or asylum application.
	Subsection 1 provides that local authorities or a public authority specified in regulations made by the Secretary of State, may refer an age-disputed person to a designated person for an age assessment to be conducted. A designated person is defined in clause 49 as an official designated by the Secretary of State to conduct age assessments under this section.
	Subsection 2 defines the circumstances in which the actions required under subsections 3 and 4 apply. The first circumstance is where a local authority - needs to know the age of an age-disputed person for the purposes of deciding whether or how to exercise any of its functions under relevant children’s legislation. This may happen where, for example, a person who is subject to immigration control presents to the local authority seeking support as a child, and the local authority needs to establish their age in order to decide, whether to provide them with children’s support. The second circumstance is where the Secretary of State notifies a local authority that it doubts that an age-disputed person, in relation to whom the local authority has exercised or may exercise functions under relevant children’s legislation, is the age that they claim to be. This may happen where, for example, a person who is subject to immigration control presents to the Home Office claiming to be a child, and the Home Office decides to refer them to a local authority on the basis that, although their age is doubted, they may be a child who requires local authority support, and an age assessment is needed to establish this.
	Subsection 3 requires that where subsection 2 applies, a local authority must either refer the age-disputed person to the designated person to conduct an age assessment or conduct an age assessment themselves and inform the Secretary of State of the results of its assessment. Alternatively, if the local authority is satisfied the person is the age they claim to be and considers that an age assessment is not required, the local authority must notify the Secretary of State of this in writing.
	Subsection 4 requires that where a local authority either conducts an assessment themselves or confirms that they are satisfied that the age of an age-disputed person is as claimed, they must, on request from the Secretary of State, provide the Secretary of State with such evidence as the Secretary of State reasonably requires, to allow the Secretary of State to consider that decision.
	Subsection 5 requires that, where a local authority refers an age-disputed person to a designated person for an age assessment, the local authority must provide any assistance that the designated person reasonably requires for the purposes of conducting that assessment.
	Subsection 6 stipulates that the standard of proof for an age assessment under this section, either conducted by the designated person or a local authority, is the balance of probabilities.
	Subsection 7 stipulates that an age assessment conducted by a designated person under this section following a referral from a local authority is binding on the Secretary of State and on a local authority that is aware of the age assessment. Whether the assessment is binding or continues to be binding is subject to section 54 (Appeals relating to age assessments) which provides a right of appeal against an age assessment conducted by the designated person or a local authority. It is also subject to section 56, (Civil legal services relating to age assessments) which makes provision about situations where new information comes to light after an age assessment has been conducted or an appeal against that assessment has been determined. This means that the age assessment conducted by a designated person would no longer be binding if it is overturned on appeal, or if a new assessment decision is taken under section 56 because significant new evidence has come to light.
	Subsection 8 specifies that regulations under subsection (1)(b) are subject to the negative resolution procedure. Where regulations under this Act are subject to "negative resolution procedure" the statutory instrument containing the regulations is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.