We seek to empower people coming to the UK to understand and access their rights across a wide range of areas from housing and welfare benefits to social services and NHS provision. We do this directly and through the PAP project.

Our expertise

Over the last quarter of a century, we have played a leading role in promoting and protecting the basic rights of migrants to food, adequate shelter and healthcare. We have achieved this through a combination of strategic judicial review litigation, the PAP Project, and working closely with other lawyers and front line organisations working in the area of migrants rights.

This is an area of law that is notoriously complex. Our solicitors are skilled at explaining the law in simple terms and, in appropriate cases, using litigation to access support.

We have nationally recognised expertise in this area and have delivered training to a wide variety of organisations. We frequently work with charities and NGOs working with refugees and other people coming to the UK by providing advice, training and input into policy work.

We are also regularly instructed by charities and others to advise on strategic litigation, including interventions in court proceedings in which an issue of wider importance is raised.

Asylum accommodation

We have acted in many of the leading judicial review claims in this area, including a series of cases challenging the adequacy of Home Office accommodation provided to vulnerable asylum seekers in military barracks and other large sites including Napier Barracks, Penally Barracks, Wethersfield Airfield and the Bibby Stockholm barge.

We also advance access to justice by bringing civil claims for migrants who have been the subject of unlawful government mistreatment.

Destitution

Since 1997 we have also brought hundreds of successful challenges against failures by local and central government to provide accommodation to asylum seekers. Central and local government have overlapping duties in relation to homelessness; children; and other persons in need. However, people in the UK regularly experience destitution due to failures of government to obey the law. We have acted in many of the leading cases on destitution, some requiring immediate injunctions to secure support, to ensure that vulnerable people are not left on the streets or unable to meet their basic living needs.

The team is nationally recognised for their expertise in this area, for example:

• Sue Willman was the founding author of the Support for Asylum Seekers handbook published by the Legal Action Group.
• Sasha Rozansky writes the regular column on Asylum Support for the Legal Action Group magazine.
• Polly Glynn, Sue Willman and Megan Smith have appeared before Parliamentary Committees talking about issues around asylum support and accommodation.

Watch a video explaining the PAP projectHERE.