March 2026
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This conference will examine next steps for the UK asylum system. Delegates will consider priorities for reform across decision-making and appeals, accommodation and local delivery, settlement routes and integration, and the balance between efficiency, safeguards and the UK’s legal obligations.
It will bring together key stakeholders and policymakers to discuss implications of the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025 and proposals set out in the Home Office policy statement Restoring Order and Control including the Home Secretary’s proposal to move away from automatic, permanent protection towards a more conditional and time-limited status.
We expect discussion to focus on priorities for policy development and implementation, and practical next steps for tribunal services, local authorities, contracted providers and other stakeholders - including asylum seekers - if reforms are to deliver improved timeliness and consistency without undermining fairness and confidence.
Indefinite Leave to Remain
Sessions will bring out latest thinking on proposals to remove routine settlement and family reunion rights from those granted asylum moving forward, and for new requirements to be introduced for indefinite leave to remain. Attendees will consider how reforms might affect clarity and predictability for people with protection status, as well as expectations on local services and community organisations supporting integration.
Delegates will examine options to amend the standard qualifying period for ILR and develop a contribution-based model, including how such requirements might be designed and evidenced in practice - and how routes from temporary status to longer-term residence could remain workable and transparent. Discussion is also expected on implications for access to work, education and other integration pathways, alongside potential impacts for employers, advice providers and local delivery partners.
Asylum accommodation
Further sessions will focus on the future of accommodation, in light of the Government’s commitment to end the use of hotels for asylum seekers by 2029 and the £200m allocated in Spending Review 2025 to support transition. Delegates will consider priorities for deployment of this funding and what may be needed to support delivery across different local authority areas and housing markets.
We expect a focus on approaches to designing alternative accommodation arrangements that are workable for local authorities and communities, alongside practicalities of improving contract management where performance has been a main concern. This includes how the relocation and dispersal process can be made more predictable, how procurement and oversight can support transparency and value, and how pressures on local housing, safeguarding, resettlement and integration capacity can be better managed.
Policy proposals & implementation
Attendees will consider establishment and priorities for the proposed new independent body to process asylum appeals, including practical considerations for accelerated timelines, how the body might interact with wider reform to the First-tier Tribunal, and what may be needed to support independence and transparency. Linked issues for discussion include the effect of appeal timetables on accommodation support, and the extent to which increased capacity can be achieved through resourcing, process change and wider court and tribunal reform.
Sessions will also examine the proposed move towards conditional and time-limited protection, including risks of prolonged uncertainty for people with existing refugee status and implications for integration and community stability. Further areas for discussion include the interaction between asylum decision-making, returns and detention policy, and what safeguards and operational capacity would be required if faster returns are pursued where claims are refused.
System efficiency, quality, fairness & rights
Options for improving system efficiency will be assessed, particularly for achieving increased capacity aims, fewer delays, and faster resolution of claims and appeals. Delegates will discuss what is needed to strengthen quality assurance in asylum decisions, and how delivery models can maintain consistency where processes are accelerated.
Discussion will consider how reform can align with the UK’s human rights and international obligations, including stakeholder concerns over access to legal aid and transparency in detention and removal processes. The use of digital systems and facial recognition technology in enforcement will also be discussed, including priorities for privacy and oversight, mitigating risks of discrimination, and support needed for claimants to navigate increasingly digital processes.
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. As well as key stakeholders, those already due to attend include parliamentary pass-holders from the House of Lords and officials from the Department for Business and Trade; Department of Health and Social Care; Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government; Care Quality Commission; National Audit Office; National Crime Agency; Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office; Government Legal Department; Office for National Statistics; Office for Investment; Home Office; the Welsh Government; and The Scottish Government.
