Nigerian suicide girl wins bid to stay in Britain

A 10-year-old Nigerian girl who tried to kill herself three days after being put in a detention centre for the second time has won an injunction against removal from the UK with her family.

Adeoti Ogunsola was taken from the care of her aunt to Tinsley House immigration removal centre at Gatwick on 15 October. She was reunited at the airport with her mother Clementina, but tried to take her own life on Sunday while her mother slept.

The girl, who had attended a primary school in Gillingham, Kent, was detained in Yarl's Wood immigration centre in Bedfordshire earlier this year before being released.

In a report, a child psychotherapist warned that her mental state would deteriorate if she was detained again and she might attempt to kill herself.

A High Court judge yesterday stopped the family's removal to Nigeria after an 11th-hour legal challenge overturned the repatriation plans. It is understood the pair have been placed back in detention and a judicial review is expected on Wednesday.

Among those lobbying against the family's removal was Bernadette Long, headteacher of Adeoti's school, St Mary's Catholic Primary. She said: "Adeoti is a charming, friendly and intelligent little girl. She is passionate about her education and hopes to become a doctor. Her recent experiences while being detained have impacted on her and she has become very anxious about what will happen if she goes to Nigeria."

David Wood, from the UK Border Agency, said: "When the independent courts find a family has no need for protection we expect them to return home. If they refuse to leave we have no choice but to enforce their removal and this can include detaining children, but only as a very last resort."