Guidance

Use of shop profits (accessible)

Updated 13 March 2024

March 2024

Document details

Process

To provide guidance on the appropriate use of profits generated by the shops in operation at immigration removal centres, residential short-term holding facilities and pre- departure accommodation.

Publication date

March 2024

Implementation date

July 2013 (reissued March 2024)

Review date

March 2026

Version

4.0

Contains mandatory instructions

For action

All Home Office staff and contracted service providers operating in immigration removal centres, residential short-term holding facilities and pre-departure accommodation.

For information

Home Office (HO) caseworkers

Author and unit

Anitha Sundaram, Detention Services

Owner

Michelle Smith, Head of Detention Operations

Contact point

Detention Services Orders Team

Processes affected

Use of shop profits.

Assumptions

N/A

Notes

None

Instruction

Introduction

1. This Detention Services Order (DSO) provides guidance on the appropriate use of profits generated by the shops in operation at immigration removal centres (IRC), residential short-term holding facilities (RSTHF) and pre-departure accommodation (PDA), and to ensure standardisation across the immigration detention estate. References to “centre” in this document cover IRCs, RSTHFs and PDA.

2. Detention Services Operating Standards for IRCs require that the gross profits generated through IRC shop sales must be made available and used for the benefit of detained individuals. The same principle applies to RSTHFs and PDA.

3. This instruction does not apply to Residential Holding Rooms (RHRs).

4. Contracted service providers must hold separate accounts for shop sales and activity.

5. Two different Home Office teams operate in IRCs:

• Detention Services Compliance team (Compliance team)

• Immigration Enforcement Detention Engagement team (DET)

The Compliance team are responsible for all on-site commercial and contract monitoring work. The DETs interact with detained individuals face-to-face on behalf of responsible officers within the IRCs. They focus on communicating and engaging with people detained at IRCs, helping them to understand their cases and detention.

There are no DETs at residential STHFs, functions which are the responsibility of the DET in RSTHFs are carried out by the Contracted Service Provider and overseen by the Escorting Contract Monitoring Team (ECMT).

Procedures

6. Contracted service providers may sell items in the shop for no more than the cost price plus 5%. Any exceptions to pricing under these criteria (including selling items at RRP) must be agreed in advance with the on-site Detention Services (DS) Compliance Manager (Grade HEO or above).

7. All shop profit spend must be approved by the relevant Compliance Manager (Grade HEO or above) as outlined below (paragraphs 11-14).

8. The use of shop profits and their benefits to the detained individuals, must give due regard to advancing equality and eliminating discrimination.

9. Detained individuals should be regularly consulted on proposals and encouraged to provide suggestions for shop profit spend. For IRCs, this may include a standing agenda item at monthly consultative meetings.

10. Shop profits must not be used to purchase items or provide services which are part of the terms of any commercial contract or service level agreement between the Home Office and contracted service providers; unless it is otherwise agreed in writing with the relevant Compliance Manager (Grade HEO or above) to purchase an item of higher quality which is deemed to be for the benefit of detained individuals. In these instances, the centre supplier will only be required to pay the replacement value (as per the terms of the commercial contract) with the difference in cost made up by the shop profits.

Process for approving shop profit spend

11. Contracted service providers must complete the request form at Annex A for any proposal to spend shop profits. This must include details of the spending request providing justification as to the benefit for detained individuals.

12. For any proposed spend totalling £1,000 or less, the contracted service provider must submit the completed request form to the on-site Compliance Manager (Grade HEO or above), for consideration and, if in agreement, approval (this should be the Home Office ECMT for RSTHFs as they do not have onsite Compliance Managers).

13. For any proposed spend over £1,000, the contracted service provider must submit the completed request form to the Home Office Service Delivery Manager (Grade G7 or above), via the on-site Compliance Manager (or Home Office ECMT for RSTHFs) for consideration. If in agreement with the proposal, the Service Delivery Manager will submit the proposal for discussion at the DS Operations senior management team meeting. The final decision will be made by the Head of Detention Operations (Grade 6) who reserves the right to spend the funds across the wider detention estate.

14. No funds should be taken from the shop profit accounts until the request form at Annex A has been authorised.

Shop accounts

15. Contracted service providers should undertake a monthly audit of the shop account and provide a copy to the on-site Compliance Manager (Grade HEO or above) or Home Office ECMT in case of RSTHFs within seven days following the end of each calendar month.

16. On-site Compliance Managers must report available shop profits and details of recent spend to the Service Delivery Manager on a monthly basis. Service Delivery Managers should submit returns to the Head of Detention Operations for collation ahead of the monthly DS Operations SMT. This is to ensure that estate wide cumulative funds are captured, and a consistent approach is taken on spend.

Revision history

Review date	Reviewed by	Review outcome	Next review
Oct 2016	D Perkins	General update/reformat and change to approval process	Oct 2018
Nov 2019	S Ali	Amended to include the roll out of DET and individual responsibilities	Nov 2021
Mar 2024	A Sundaram	General update with standardised changes	Mar 2026

Annex A

Shop profit account request form

IRC/RSTHF/PDA location

Details of spending request (supporting documentation must be attached, if applicable)

Approval is hereby given to release the amount of £ x,xxx.xx (incl.VAT if applicable), to facilitate and action the above spending request.

Invoice number and details

The cost of the purchase from shop profits totals: £x,xxx.xx

Total

£x,xxx.xx

Authorised persons

Centre manager

• Name (Print)
• Signature
• Date

On-site compliance manager

• Name (Print)
• Signature
• Date