The council is to go back to court to continue its legal battle with the government to prevent the Home Office from housing child refugees in a Hove hotel.
Brighton and Hove City Council applied for an urgent injunction which was turned down by the High Court on Friday (30 June).
But the case is expected to return to the courts for a full hearing at a later date, yet to be set.
After the ruling by Sir Adam Johnson, known as Mr Justice Johnson, on Friday, the leader of the council Bella Sankey responded.
Councillor Sankey said: “We’re disappointed our injunction has been declined but this is just the first stage in our drive to protect these vulnerable children.
“The court made clear it recognises the gravity of the situation that has been allowed to develop and we now look forward to being able to argue our full claim at the earliest opportunity.
“The Home Office has given undertakings to the court to provide notice to the council if it intends to use the hotel and we have permission to apply again for an injunction if that is the case.”
Councillor Sankey said: “No child of any age should be placed in a hotel so it was horrifying to learn the Home Office has placed a child as young as 9 in a hotel outside our area.
“The court heard today around 40 per cent of children are under 16.
“This is a criminal offence within the government’s own requirements for accommodation for children in care.”
The council told the court that of the 144 children who had gone missing from hotels, 139 had been in a hotel in Hove when the law required them to be placed with a regulated provider.
Councillor Sankey added: “The Home Office argued the alternative to hotels was destitution for the most vulnerable child refugees. This represents a complete failure of government policy.
“If the Home Office ensured the national transfer scheme was working properly, this situation could be avoided.”
The national transfer scheme was made mandatory last November, something the council had been seeking for some time.
It requires more than 200 councils to take a fair share or quota of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.
Kent County Council has also placed the government on notice of its intention to issue a judicial review claim imminently.
The claim is expected to allege that the government failed to ensure that unaccompanied child refugees were transferred into care across the country under the national transfer scheme in a timely way.
