|
News |
|
Today we hear from Alison, from our Dacorum Area Team, about what happens when asylum seekers are given Leave to Remain. “Herts Welcomes Refugees is a volunteer-led local charity, able to respond very quickly to changing needs on the ground. The opening of Home Office accommodation for asylum seekers across the County towards the end of 2021 presented many fresh challenges. Our volunteer team grew and evolved to support vulnerable asylum seekers living in difficult conditions for months on end while continuing to support refugees whose numbers have increased significantly over the same period.. The last six months have seen another big change in the demands on our Charity as the Home Office increased its decision rate and fast-tracked applications from a small number of countries. This has led to a surge in the number of asylum seekers getting Leave To Remain. The euphoria of a positive decision is replaced very quickly by fear and anxiety as the new refugees try to open a bank account, make sure their documents are in order, sign up for Universal Credit, find somewhere to live and start to look for employment. This all needs to be done within 30 days – the typical eviction period from Home Office accommodation. An impossible timeframe which puts enormous pressure on our resources and those of the local authorities in whose areas the asylum seekers have been housed. This process is called ‘Positive Move On’ – but sometimes it is difficult to see the positive side. So what does this mean for the support offered by Herts Welcomes Refugees? We are now becoming more expert on getting errors on BRPs (Biometric Residency Permits) corrected, knowing when to request an extension of Asylum Support and understanding the critical path in the paperwork. Navigating our way around different departments in the Home Office and Migrant Help, and working intensively with colleagues from other agencies. The number of volunteers actively involved in supporting on issues relating to positive move ons in Dacorum has increased from 2 to 7. HWR shares learning and knowledge across the County. We are working closely with colleagues in the County and Borough Councils to try to help people find solutions in a very difficult housing market. There are many reports in the National Media about homelessness amongst new refugees and we know that, sadly, some single refugees leaving Home Office accommodation in Hertfordshire have become street homeless. However, we work closely with our Dacorum Council colleagues and support them in running a housing clinic as part of one of our weekly drop-ins. Refugees come to discuss their housing options and sign up for assistance. To date, more than 40 single refugees have found housing in the private rental sector locally. It is very pleasing that local landlords have reported very positively about their new tenants – changing hearts and minds one household at a time. We have branched out into house removals! Much of the accommodation has only minimal furniture – in fact families will often move into accommodation that is completely empty - so teams of volunteers have collected and re-distributed all sorts of household items. These include beds, desks, tables, chairs, sofas, bedside cabinets, wardrobes, coffee tables, chests of drawers, bedding, kitchen equipment and much more besides. We also help refugees apply to other local Charities whose charitable aims include providing white goods and other larger household items. This support has been particularly challenging given the physical nature of the work, although Jane from the Dacorum Area Convenor Team comments that ‘The recipients all pitch in to help with unloading and we are impressed to see the efforts they are making to make their new accommodation comfortable. ‘ There continue to be many challenges in the positive move on process across Hertfordshire and this is putting a lot of emotional and physical pressure on organisations supporting refugees. However, there is also great joy in supporting people who have endured so much hardship and are finally able to call somewhere ‘home’." Area Convenor Kate reports: “We are very lucky to have funding for a storage unit which allows us to accept donated goods and keep them until needed. We are very grateful to everyone who has donated goods and supported with their time and effort. Most things are sourced from donations but we are buying some goods and sometimes we do need to hire a man with a van to move bulky items. Trying to deal with so many moves in a short period is not something we could have anticipated and puts additional pressure on our funds." So if you can help us to carry on doing this, please donate to https://www.hertswelcomes.org.uk/donate.html The photos below showcase some of our work in this area: Comments are closed.
|
