SPOTLIGHT ON SUPPORTING NON EU
DESTITUTE MIGRANTS, Friday 22nd January
2016 – Event Report
List of Attendees
First Name
Last Name
Company
Jon-Jon
Hilton
London Jesus Centre
Sonia
Lynch
Welcome Project
Chris
Fielden
CRI
Imam Ali
Ramathan
Thames Reach
Julian
Saunders
Firm Foundation
Rhona
D'Ambrosio
New Horizon Youth
Centre
Paul
Catterall
Open Door North East
Dee
Saund
Deptford Reach
Heather
Petch (Chair)
Joseph Rowntree
Foundation
Michael
Angus
Barons Court Project
Lidia
Estevez Picon
Connection at St
Martins
Mark
Foster
Cardinal Hume Centre
Rachel
Yates
St Mungo's
William
Norman
Providence Row
Charity
Danielle
Williams
New Horizon Youth
Centre
Grace
Sotinrin
Harvest Of Grace
Trinity Centre
Patrick
Duce
Homeless Link
Rachel
Lovell
Advising London
Harinder
Birring
Shelter
Sally
Dahglian
Praxis Community
Projects
Kirsty
Lowe
Providence Row
Charity
Cookie
Sami
Shelter from the Storm
Elizabeth
Gallou
Westminster City
Council
Nana-Ama
Martey
LATCH Project
Annie
Jaison
Equinox Care:
Probation Housing
Advice
Jimmy
Telesford
Choice in Hackney
Ola
Macauley
Choice in Hackney
Raziya
Gulam
Croydon Association
for Young Single
Homeless (CAYSH)
Odeta
Panariti
London Community
Rehabilitation
Company
Susan
Smith
Equinox Care
Cathy
Togher
Comic Relief
Prakash
Pandit
Thames Reach
Tosh
Kara
Harvest Of Grace
Trinity Centre
Amy
Loewenthal
Ashford Place
Edyta
Blaszczyk
Lift People: East
European Peer
Navigation
Sarah
Gibson
No Second Night Out
Yamin
Georgi
Thames Reach
Aims of the event:
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Provide an update on the latest immigration policy and research, and
what this means for the homelessness sector.
How the homelessness sector and other agencies can work together to
best support non EU destitute migrants.
Identify and share best practice amongst the homelessness and BAMER
sectors.
Network with colleagues.
Chair: Heather Petch, Adviser at Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Speakers:
Jonathon Graham, Homeless Link
Patrick Duce, Homeless Link
Paul Catterall, Open Door North East
Sanjeev Bakhshi, Refugee Action and Ghelila Masho, Praxis
Sally Daghlian, Praxis
Link to full presentations: http://www.homeless.org.uk/our-work/nationalprojects/london-plus-project/plus-project-presentations-and-resources
Aims/key points of each presentation:
Presentation 1: Policy update – Immigration Bill and impact on destitute
migrants (Jonathon Graham, Homeless Link)
Aims for the presentation: To inform delegates of some of the key provisions
contained in the upcoming Immigration Act:

The current Immigration Act gained Royal Assent on 14 May 2014, with many
of its provisions coming into force on 01 February 2016.
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Cutting access to services:
o Requiring temporary migrants to make a financial contribution to the
NHS.
o Ensuring private landlords check tenants’ immigration status.
o Restricting access to driver’s licences and bank accounts.
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Removals and enforcement:
o Cutting the number of immigration decisions that can be appealed from
17 to 4.
o Tougher powers to tackle sham marriages and civil partnerships.
o Making it easier to recover unpaid fines from rouge employers.
Presentation 2: The Strategic Alliance on Migrant Destitution and models of
support for destitute non-EEA migrants with NRPF (Patrick Duce, Homeless
Link)
Aims for the presentation: To inform delegates of the recently established Strategic
Alliance on Migrant Destitution (SAMD):
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What is the Alliance?
Who is in the Alliance?
Key aims
Progress so far
Resources for your service
Presentation 3: Introduction to Open Door (North East) Paul Catterall
Open Door (North East):
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Provide a range of linked services for both asylum seekers & refugees.
Have a number of themed weekly drop ins where trained staff & volunteers
help meet individual needs or signpost to other specialist providers.
Believe in empowering individuals to make informed choices about their
future options.
Much of what Open Door do is about transition, empowerment and moving
to positive destinations.
Are not a long term alternative to the Home Office provision
Are not immigration solicitors & do not give out immigration advice
Aim to be a friend to what the bible calls the sojourner or alien in the land
whatever their back ground
Aim to be creative in providing short to medium term solutions to
homelessness amongst both asylum seekers and refugees.
Presentation 4: Street Legal Service - Pan London service providing street
outreach and support to those with NRPF (Sanjeev Bakhshi, Refugee Action
and Ghelila Masho, Praxis)
Aims for the presentation: To inform delegates of the Street Legal service, what
support is provided and how services can access this support:
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Street Legal is a cross-sector collaboration working to reduce the number
of non-EU clients with immigration issues and/or No Recourse to Public
Funds who sleep on the streets of London
Street Legal is a partnership between Praxis Community projects, Refugee
Action and St. Mungo’s
Presentation 5: NRPF housing project, which is a collaboration between
Commonweal Housing and Praxis (Sally Daghlian, Praxis)
Aims for the presentation: To inform delegates of the work of Praxis and about the
collaboration between Commonweal Housing and Praxis:
Praxis aims to:
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To provide help and support for newly arrived and long settled migrants
To ensure that they are able to live in safety,
Meet their essential human needs and
Overcome the barriers they face to integrate, develop and thrive in the UK.
Commonweal- Praxis NRPF Project:
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Commonweal Housing - housing solutions to social injustice
Seeking to make bold experiments in housing
Using social investment
Testing innovative solutions
Learning and sustainability/replicability
Action points for organisations from group work session:
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To develop resources packs for their service so that when non-EEA migrants
with NRPF present at a frontline service, staff have resources to effectively
signpost them
To contact PLUS Projects/Shelter for 1:1 mentoring advice for small services
to increase funding opportunities and expand generally (especially around
internal policies, procedures, and tapping into resources)
Look to develop partnerships with larger agencies in their region in order to
see if a partnership could be formed to share training
To look into how to utilise the support of services like Street Legal and Praxis
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Keep abreast of changes to legislation and services, e.g. the changes to the
Choices programme, The Immigration Act and the use of the Care Act
respectively
Building borough based alliances – to build local networks to build efficiency
of resources.
Useful Links and Resources:
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Homeless Link Guidance
Models of accommodation and support for refugees with NRPF
Refugee Council
Refugee Council – Supporting Refugee Community Organisations
Praxis
Naccom website and Naccom agencies South East
What is the London Mayor doing around refugees?
JRF - How to improve support and services for destitute migrants (Jul
2015)
Any queries about this event, or future PLUS project events contact
[email protected].