16yr old has no access to her ID

[leavesinthebreeze]

NC for this as quite outing.
Basics are:
16yr old has runaway from home. She is now settled and safe with a family friend. Social services are satisfied she is safe so have closed the case with her. She has applied to start college in September. The problem we currently have is that her parents are withholding her passport and her birth certificate. She was born in Bangladesh but moved here 5 years ago. We have been unable to get her an NI number, register her at a GP surgery or open a bank account because she has no ID. I sought legal advice (free) who said get the police involved. The police said seek legal advice. I have emailed the Bangladeshi consulate to enquire about a replacement birth certificate it not heard back yet. College told her she can get a bursary when she starts there but with no ID this is not definite now. I have contacted Muslim Women’s Network who have been supportive but there seems to be no way to get these documents without having to pay gor replacements (money she doesn’t have). She is currently looking for part time work and has a share code to show she it’s entitled to live and work here. The family friend she is living with is not an official guardian and SS did not suggest that should happen.

Has anyone got any extra advice or anything I have missed in trying to get these documents from her parents?

I am assuming she has a Bangladeshi Passport because she has a Share Code.

If she has lived here for 5 years she is possibly eligible for ILR.

She can go down to the Bangladeshi High Commission in London and get a replacement passport, emergency travel documentation and a replacement NID. She will need to make an appointment and find out what documents she needs to take. They will accept the application because social services have been involved and there is a safe guarding concern.

She will need to report her passport stolen and get a crime reference number. She needs to state that her passport is being withheld unlawfully by her parents and she wants to report the documents as stolen. She can say she has fear for her personal safety and would like them to accompany her to retrieve the documents. This would save a lot of money but also put her through the trauma of facing them. If any of this is refused, ask for a supervisor and escalate it. Even raise a formal complaint if you have to. They need to issue a crime reference number at the start.

Her case with child services needs to be reopened. She might be physically safe but she cannot access employment, education, financial services or health care. They should be made aware that the parents are refusing to give over the ID and should help intervene.

I am not sure why you are being asked for ID to register with a GP. Surely, you simply need to be in the catchment area to enrol at the surgery. What specifically is the reasons he is being declined.

For a Bank Account, Try Monzo 16-17 account. They will accept her college offer letter. The Share Code. They can do alternative ID checks.

The DWP can issue her with a national insurance number with her share code, college letter and a letter from her child services case worker. She wont be able to upload photos but she can still apply online and then be seen in person at an appointment.

Once she has her passport - she needs to apply for ILR and get help with those fees through either social services or Childrens charities. She needs to do that because her next step will be applying for her British Citizenship.

Good Luck.

Also for better advice I recommend putting this in Legal Advice.

Thank you so much for responding.

SS have said the case is closed because there is no safeguarding concern as she is safe and settled where she is now living. SS emailed the parents to ask for the documents but the parents didn’t respond. SS were of no use.
Police said it is absolutely not their concern and they will not get involved unless she goes there and the parents try to force her to stay then she can call 999

I phoned UC to see if she is entitled to anything but they said no as she has no ID and no NI number.

NI can’t help without ID

i have spent all afternoon trying to call the Bangladeshi consulate in both Birmingham and London and couldn’t get through.

GP require proof of address/last GP address/NHS number - to be fair I have since been told that they may be able to work round it if the adult she lives with is already registered at the surgery so we are trying that tomorrow.

She ILR already.

Hadn’t thought of Monzo so will try that, thank you. Apologies if I have repeated anything was just trying to answer anything in your post. Thank you so much again.

I will ask this to be moved to legal

Realistically the documents are going to need to be reported as stolen and get a crime number.

That should start to unlock things.

The more documents can get in her name, the easier it is to get even more.

Is she old enough for the electoral roll? I think registration age varies between England / Scotland / Wales. Worth checking. GP wise, she should be able to request a summary of her records from her previous GO (or basically any information) under data protection laws. That gets another ‘official’ document.

It would be worth looking at a provisional driving licence. It looks like you can apply for one of those through the share code route and they’re £34.

Thank you for replying.

She doesn’t know where her last GP was but I am confident we can get her registered now if we go in face to face.

We are going to apply for her provisional tomorrow so hopefully that will go through.

I think you are right re reporting her passport as stolen.

It just seems everyone we contact tells us to contact someone else! Just need to find that one golden thread.

The issue all to often is that The Police, Social Services etc CAN take action but dont/wont and need pushing.

Clearly if she reports her passport as stolen, Mum & Dad can find themselves in an interview room in The Police Station and the house raided.

Which might act 'pour encourager les autres' in the community.

Previous school? That might be another way to get a ‘something’ as a start.

Letter from social services to her about her case would be another.

The previous school was a strict Muslim school - she doesn’t want to contact them.
Both parents are high up Drs so I was hoping the police even just phoning them would be enough to shame them into giving the documents. Nothing to do with it but the father is a gynaecologist consultant or something which pisses me off even more due to how he treats his daughter

Just tried Monzo - can’t proceed without driving licence or passport 🤦🏽‍♀️

We have a letter from social services and a citizens card

Deluded.

After speaking to the police I have no hope they will do anything.

Why did she runaway? I am assuming abusive parents? And I assume if contacted they say everything is fine and she should come home or even be brought home.

https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/find-nhs-number/

You can find her NHS number here

We can’t - they will only send it to her parents email, her parents mobile or to her parents home address

Why would they?

If the items have been stolen they'll simply give a CAD number for helping report it to the relevant issuing authorities, but they're not a lost documents agency and neither is social services

Was she removed from her parents care? Why isnt she living with them? How does she not know what GP surgery she was at? Does she have the NHS app? Does she have any documents from school, exams taken? Does she have a smart phone? Who pays the bill is it in her name (shouldnt be but some of them are) Any school letters or papers? Any friends who can intervene for her or wider family?

Exactly this. But not physically. She first ran away 2 years ago (think I had a thread on here at the time but can’t find it) SS and the police were involved- after a week they forced her back. She has bided her time until she was 16 and finished her exams.

Because that was the advice I got from the Muslim Women’s Network and other legal advice - to seek assistance from the police. She cannot go safely to her parents house to plead with them because they will force her to stay and then take her to Bangladesh which is what they did last time. This time she is worried they won’t bring her back to England.

She voluntarily left her parents care because of their behaviour towards her.

She is a healthy 16yr old and both her parents are doctors - she has had no cause to go to a GP nor ask where her Gp surgery is.

The only paperwork she has is her share code and a citizens card plus a photo of her Bangladeshi passport

She doesn’t have the NHS app - whilst looking for her NHS number all the contact information is her parents

Re the phone - it is PAYG and the adult she is living with has put some credit on for her

Well the police arent there to resolve child/parent spats and missing document issues.

If she has a photo of her passport then she can contact the relevant embassy and find out how to report it lost/stolen, get it cancelled and apply for a new one, however most foreign embassies that I have visited with children to get passports need the birth parent with them with their birth certificate, they want the parent to sign the documents not a third party. I dont know if being over 16 would make a difference for the Bangladeshi embassy or what their requirements are

She might not want to go to Bangladesh or agree with her parents expectations of her but they have PR for her and no one else does, I presume.

I had a bit of advice training on helping homeless without an address or ID

GP surgery are supposed to see a person without an address or ID but often apparently come up with reasons not to do this

banks must give a simple bank account without overdraft but can’t remember which high street bank was best, but try Lloyds hsbc Barclays

No, she doesn’t want to go to Bangladesh and be forced to get married. No she doesn’t want to be kept pretty much a prisoner in her own home unless accompanied by her parents or a family member. Yes she did want to wear a bra because she needed to which her parents refused to let her.

It is not a ‘spat’ with her parents. SS agree she is safer and better suited where she is now - they have met the parents. I have met the mother and spoken to the father and no way would I encourage her to return to them. I thought we were supposed to help protect youngsters? Without all these documents we are finding it hard re finances, health and education. All because her family only care about shame and appearances. We will find a way to get her the things she needs - but even a replacement birth certificate and passport is over £150!

She could try to contact the Home Office for immigration documents. She'll need to check if her ILR is based on her being a dependent of her parents or whether its in her own right. If its based her being a dependent of theirs she'll need legal advice from the Refugee Council as to whether she can make a claim in her own right and for what reason.

Thank you. Barclays were a no. We went there today.
Natwest accept a citizens card so we are trying it next. The problem being is that she is 16 and the lady she is living with is not her official guardian