Thousands of lone child asylum seekers left in limbo by Home Office, data shows

Since 2020 more than 7,500 children in UK have waited more than a year for initial asylum decision - and 57 for more than five years

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Thousands of lone child asylum seekers have been left in limbo by the Home Office without a decision on their protection claims, with dozens waiting more than five years, official data has revealed.

Home Office data shows that over the past three years more than 7,500 children who travelled alone to the UK waited more than a year for an initial decision on whether or not to accept their asylum claim.