GMIAU is running a number of projects focussing on the needs of particular groups of people who are subject to immigration control in difficult circumstances.

People who are destitute

Women who are seeking asylum and who have been subject to gender-based violence.

Children and young people seeking asylum

People who are Destitute

asylumWe are running a project to assess the legal cases of people who have made an asylum claim that has been refused and who are destitute as a result. The project, through a mix of individual appointments and group workshops, aims to help people to identify whether they have sufficient new evidence about their circumstances to make 'fresh claims'.

The workshops are designed to help people, and their supporters and friends, understand more about the UK asylum system, what constitutes evidence for a fresh claim, and how they can put together the basis of a claim without having to access a legal adviser.

This is not a substitute for legal advice but it is a recognition of the difficulty there can be in getting access to a legal adviser and passing the 'legal merit' test that would allow their claim to be funded through legal aid. This does not mean however that there is no substance to the claim.

Once someone seeking asylum has submitted a fresh Asylum and Human Rights claim under the Immigration Rules to the Home Office, they become entitled to Section 4 NASS support. As a result the person is lifted out of the danger and invisibility of destitution.women

Women who are seeking asylum and who have been subject to gender-based violence.

The asylum system in the UK pays little consideration of the issues that face women who have been subject to or threatened by violence. This project is designed to offer an 'enhanced' legal advice service to women, which includes providing childcare, so that women can talk freely with their adviser about what has happened to them, and without fear that their children will over hear.

gmiauChildren and Young People claiming asylum.

Children and young people who are seeking asylum in the UK get a raw deal. They very rarely understand the system they are going and don't know how to get the information they need. Some are 'age disputed' which means that they are treated as adults even though they may be children. Many are powerless to influence what's happening to them.

During the summer we are running a series of workshops with young women, 'Young and Smart, Know Your Rights' to look at issues such as asylum and your rights, getting good legal advice, health and well-being, education, the roles and responsibilities of local authorities and social workers.