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Windrush
The government is still failing in its commitments to the Windrush generation.
The Windrush Scandal
“I’ve gone through life looking over my shoulder, feeling like a second-class citizen.”
In 2018, news of the Windrush scandal broke. Commonwealth citizens who had been in the UK for decades were facing major problems as they were unable to prove their right to be in the UK. Despite their lawful residence and as a result of the government’s increasing insistence on immigration checks in every aspect of life – known as the Hostile Environment – people were denied access to key services. Many lost their jobs, housing, access to benefits and people were even wrongly detained and deported. Lives were ruined. Many passed away before this injustice was even acknowledged.
“I didn’t have any self-esteem at all. I just wanted to hide all the time, behind curtains, behind doors. I couldn’t look people straight in the face and hold a good conversation. It left me without confidence. A big chunk of my life has been really destroyed.”
Windrush Compensation Scheme
The Windrush Compensation Scheme was set up so that people could recover money they had lost as a result of the scandal, and be compensated for the impact it had on their lives. But the scheme is not fit for purpose. A scheme that was meant to repair a historic injustice is repeating it. Windrush is no longer front page news, but the government is still failing in its commitments to the Windrush generation.
“Winning compensation is not just about financial recognition; it's about acknowledging the injustices I've faced.”
We’re providing free legal representation for people to apply for compensation through the award-winning Windrush Legal Initiative, supporting people to speak out about their experiences, and fighting for change through research, advocacy and litigation.
What needs to happen
1. The government must fund legal representation for compensation claims.
No legal representation is available for Windrush compensation claims and this means people are not getting the compensation they are entitled to – they may be wrongly refused, or put off from making a claim in the first place.
The compensation scheme must include funding for legal representation. This should also include the funding of expert evidence such as psychological reports to support claims.
2. People claiming compensation must be able to appeal to an independent body.
The Home Office – the perpetrator of harm – decides who is entitled to compensation. When this decision is challenged, it’s the Home Office who reviews their own decisions. This is wrong.
3. The benefit of the doubt must be applied in compensation claims.
Far too many claims are rejected because people struggle to provide documentary evidence of every aspect of their claim – even when it’s impossible to do so. They should be given the benefit of the doubt.
4. People must have ongoing support to regularise their status.
The government must make sure all Windrush generations, including children and grandchildren, are aware of their rights to access free confirmation of their status and citizenship.
The failings of the Compensation Scheme
People need legal help: The value of legal representation in the Windrush Compensation Scheme
GMIAU was a member of the working group for this report published by Justice. It also features people supported through the Windrush Legal Initiative.
UK: “Hostile” Compensation Scheme Fails Windrush Victims
We also contributed to this Human Rights Watch report in 2023, which found the compensation scheme was failing and violating the rights of many to an effective remedy for human rights abuses they suffered.
“They haven’t learnt anything. They still make people’s life a misery. After waiting for so long, you’d think they’d have a bit of compassion.”
A legal win
In 2023, following successful litigation, the Home Office amended the rules of the Windrush Compensation Scheme to expand eligibility. We had argued that their previous rules were irrational, inconsistent and discriminatory.
Watch: Ruth's story
Ruth was forced to sell her house, take her son out of school and leave the UK, because she was told she had no right to be here.
Now in her 80s, Ruth should be living a secure life. Instead she has faced a string of refusals in her Windrush compensation claim. She and her lawyer, GMIAU Solicitor Nicola, spoke to Channel 4 News.
Read: Children of the Windrush Generation
Sisters Christina and Claire went to school in Manchester. They never thought they'd have to prove they were British.
But the impact of their Dad’s Windrush ordeal was felt down the generations. They both spent years unable to work or study, threatened with deportation. They told their story to the BBC.
Watch: Geoff and Sandy's story
Geoff, a victim of the Windrush scandal who we represented, passed away just two days after receiving an interim compensation payment. In this piece, his widow Sandy talks about what they went through, and reads from a blog we published, in Geoff’s own words, a few months before he died.
Read: how it feels to receive compensation
With the help of the Windrush Legal Initiative, Chantelle finally saw the end of a decades-long ordeal when she received compensation in 2023 - over two years after her application for compensation, and five years after the scandal was acknowledged. Her story shows the crucial role of legal representation. She said “It was like they were trying to make you give up. I almost did.”
Watch: the Everett family's story
Rupert Everett died before receiving compensation or even an apology for the way he was treated, which was described by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman as “appalling”. The Home Office ignored that he not only had the right to be in the UK, but all the documentation to prove it. They told him in a letter, “your life in the UK will become increasingly difficult”.
His daughters carried on his fight, speaking to Channel 4 news in 2021, and releasing their own video in 2022 with their GMIAU Caseworker Sukhdeep.
“Don’t underestimate the strength that you have within yourself and as a collective people here in the UK. We have fought, through the ages, many many many fights to be where we are here today. And we will still continue.”
Further reading
The Windrush Compensation Scheme: A comparative analysis – Kings College London (2024)
The Home Office Scandal: A Manifesto for Windrush Justice - Action for Race Equality (2024)
The Windrush Compensation Scheme: Unmet need for legal advice - The Windrush Justice Clinic (2022)
Legal explainer on applications under the Windrush Compensation Scheme - Free Movement (2024)
Reforming the Windrush Compensation Scheme – Justice (2021)
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