Thousands of asylum seekers left unable to afford food as financial support stops

Exclusive: Families with babies and young children forced into ‘state of destitution’ amid botched transfer of asylum debit card contracts, say charities

Thousands of asylum seekers are still yet to receive their new Aspen cards or have been unable to activate them, leaving them without any money (AFP via Getty Images)

Thousands of asylum seekers have been left unable to afford food for several days after their financial support was cut off during a Home Office contract changeover, charities have warned.

NGOs say vulnerable people, including families with babies and children, are being forced into a “state of destitution” after their Aspen cards – a form of debit card issued to asylum seekers so they can buy basic supplies – stopped working.

The issue has arisen after a Home Office decision to end its Aspen card contract with facilities management company Sodexo and begin a new contract with financial technology firm Prepaid Financial Services.

The transition took place over the weekend. Asylum seekers had been informed that on Saturday and Sunday they would not be able to access funds – a weekly allowance of £39.63 if they are in a house and £8 if they are in a full-board hotel – while the transfer between the old and new Aspen card took place, but that the new cards would be usable from Monday.

However, charities said on Wednesday that thousands of people were either yet to receive their new cards or had been unable to activate them, leaving them without any money.

Campaigners said the situation was “entirely avoidable” and that the contract transition should have been tested before being rolled out across the UK over one weekend.

By the end of the week I will have no food left. I have run out of milk today. I will try to go to the food bank tomorrow. I feel stressed

Asylum seeker in London

Migrant Help, a charity contracted by the Home Office to provide support services to asylum seekers, has been inundated with phone calls from people unable to access money, with individuals having to wait on hold for hours before getting through to them.

Meanwhile, charities are having to plug the gaps to support people unable to buy food and other basic essentials – with some reportedly having to turn people away due to the high demand.

One asylum seeker who is still without an Aspen card told The Independent he and his partner were surviving off basic food with no fresh fruit or vegetables after they spent the last of their money on nappies for their eight-month-old son.

“We’re running out of food. We have just a few basic things for my son. We save the vegetables we have left for him. My fiancee and I have just been eating bread or pasta,” said the 31-year-old, who lives in Bradford.

The man, who arrived in the UK with his family in December after fleeing death threats in his home country, contacted Migrant Help and was told the charity would try to arrange an emergency payment for him from the Home Office, but it would first need to be approved by the department.

Migrant Help referred him to the local British Red Cross branch in the meantime – but he said that when he phoned that charity he was told they did not have capacity as they were inundated with requests for help from other asylum seekers facing the same problem.

In another case, a woman living in a shared house in Tower Hamlets in east London, who is also still waiting for her new Aspen card, said she had only a small amount of food left before she would run out. She said three out of six asylum seekers living in her house were still waiting for their new card.

The woman, who is in her early 50s, said she had waited on hold to Migrant Help for three hours on Wednesday before giving up on trying to get through.

“By the end of the week I will have no food left. I have run out of milk today. I will try to go to the food bank tomorrow. I feel stressed. If they answered the phone they might help us, but I think the line is busy because lots of people are having the same problem,” she said.

In many cases cards have been sent to the wrong addresses – sometimes to properties or hotels the individual moved from months ago.

One individual’s Aspen card was sent to the hotel he was previously living in which was decommissioned two months ago, while a number of cards have been sent to a hotel in London which was decommissioned in February, according to charity Care4Calais.

"It’s bad enough that the Home Office system is failing but worse that there is no safety net – it shouldn’t be up to charities like ours to ensure vulnerable people don’t starve,” said Clare Moseley, founder of the charity.

Emma Birks, campaigns manager at Asylum Matters, said the “widespread hardship and distress […] could and should have been foreseen, and was entirely avoidable”.

“Thousands of vulnerable families across Britain have now been left for days without any cash for food and other essentials.

“With so much at stake, the transition should have been thoroughly tested before being rolled out across the whole of the UK over a single weekend, with ... contingency plans put in place,” she added.

Robina Qureshi, of Positive Housing in Action in Glasgow, said the organisation had received over 130 calls and messages in the last three days from people facing problems, describing the situation as an “unforgivable mess”.

We are talking about families with children and babies as well as men and women, many of whom are suffering mental health trauma

Robina Qureshi, Positive Housing in Action

“We are talking about families with children and babies as well as men and women, many of whom are suffering mental health trauma,” she said.

“This is the tip of the iceberg as far as we can see and it’s very likely that there will be people forgotten or lost in the system for some weeks to come.”

A Migrant Help spokesperson said its helpline had been “extremely busy” over the past few days and apologised to those having difficulties getting through.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “A new service to provide asylum seekers with financial support went live on Monday and we are assisting everyone affected to ensure they get access to their payments swiftly.

“We provided clear advice to asylum seekers that they must activate their new cards prior to the service going live and the vast majority of individuals have done so.

“Those who have issues or are unsure how they can activate their cards are able to contact the 24/7 Migrant Help helpline. Accommodation Providers can facilitate emergency cash payments in the meantime.”

Prepaid Financial Services have been approached for comment.