Reconnection and No Recourse to Public Funds workshop delivered by Anuska Casas-Pinto, Refugee Action; Lydia Haritinova, London Reconnections at the LNNM homeless conference April 4th 2014
2. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
Many migrants have found themselves
homeless because of the difficulty to
obtain low-skilled jobs in parts of the
economy. This is not least because of a
steep rise in unemployment among
nationals, many of whom with higher
qualifications that have been prepared
to take low skilled jobs.
3. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
Partly as a result, a disproportionate number of
migrants work in the informal economy, where they
have no access normal social rights for
*Unemployment Benefits
* Social Support
This is especially so for those without ‘official papers’.
Accordingly, those
#without jobs
#friends or relatives to assist or to support them
often have little choice but to live on the streets and
sleep rough or in shelters
4. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
The rise in homelessness among the
migrants has put increasing pressure
on voluntary organisations which are
seriously struggling to cope with the
increased demand for their assistance
as a result of cutbacks in both benefits
and social services: Thames Reach is
one with many successful projects to
assist homeless people including LRT.
5. LRT MODEL
• Work with vulnerable EU National
verified rough sleepers – In all 33
London boroughs
• Support & Assisted Voluntary
reconnection back to family,
employment or a support service
• Part of LRT is to support Vulnerable
Men trafficked for forced labour and
criminality
6. LR TEAM
• The LR team is fully dedicated and the majority of team
members are highly educated with levels in psychology and
social services subjects
• Posses multi language skills which significantly assists LRT to
understand and deal with the vulnerable clients
• Manage the whole reconnection process from start to finish
• Access temporary accommodation prior to reconnection
• Agree treatment pre and post reconnection - travel with the
most vulnerable
• Continued liaising and visiting overseas support agencies
• Follow up
7. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
• In summary, our main aim is to prevent the
unnecessary deaths of people sleeping
rough on the streets of London.
• We help people to return home with dignity
and ensure support is in place.
• We do not believe that it is an option for
Central and Eastern Europeans to remain as
rough sleepers on the streets of London for
years, living in destitution
8. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
The core parts of the homeless
population since the crisis began are:
//People who have lost their jobs
//Have suffered a sudden reduction in
income
// Mental Health Issues
// The drug or alcohol addicts
// The social misfits
9. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
• There are three models of reconnection that you can consider; these are
// ticket only
• Newly arrived in the UK as part of a 'scam'
• Been in the UK for only a short time
• Recently lost work
• No dependency issues
• Have support at home
// assisted return –
• Been in the UK for a while
• Rough sleeping
• Alcohol / drug issues
• Poor health
// supported return –
• Been in the UK for a long time
• Entrenched rough sleeping
• Alcohol / drug issues
• Serious health needs
• No support at home
10. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
It is important to realise that
reconnection is a voluntary option, as
not everyone will want to return home.
There may be a number of reasons for
this
11. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
• Pride - for those who come to the UK to make money for
their families at home, it can be very difficult to return
home with nothing
• Determination to succeed - the person may be
confident that he/she will find work soon
• No ties at home - there are some people who, while
being nationals of one country, may have lived in others
for a long period before coming to the UK and therefore
have no ties to their countries of origin
• Legal history - people are sometimes reluctant to return
home due to outstanding warrants or debts at home.
12. LONDON RECONNECTION TEAM
Where clients show no signs of being
capable of work and are destitute but
do not want to go home, building a
relationship of trust over time and
frequently exploring the benefits of
returning home can be useful.
13. CLIENTS’ OPINION
LRT produces a client user’s survey on
a regular basis and here is the
feedbacks from clients who were
assisted by LRT
I have chosen TR services not only out
of the necessity but because I like the
helpfulness of the services it provides
14. PARTNESHIP
• NHS Hospitals, UKBA, Salvation Army,
Police, Courts, Probation/Prison,
Homeless organisations and Local
Authority – make referrals
• Embassies – liaise with returning
country authorities, documents
• Support Agencies in Returning
Countries – provide accommodation
and support
15. THE FUTURE
• Involved in wider issues affecting
migrants through Embassy contacts
• Closely involved with wider issues of
homelessness through Thames Reach
• Important to keep awareness high
17. Relevant EEA Legislation:
*The Free Movement Of Persons
Directive 2004/38/EC
*The Immigration (European Economic
Area) Regulation 2006
18. Immigration Regulations
• Under regulation 6 of the Immigration
(EEA) Regulations 2006, a qualified
person is an EEA national who is in the
UK and exercising free movement
rights in any of the following
categories:
• An EEA national is a qualified person
exercising Treaty rights if they are:
19. •A worker (work must be meaningful and effective not
marginal and ancillary)
•A self-Employed person (work must be meaningful
and effective not marginal and ancillary)
•A self-sufficient person (must also have
comprehensive sickness insurance)
•A student (must also have comprehensive sickness
insurance)
•A jobseeker (the person must be actively seeking
work and have a genuine chance of getting a job in
UK).
20. Immigration Regulations
EEA nationals who can show that they
meet any of these criteria can apply for
documentation to show their right of
residence. Only qualified persons have
a right of residence in the UK.
22. Immigration Regulations
On 1st January 2014 the Home Office
approach to deportation and removal of
EEA nationals changed
Re- entry restrictions following
administrative removal:
23. Immigration Regulations
EEA nationals who are administratively
removed for not exercising Treaty
Rights (under the current provisions)
will not be
Able to re-enter the UK for twelve months
following removal unless they can
demonstrate that they will immediately
be exercising Treaty Rights upon re-
entry
24. Housing Benefits
New migrant jobseekers from the
European Economic Area (EEA) will no
longer be able to get Housing Benefit
from April 2014
25. Benefits Updates
The UK's Work and Pensions Minister,
Ian Duncan Smith, has decreed that,
from March 1st onwards, EU migrants
to the UK must normally be able to
show that they have earned at least
£150 per week for at least three months
before they can claim UK benefits such
as Jobseekers Allowance
(unemployment benefit)
