NICOLA BODEN

An asylum backlog in the UK has condemned around 100,000 vulnerable children to years of poverty, uncertainty and fear, according to a leading children's charity.

New procedures introduced by the Home Office mean that families arriving in the UK to claim asylum will now be swiftly returned to their own country if their claim fails.

But Barnardo's, which welcomes these changes, says there is still a huge backlog of families unaffected by the legislation which could take up to 2011 to clear.

It argues that the current laws which prevent asylum seekers working in the UK mean they cannot support themselves and their children.

The charity wants the backlog to be dealt with urgently and for any parents who are in the UK for longer than six months to be allowed to work to support their families.

Its report Like Any Other Child? discovered that some asylum seekers had to wait up to 10 years before their cases were resolved.

It also revealed that their children faced "shocking" disadvantages due to their parents' small benefits allowance, often living in damp and unsafe housing, suffering "aggressive racial abuse" and frequently having to move schools.

Asylum seekers also had to live for years without knowing whether they would be forced to leave the UK and take their children back to countries they might never have known.

Kirsi, 29, fled to the UK from Kenya in 2004 after being tortured by rebels because they wanted information on her husband who was involved in a land rights dispute.

She and her son Daniel, three, now live in a damp, overcrowded flat in a Glasgow tower block and struggle because, although Kirsi is a trained accounts clerk and has since attained a Scottish computer qualification, she is not allowed to work.

"The longer my application takes, the more chances I miss. I want to be contributing to society and providing a better life for Danny, but I am forced to rely on benefits," she said.

Barnardo's, which is officially launching its report today, is calling on the Home Office to re-address the current asylum process and focus on children's needs.

It also suggests the families should not be put in an area with a history of harassment.