The 2019-21 Domestic Abuse Bill is currently moving through the Houses of Parliament, and is now in the Report stage. Various groups – like Safety4Sisters, Southall Black Sisters, the Latin American Women’s Rights Service, and the Step Up Migrant Women coalition – have spoken out about the inadequacies of the…
Anna, 15, is originally from Latvia. She came to the UK when she was 8 and has been in the care of children’s services for the past 3 years. She lives with foster carers in Greater Manchester. Marie, her social worker, was aware that Brexit might affect Anna’s situation but…
30 June 2021. One year today. The last day for our friends, family members and neighbours affected by Brexit immigration changes to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme. The opening of the EU Settlement Scheme in March 2019 seems a world away. The bus stop posters with cups of tea,…
We wrote recently about lockdown providing “opportunities to make gains against the Hostile Environment that seemed wildly optimistic at the start of 2020” especially for last month’s low skilled migrants, re-branded as the essential keyworkers they always were. There are so many differences in our individual experiences of the last…
What is NRPF? Hundreds of people in Greater Manchester are living with No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) conditions on their immigration status. It sounds like a technicality, added to a visa as an afterthought. In practice it is a brutal, racist, misogynistic and immoral part of the Hostile Environment.…
This week the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill – which will end EU free movement in the UK – faces scrutiny in the House of Commons as a group of selected MPs go through it line by line. For the government the Bill is all about exerting…
We are in contact with all our existing clients and we will continue to advise and represent to the best of our ability. All our services are running. The Home Office are not interviewing adults and children who have already claimed asylum in person, but initial screenings are going ahead.…
January feels like another world. Social distancing, shielding, self-isolation: words that weren’t part of our vocabulary as we began 2020, preoccupied with the brutality of the Hostile Environment and the government’s Brexit immigration plans. Instead, like everyone else, through February and March we scrambled to keep up with the impact…
COVID-19 has brought into sharp relief the truth that we are all in this together; no one is safe until we are all safe. There must be no going back to the divisive policies of austerity and the hostile environment after COVID-19. During the pandemic, essential measures to contain the…
GMIAU social media volunteer Max Goddard wrote this blog post, reflecting on the role of key workers in the Covid-19 crisis. When COVID-19 plunged our country into darkness, it was our key workers who stood tall with torches, ready to lead us to light. We do not know how long…
I grew up in a small village in Sudan. My dad had been taken from home to fight for the opposition when I was about 10. I never saw him again. I lived at home with my mum, brothers and sisters until I was arrested and detained because the police…
When I was about 14 I was brought to the UK by a relative. We had visitor’s visas and I thought we were going on holiday. Instead I was left with a large Ghanaian family I’d never met and ended up cleaning, cooking and looking after their children. I wasn’t…
COVID-19 has made it abundantly clear that the divisive politics of austerity and the hostile environment have left us all less safe and more vulnerable. There can be no going back to ‘business as usual’ after the pandemic: no more good migrant versus bad migrant, benefit claimant versus tax payer.…
2019 commemorates the 70th anniversary of Britain’s modern system of Legal Aid, inaugurated by Clement Attlee’s Labour Government in the wake of World War Two. This element of the ‘cradle to grave’ welfare system, based on the Beveridge Report recommendations, was to ensure that all had adequate access to fair…
On Saturday 16th November 2019 GMIAU held our Annual General Meeting. Thank you to all who attended and took part in the raffle which raised £95. GMIAU relies on donations and fundraising to keep services running. On a yearly basis we give advice and support to around 5000 people facing…
Today GMIAU has released a new report “Not so straightforward” about the experiences of children in care and care leavers in Greater Manchester affected by Brexit immigration changes. In spring 2019, bus stops around Greater Manchester started to carry posters – with pictures of cups of tea on – advising…
We are recruiting. Help Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit by becoming a Trustee. Do you believe that every person who claims asylum in the UK has the right to a rapid, fair and humane assessment of their claim? Do you believe that someone who is newly arrived from another country,…
30 years ago, GMIAU was set up by ardent campaigners after lobbying Greater Manchester councils. Originally based in Manchester Town Hall with 4 workers, GMIAU has supported many thousands of people subject to immigration control to achieve settlement and security and fight the barriers of hostile immigration laws, media rhetoric…
Young people from our All4One youth group have written #SixThings. It’s their ‘how to’ guide for local authority staff and others about the support they need as young people in care affected by immigration control. All those who wrote it are on their own in the UK, seeking asylum and…
Declaration is a mixed media music and video performance and digital art installation led by artist Kooj Chuhan and composer Tagné Tebu. It focuses on jazz improvisation but incorporates improvisatory approaches from India, Africa, Middle East. Improvisatory approaches will drive narrative development and the video projection to reflect the respective…
Last month one of our solicitors – Nadia Hussain – was invited to speak at the Inspirational Women of the Law event at Newcastle Law School. The day celebrated the achievements of iconic and influential women who have a strong connection to the law, including legal practitioners, judges and campaigners.…
Several weeks ago, we were contacted by Manchester music and art collective Levelz to let us know that they were putting on a fundraiser to raise money to help us continue fighting for migrant rights, as part of efforts to raise awareness for the Windrush Campaign. An all-star Mancunian lineup…
We are looking for someone to work in our Liverpool office on Bold Street. The post: Administrator The hours: 14 hours per week The pay: £17,972 (pro rata for 14 hours). The main duties include: maintaining files and filing systems, photocopying, faxing and general duties such as contacting clients, and…
To read more about Rosie’s experiences with our Refugee Family Reunion project, please download the below document.
People who claim asylum in the UK, and are either recognised as refugees or given humanitarian protection, are able to apply for their separated family members to join them. The UK’s Immigration Rules allow married or civil partners, same-sex partners and children aged 17 or under to apply to reunite…
We’ve advocated for the rights of over 1,000 people in 2018, ensuring access to safety and the chance to begin to build a new life in the North West. As we look towards the coming year, we know that there are so many more battles ahead. We are proud to…
I left Malawi because of my family. After my husband died my father wanted me to marry…
Solicitor’s at GMIAU have now put together a full report with insights in to the lessons learned so far from the Windrush Scandal, and how the Home Office have responded to it. It is intended to provide insight in to the legal aspects of how members of the Windrush generation…
As part of our commitment to assisting the next generation of social welfare lawyers, we had Dylan, a student of International and European Law at The Hague, Netherlands, complete a two week placement last month. Here is what he had to say about the experience. “I spent two weeks at…
Windrush compensation scheme consultation Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit is a voluntary organisation who have been supporting people subject to immigration control for over 25 years. We deal mainly with asylum and human rights cases but have also dealt with a number of ‘Windrush’ cases. We have highlighted below some…
Cuts to legal aid for immigration issues mean members of the Windrush generation may be denied justice as they try to settle their status and rebuild their lives, the Law Society of England and Wales warned today. Law Society president Joe Egan said: “As far too many people who came…
Following the most recent developments from the Home Office regarding the legal status of those within the Windrush Generation, we have now included a section on our website which outlines as simply as possible our advice on how to proceed. You can access this by clicking here. We will be…
Apology In the face of growing pressure, after the Prime Minister’s office had originally declined a meeting, Theresa May apologised to Caribbean leaders today for the treatment of Windrush citizens and stated that “Those who arrived from the Caribbean before 1973 and lived here permanently without significant periods of time…
Thank you to everyone who supported the fundraising appeal to raise vital funds for GMIAU’s destitution project (ASHA). ASHA (Asylum Support Housing Advice) is a very busy service which helps people who are seeking asylum or who have been refused and are facing destitution and homelessness and sees over 1000…
Experienced Immigration Solicitor/Caseworker Level 2 GMIAU is seeking to recruit a committed and experienced immigration caseworker with proven experience of providing advice and representation in immigration, asylum, and human rights cases. For an informal discussion about the post please contact Denise McDowell, Director, on 0161 769 8822 or via denise@gmiau.org.…
We are pleased to announce the launch of our inaugural impact report, published earlier this year in November 2017. Our report is intended to shine a light on some of the work that our dedicated team of staff and volunteers complete on a daily basis, as well as highlighting some…
I have four children and my mother also lives close by. Before we came here, our life was very, very good and the children were in a good school. I had a career as an engineer. Suddenly everything changed. I had to keep my children safe and we had no…
I first came to the UK in 2006. It was very difficult in Zimbabwe, the people who were supposed to help you would attack you. It was difficult to know who to trust. It was very, very difficult. My wife and child got their leave to remain in the UK…
The All4One group was set up to create a safe social space for children and young people between the ages of 13 and 21 who are seeking asylum or have been trafficked, and are living on their own in Manchester. The group meets monthly for fun activities, trips and events.…
A study of the experiences of children from the Calais ‘jungle’, now claiming asylum in the North West of England, shows why we must speak up for refugees during the election campaign. The door into Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit is on the corner of two busy roads near a…
Our policy officer has prepared a background paper for the work we are doing with children from the Calais camp. The paper provides information on the following headings: Context How can children in Calais/France enter the UK? What is the Dublin III regulation? What is the Dubs Amendment? What is…
At GMIAU we continue to make the case for Letting More Dubs Children In. Thank you to everyone who has helped spread the message. News that the camp at Grande-Synthe outside Dunkirk was destroyed by a fire in April only demonstrated the urgent need for children to have access to…
GMIAU director Denise McDowell was recently invited by the University of Manchester to work with a Student Group on the module – The Anthropology of Development and Humanitarianism. The students presented their research on the subject of “how anthropology can help to think about the issue of refugees and people…
The announcement by government that they are to stop the scheme to bring vulnerable lone refugee children to the UK under the Dubs amendment to the Immigration Act 2016 has shocked and outraged many of us. The government seeks to blame local authorities. However, many believe that the government failed…
It was a bittersweet evening as Trustees, staff, volunteers and students gathered to thank Rev Andy Braunston for his outstanding leadership and valuable contributions made over the last decade as Chair of the Board of Trustees at Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit. Through thick and thin Andy was a strategic…
Why are there children from the Calais camp in the North West? For over 15 years there have been transit camps in the French city of Calais, where people have gathered to cross the channel to the UK. Many of those who enter the UK from the Calais camp are…
Families in the UK that open their doors to child relatives fleeing the camps of Calais are being penalised by stringent rules on legal aid. It was a cold winter day last year and the small waiting room at Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit is cramped as usual with clients…
The Legal Education Foundation’s innovative Justice First Fellowship has passed an important milestone, with its first ever intake of fellows qualifying as solicitors. The nine solicitor Fellows who joined the then embryonic scheme in 2014 completed their legal training at some of the country’s leading social welfare organisations, including Public…
Calais children need a lawyer: social workers in contact with children from the Calais camp must make sure they have access to an immigration lawyer. Which children are we talking about? Small numbers of children from the camp in Calais are coming to the UK because they have family members…
Peter is a young man from Zimbabwe. A victim of the country’s economic crisis, he was forced to try and make a living by illegally panning for gold. He was not interested in politics, but his four childhood friends were all members of the MDC. As a result, he was…
In Uganda it is illegal to be gay. At the moment the maximum is 14 years and it is on course to be the death penalty. That is what I was running away from. My partner and I were put in prison, but it is a corrupt country so my…
Nasrin is from Iran. When she was 21, she came under pressure from her family to marry. She did not want to marry, preferring to pursue a career, but felt she had no choice – women do not have many options in Iran. Nasrin’s husband was violent to her from…
We left Iran because of my mother’s problems. I was only thirteen but I got the vibes that there is no free speech, no equality of men and women, differences in the legal terms that apply to men and women. She had issues with my Dad who was really part…
Mohamed is from Somalia. He fled the civil war that has been going on there since 1991. He is a member of a small clan, which cannot protect itself from the larger clans who are in control. Mohamed was lucky – he was granted refugee status by the Home Office.…
I left the Democratic Republic of Congo because of my involvement with a dissident newspaper. (There is no freedom of the press in DRC). I had an internet cafe and they were using my machines to type. I was hosting that group in my office without knowing what the risk…
Josephine was only 6 years old when both her parents were killed in Angola’s civil war. She is from Cabinda, which is a part of Angola which is seeking independence and has been the scene of a long running conflict as a result. Josephine cannot remember exactly what happened to…
I left Malawi because of my family. After my husband died my father wanted me to marry my husband’s brother because he was in business with him. At the end of the day it was like inheriting his brother’s possessions and it suited him that my brother-in- law was taking…
We understand that there is widespread concern about the outcome of the EU Referendum. There are already increased reports of racism and hate crime. Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit exists to support anyone who is subject to immigration control and to oppose racism in all its forms. This is a…
