Children’s social services bosses have launched an outspoken attack on the government’s illegal migration bill, warning it could lead to thousands of youngsters in care running away “into the arms” of traffickers and criminals. The Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) in England said the proposed legislation undermined existing laws that protect children, and contradicted the government’s own vision for children in care, “Stable Homes, Built on Love”, outlined last month. “If implemented, the bill will irreversibly distort the care system. The care system is not, nor should it be, a holding mechanism for the immigration system,” said Steve Crocker, the ADCS president. He added: “When a child first comes into our care, our primary focus is to find them a permanent, stable home as set out in statute. We cannot carry out this essential work if they are to be removed as soon as they turn 18 years old despite having care leaving rights and entitlements up to 25 years. “The UN convention on the rights of the child states that in all actions concerning children, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration. Sadly, this bill is a clear step away from over 30 years of custom and practice in this country.” He added: “All children in this country, irrespective of where they were born, have the right to a safe and nurturing environment.” The bill proposes to detain and deport asylum seekers who arrive in the UK by irregular means in small boats or in the back of lorries. Unaccompanied children will be deported when they turn 18. The Refugee Council estimates 40,000 children will be affected in the first three years if the bill becomes law. The ADCS said the statement reflected the serious concerns of local authority children’s services heads about the “damaging effect” the bill would have on children who had arrived in the UK having fled desperate situations. By law councils have a duty to safeguard all children in their care and ensure their needs are met. Under the Children Act 1989, for example, they are required to secure permanence for children in care. This would be impossible if, as the bill proposes, children covered by the act are deported on their 18th birthday. This cohort of migrant children would in effect become part of a two-tier care system in which they had fewer care rights than their contemporaries. It was likely to create “an incentive for children to run away before they turn 18 into the arms of exploiters and traffickers to avoid being returned to their home country”, Crocker said. He added the lack of permanency would create “unintended safeguarding risks” for unaccompanied minors in local authority care, and children who are detained with their family in Home Office accommodation, for whom it was not clear where safeguarding responsibilities lay. Crocker said the bill ran counter to the government’s own vision for children in care, set out with great fanfare in February in its response to the independent review of children’s care. The children’s care minister, Claire Coutinho, said at the time youngsters in care “deserve the same love and stability as everyone else” and that “more needed to be done to protect our most vulnerable children”. A Home Office spokesperson said: “We recognise the particular vulnerability of children who are often forced into making life-threatening journeys to the UK which are being facilitated by criminal gangs who have little regard for their safety. “Unaccompanied children who arrive in the UK illegally will be provided with the necessary accommodation and support but they will not be able to settle in the UK once they turn 18. “Taking these measures will send a clear message that children cannot be exploited and forced into crossing the Channel in small boats for the purpose of starting a new life in the UK. The only way to come to the UK for protection will be through safe and legal routes. This will take power out of the hands of the criminal gangs and protect vulnerable people, including children.”