No, not all small boat migrants get free entry to English Heritage sites

What is the claim?

GB News broadcaster Darren Grimes, known for spreading misinformation, has claimed on Facebook that people who enter the U.K. on boats are given free entry to English heritage sites. 

Grimes shared a screenshot on the social media platform, seemingly from the website of English Heritage, a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings, and places in the U.K. The text in the screenshot reads, "I AM A REFUGEE. DO I QUALIFY FOR FREE ENTRY TO ENGLISH HERITAGE SITES? Yes, if you have been granted refugee status or have been given leave to remain as a displaced person, you can visit English Heritage sites for free."

"That's it, I'm destroying my passport and coming over as a boat person. What else do they get for free?" Grimes wrote on his X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook accounts on September 11, 2024, along with the above-mentioned screenshot. Archived versions of the posts can be seen here and here.

Grimes also posted on X, "Illegal migrants can see our history for free whilst we have to pay. All aspects of our lives are becoming a conduit to pay for these people. It's madness." Archived versions of the posts can be found here and here.

Screenshots of social media posts claiming that illegal migrants entering the U.K. on boats are given free entry to English heritage sites. (Source: Screenshots/X/Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, those arriving in the U.K. on small boats are not refugees but migrants or asylum seekers, and not all of them get accepted as refugees or get free access to English Heritage sites. 

What did we find?

We found that the viral screenshot was taken from the FAQ section of the English Heritage website. The FAQ, which is visible in the viral screenshot with a part of the answer, clearly mentions that refugees must bring their Biometric Residency Permit (BRP) to get free access to English Heritage sites. 

Screenshot of the FAQ section of the English Heritage website. (Source: Screenshot/English Heritage)

A BRP is proof of the holder's right to stay, work or study in the U.K. and can also be used as a form of identification.

This clarifies that only those asylum seekers who have been given permission to stay in the U.K. and are BRP holders qualify for free entry to English Heritage sites. 

Refugees and small boat migrants

Robert McNeil, Deputy Director of the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, agreed that all people who enter the U.K. through small boats cannot be counted as refugees. "But the vast majority of small boat arrivals do apply for asylum - the first step in the process of definition as a refugee," McNeil told Logically Facts, adding that "seeking asylum is not proof that the claim has been proved and that the claimant has been granted refugee status."

According to data from the Migration Observatory, since 2018, about 110,000 people (93 percent of who arrived in the U.K. on small boats during this time) either applied for asylum or were listed as dependents on an asylum application. The Observatory also stated that, by the end of March 2024, less than half (45 percent) of main asylum applications had received an initial decision and many were either withdrawn or deemed withdrawn, while others are still awaiting processing. Of the asylum applications decided, 77 percent —around 34,500— were granted refugee status or given some form of permission to stay.

According to Home Office statistics, between 2018 and June 2024, there have been 3,788 returns of people who arrived by small boat, or 3 percent of all small boat arrivals during this time. In the year ending June 2024, 2,336 individuals who arrived by small boats were returned, making up 8 percent of all enforced and voluntary returns for that year. 

The grant rate for people arriving in small boats to date is higher than the average grant rate for asylum applications generally. In the year to March 31 2024, 62 percent (54,372) of all asylum decisions (87,501) were grants of refugee status or other permission to stay.

However, not all the people who enter the U.K. on boats apply for asylum, and out of the applicants, not everyone gets accepted, with many of them being returned, which automatically disqualifies them from benefits including free entry to English Heritage sites.

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently stated that he would not set a specific deadline for stopping the crossings. A BBC report quoted him as saying in an interview that he was "absolutely determined" to address the smuggling gangs behind these crossings but also refrained from committing to a timeline.

The verdict

Not everyone who enters the U.K. on small boats qualifies for free entry to English Heritage sites. Data clearly shows that while most of these migrants do apply for asylum in the U.K. and many of them are granted some form of asylum, if not refugee status, a certain percentage are also rejected or withdrawn and do not get the Biometric Residency Permit required for accessing English Heritage sites for free.