World Human Rights Day 2025: the everyday rights people rely on, and how public law protects them

Why “Our Everyday Essentials” matters in 2025

The 2025 theme reflects international concern that many people still struggle to secure their basic rights in practice, even though these rights are legally protected. Across the UK, individuals continue to face barriers in areas that many would consider essential to a dignified life. These include:

Safe housing and accommodation.

Unlawful refusals of homelessness assistance, delays in providing suitable accommodation, or inappropriate placements can leave individuals and families in unsafe or unstable situations.

As of 30 June 2025, there were 132,410 households in temporary accommodation in England - a rise of 7.6% compared with the same time in 2024. Of those households, 84,240 had dependent children living in them (that is over 63% of all households in temporary accommodation). This rise is part of a wider pattern, with the number of households in temporary accommodation reaching record levels in recent years.

In parallel, people leaving asylum accommodation face increasing risk of homelessness. In 2023-24 the number of people becoming homeless after leaving asylum accommodation rose by 251% compared with the previous year.

These figures underline that safe, stable housing remains out of reach for many, showing just how essential housing is, and how fragile people’s access to it can be.

Youth and general homelessness - rising risk for young people

Between 2023 and 2024, more than 118,000 young people (aged 16–24) in the UK approached their local authority because they were homeless or at risk of homelessness. That represents around one in 62 young people, according to the most recent data.

This shows that homelessness or risk of homelessness is not limited to older adults or chronic homelessness - it affects many young people too, reinforcing the need to treat housing as an everyday essential.

Education and support for children with special educational needs (SEN).

Education is one of the most important everyday essentials for any child. For children with special educational needs, timely assessments and properly implemented Education, Health and Care Plans are crucial for ensuring they can learn safely and participate fully in school life. Yet the latest national data shows that many families continue to face long waits, administrative delays, and rising pressure within the SEN system.

According to the Department for Education’s 2025 SEN statistics:

• As of January 2025, there were 638,745 children and young people with an EHC plan in England, an increase of 10.8% compared with January 2024. This is the highest number since EHC plans were introduced in 2014.
• During 2024, there were 97,747 new EHC plans issued, which is 15.8% higher than in 2023.
• Local authorities received 154,489 requests for an EHC needs assessment in 2024, an 11.8% increase from the previous year.
• Of these requests, local authorities agreed to carry out an assessment in 65.4% of cases.
• A total of 105,340 EHC needs assessments were completed in 2024, 15.7% more than in 2023.
• 93.6% of completed assessments resulted in an EHC plan being issued.
• Only 46.4% of new EHC plans were issued within the 20-week statutory timeframe, meaning the majority of families waited longer than the law intends.

These figures show a system experiencing record demand, with more families than ever seeking specialist support. But they also reveal how delays can affect children’s daily lives. When assessments take months longer than required, or when plans are not issued on time, children may miss out on specialist teaching, therapies, adapted learning environments, or the right school place.

For many families, these delays affect far more than academic progress. They determine whether a child can participate fully in school, feel included, access their learning safely, and maintain their wellbeing. Access to SEN support is therefore not just an administrative process - it is a core everyday right for children, and one that remains under significant strain across England.

Protection for asylum seekers and migrants.

For people seeking asylum or migrating to the UK, safety and stability are everyday essentials. Human rights protections apply from the moment a person enters the asylum system and continue throughout the process of assessment, accommodation, and support. Yet recent reports show that many individuals and families still face significant barriers in meeting their most basic needs.

As of mid-2025, Home Office statistics show that 90,812  people remain in the asylum system awaiting an initial decision, with long delays often resulting in extended periods spent in temporary or unsuitable accommodation. The Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration has repeatedly highlighted issues with asylum accommodation, including overcrowding, lack of privacy, safeguarding concerns for children, and delays accessing essential healthcare. These are not minor inconveniences. They affect a person’s ability to stay warm, nourished, healthy, and safe.

People who have recently received a decision on their claim often face a further risk -  the transition out of asylum accommodation. Charities and monitoring bodies report that many individuals experience eviction with little notice, leading to homelessness or destitution. This is particularly acute where people are given only a short window to secure mainstream housing or benefits before being required to leave asylum accommodation. For those who have fled conflict, persecution, or trafficking, the sudden loss of shelter or financial support can be destabilising and traumatic.

Human rights principles help ensure that asylum seekers are treated with dignity, that their essential needs are considered, and that decisions affecting their safety are made fairly and transparently. This includes the right not to be subjected to inhumane or degrading treatment, the right to respect for family life, and the right to access medical care. When these protections are not upheld, people can be left without the basics required for day-to-day survival, such as secure shelter, food, warmth, and healthcare.

Fair processes and transparency.

An essential part of daily life in the UK is the ability to understand how decisions that affect you are made. In law, public bodies must follow fair processes, consider relevant information, and provide clear explanations for their decisions. These duties arise from established principles of public law, the Human Rights Act 1998, and statutory frameworks governing housing, social care, education, benefits, and asylum support.

Independent oversight bodies such as the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO), the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO), and the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration (ICIBI) regularly identify cases where these standards are not met.

In its most recent annual review of local government complaints for 2024–25, the LGSCO reported that it upheld 83% of the complaints it investigated, including 91% of education and children’s services complaints, 85% of housing complaints, and 78% of adult social care complaints. The report highlights recurring problems such as people being denied access to housing registers, being given the wrong priority for social housing, delays and poor communication in adult social care assessments, and serious failings in special educational needs provision.

At national level, the PHSO has also identified significant failures in how central government departments communicate important decisions to the public. In 2024, following a multi-stage investigation, the PHSO found that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) failed to adequately inform many women born in the 1950s about increases to the State Pension age. The Ombudsman concluded that thousands of women were affected, losing the chance to make informed decisions about their finances because they were not given accurate, timely information about the changes. The government has since accepted findings of maladministration in relation to delays in communicating these changes.

In the immigration and asylum context, the ICIBI has repeatedly raised concerns about communication and transparency. In its 2024–25 annual report, the Inspector noted that the Home Office needs to provide better, more timely and transparent information about its plans and decisions, and observed that asylum seekers are often distressed because they do not know what is happening with their claims or how long they will have to wait. The Inspector has recommended that the Home Office introduce clear mechanisms to keep people informed about the progress of their cases and expected timescales.

When public bodies do not follow proper procedures or give adequate reasons, people may be unable to understand the basis of a decision or to exercise their right to request a review, provide further evidence, or appeal. This can delay or disrupt access to essential services, such as financial support, suitable accommodation, or necessary care. These impacts are documented across Ombudsman case summaries, inspection reports, and parliamentary inquiries, which show how failures in process and communication can have serious consequences for individuals and families.

Fair processes and transparency are therefore not just good practice but core legal requirements. They help to ensure that decisions are made lawfully, that individuals can correct mistakes or challenge unfairness, and that public authorities remain accountable for how they exercise their powers.

Why these issues reaffirm the importance of human rights

Human rights protections in the UK, particularly under the Human Rights Act 1998, require public authorities to act lawfully, proportionately, and in a way that respects individuals’ dignity and fundamental needs. This includes rights relating to family life, safety, personal welfare, and access to essential services.

Findings from independent oversight bodies show how delays or failures in public-sector decision-making can affect those rights in practice. The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman has documented cases where failures in assessment, communication, or service delivery impacted individuals’ access to housing, social care, and support for children with disabilities. Similarly, the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration has raised concerns about how delays and gaps in information within the asylum system affect individuals’ wellbeing and sense of security.

Human rights frameworks provide essential safeguards in these situations. They help ensure that public authorities consider people’s circumstances properly, follow lawful decision-making processes, and act with regard for individuals’ welfare and safety. When these standards are not met, public law mechanisms, including judicial review, allow individuals to challenge decisions and require public bodies to comply with their legal duties.

These protections remain central to fairness and accountability across the UK public sector. They ensure that public authorities are held to consistent standards and that individuals retain meaningful routes to remedy when decisions affect their everyday essential needs.

Our commitment to dignity, equality, and inclusivity

At Simpson Millar, the work of our Public Law and Human Rights team is grounded in the belief that every person should be treated with dignity, fairness, equality, and respect. These values reflect our legal obligations under the Human Rights Act 1998 and shape the way we support individuals whose rights depend on fair and lawful decision-making.

Our work is centred on each person’s circumstances. We take time to listen, provide clear explanations of the law and build strategies that reflect the realities of their situation. This approach ensures that people feel heard and supported throughout their case, and that their rights are protected not only in principle but in everyday life.

How public law protects everyday essentials

Public law exists to ensure that public bodies act within the law, follow fair procedures, and make decisions based on proper evidence. When a public body fails to meet these duties, individuals have the right to challenge the decision.

One of the main legal tools available is judicial review, which allows courts to examine whether:

• A policy or decision is lawful
• The correct legal process was followed
• The authority took all relevant evidence into account
• The decision was fair, proportionate, and rational
• The public body acted within the limits of its legal powers

Judicial review does not decide whether a public body made the “best” or most desirable decision. Instead, it ensures that those in power act lawfully, transparently, and fairly. This process is vital when everyday essentials are affected. Our Public Law and Human Rights team regularly brings judicial review challenges in areas such as:

• Trafficking decisions, including failures to identify or support survivors of trafficking
• Accommodation and financial support for vulnerable people, including victims of trafficking and asylum seekers
• Unlawful delays or refusals in asylum support, age assessments, and immigration decision-making
• Community care and children’s rights, including failures to provide essential social care or support for disabled adults and children
• Education rights, including cases where local authorities fail to provide suitable education or EHC plan provision
• Housing decisions, including unlawful refusals of homelessness support or unsuitable placements
• Failures by police to investigate or prosecute, where these decisions are irrational, unlawful, or breach statutory duties
• Decisions to cut essential public services, where the impact has not been lawfully assessed
• Compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty, where public bodies fail to consider the impact of their actions on people with protected characteristics
• Immigration detention and removal, including challenges to unlawful detention and removal where there is a risk to safety
• Prison law, including decisions affecting prisoners’ treatment, safety, or access to services
• Inquest and coronial decisions, including challenges to coroners’ conclusions or refusals to open, adjourn, or resume inquests

These interventions can be essential when services affecting daily life are at stake, such as:

• Accessing safe accommodation
• Receiving necessary community care
• Securing education for a child out of school
• Protecting someone from removal where they are at risk
• Obtaining support as a survivor of trafficking or exploitation
• Ensuring police or safeguarding bodies act on serious concerns
• Correcting decisions that ignore disability, medical needs, or risk of harm

By challenging unlawful decisions, judicial review safeguards people’s safety, dignity, family life, independence, and wellbeing. It is one of the most important tools for ensuring that public bodies remain accountable and that individuals can enforce their rights when those rights are at risk.

Human rights law and the Human Rights Act 1998

The Human Rights Act 1998 incorporates the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) into UK law, giving individuals enforceable rights when decisions affect their fundamental freedoms. These include:

• The right to life
• The right to be free from inhumane or degrading treatment
• The right to liberty and security
• The right to respect for private and family life
• The right to education
• The right to a fair hearing
• The right not to be discriminated against in connection with those rights

These rights shape the “everyday essentials” highlighted in this year’s theme. They protect family relationships, the ability to live in safe accommodation, access healthcare, and receive a fair and transparent decision from a public body.

Our teams use these protections in cases involving children’s rights, disability rights, asylum, social welfare, homelessness, mental capacity, community care, and safeguarding.

Working collaboratively to strengthen rights protections

Human rights protection is a collective effort. We work closely with charities, community groups, specialist organisations, and barristers to ensure that individuals receive comprehensive support and that recurring issues are understood at a systemic level. These partnerships help us understand the wider issues affecting communities, challenge patterns of unlawful decision-making, and contribute to long-term improvements in public services.

Shalini Patel, Head of Public Law and Human Rights at Simpson Millar, explains:

‘’Collaboration allows us to see the full picture of what people are experiencing day to day. By combining legal expertise with the insights from organisations, we can challenge unfair decisions more effectively and work towards lasting improvements in how public bodies operate. Our team has  also worked with specialist organisations, including  Anti-Slavery International and the Human Trafficking Foundation, to push for legal and policy reforms that prioritise survivors’ needs and strengthen accountability across public services. This shared approach helps ensure that rights are not simply protected in law, but realised in practice.’’

Looking ahead: building a rights-based culture

World Human Rights Day 2025 encourages us to recognise that rights shape the everyday realities of people’s lives. At Simpson Millar, we remain committed to holding public bodies to account, securing essential services for individuals and families, promoting transparency and lawful decision-making, and helping people understand and assert their rights. We will continue to pursue strategic litigation where systemic change is needed and to champion dignity, equality, and inclusion across all areas of public service delivery. Human rights are not abstract ideals. They are the foundations of a fair society, and our role is to ensure those protections remain strong and accessible for those who need them.

How we may be able to help you

If you believe a public body has made an unfair or unlawful decision that affects your safety, your family, your education, your housing, or your access to essential support, you do not have to face that situation without advice. Our specialists can explain your options, assess whether a judicial review may be appropriate, and guide you through the steps needed to protect your rights.

You can call us on 0808 149 9561 or request a callback so that a member of our team can speak with you in confidence about your situation. We will listen carefully, provide clear and practical advice, and help you understand the next steps.