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?

Thank you. I have tried to contact the Bangladesh consulate today but no answer so I have emailed them and messaged them. Hadn’t thought of Home Office - I can try them tomorrow.

Was she on a CP plan or CHIN plan? Were the LA starting proceedings to remove her from their care?

I would suggest she makes an appointment at her previous gp surgery for something she needs a prescription

wont her nhs number be on her prescription

Well the police arent there to resolve child/parent spats

Way to minimise child abuse there.

OP, try also Southall Black Sisters. They may have advice, even if the girl is outwith their catchment area for casework.

No. Nothing. When she first ran away 2 years ago and was returned the SS and police asked her in front of her parents if she was scared of them. She said no. She has bided her time for 2 years not putting a foot wrong until she turned 16 and had finished her GCSEs then she ran. The SS where she ran from have closed her case as they are satisfied where she now is and SS where she now is are not interested because she is safe and well. And to be fair I can understand why SS have said no because she isn’t at risk of immediate harm and is safe and SS have far more urgent cases. Police haven’t been involved this time.

She could walk in and ask reception for her NHS number.

She doesn’t know where her previous surgery is. She hasn’t had cause to go in the 5 years she has lived here. We do know she is registered but we can’t find out where.

To be fair I am more optimistic about the Doctors helping now after speaking to them.

the SS and police asked her in front of her parents if she was scared of them

JFC how fucking incompetent. Of course she won't say "actually, yes, I'm scared of being abducted to Pakistan, forcibly married, and raped by the cousin I've been forcibly married to" if her parents are stood right in front of her.

I know. It beggars belief. We had to chase them (SS) to state officially where she is now living as part of proof of address and even that was a struggle.

Is there is a risk of forced marriage or her being forced to stay if she tries to go for her documents then maybe try here:

The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) is a joint public service run by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and the Home Office that provides confidential advice, safety support, and rescue operations. You can reach them to stop a forced marriage or get help leaving one. 1, 2, 3]
Contact Details

• Phone (UK): 020 7008 0151 (Monday to Friday, 9 am to 5 pm)
• Phone (Overseas): +44 (0)20 7008 0151
• Out of Hours: 020 7008 5000 (ask for the Global Response Centre)
• Email: [email protected]

Some advice here

@leavesinthebreeze

I wonder if any of these may be of use Childline, Karma Nirvana, or Rights4children

The local authority does have a duty of care even though she may be sleeping on a friend’s floor, or on their sofa, this also counts as not having a home.

You have no idea if this is abuse and neither does anyone else, even the person housing her right now. Plenty of families with different cultural practices are not abusive but their children may not want to do what is expected and that is a legitimate view on both sides but is not necessarily abusive.

Read the OP update that describes how the girl is being treated.

From the Foreign and Commonwealth Office: "If you’re under 18 any marriage is considered a forced marriage, even if there is no physical or emotional pressure involved."

Her parents have arranged a marriage for her. She's 16. This is illegal, as well as unequivocally abusive.

Plenty of families with different cultural practices are not abusive but their children may not want to do what is expected and that is a legitimate view on both sides but is not necessarily abusive.

This paragraph of yours is an example of what people call "being so open-minded that your brain has fallen out".

I believe this is beyond cultural practices and beliefs. As did her previous school. They also contacted SS and that is when the family upped and moved 2hours away and put her into a Muslim school.

An arranged marriage is not a forced marriage. Different countries do have different expectations. She is far too young for marriage I dont disagree but theres a reason the police and social services are not intervening.

No, her parents haven’t arranged a marriage for her. It is a threat they have used previously and concern she has. When she ran away last time as soon as she was returned home they took her back to Bangladesh and convinced her they wouldn’t return to England. But they did the day before started her new school.

Does she have proof of her old address?
She might be able to go to the post office with the letter from SS proving her new address and some other proof like a letter from the bank and get her post redirected.

Then she could get the NHS to send her NHS number by post and it would be redirected.

The catch is it’s £45 for 3 months redirection and she’d need proof of her old and new address like bank letters.

At 16, it's legally a forced marriage.

SS are not intervening because they are happy where she is now. The police have not been involved this time (except for me asking advice about her documents but not giving names etc)

How can anyone be sure that the threat is an idle one this time around?

I was referring to the period of time she was at home, she was on a CP plan? PLO?

I didnt make reference to this girl, Im simply saying that in this country English people view arranged marriages as 'forced' marriages, its a common mistake made and being repeated here.

No she doesn’t. I wish she had told me she was planning to leave again so I could have advised her what to bring with her! She doesn’t have a bank account. Nothing with her name on apart from her share code and a photo of her Bangladeshi passport. She thinks she has a British passport too but no way to find out.