Blog by Jemima Tanner, Grants Officer at Jesuit Refugee Service UK (JRS)
When I first started my role at JRS two months ago, I attended one of the immigration training sessions JRS UK offers for volunteers. The session outlined immigration law in the UK, the intricacies involved in applying for asylum, and the role frontline services play in helping individuals who are seeking sanctuary in the UK.
The complexity and the cruelty of the UK asylum system, when coupled with a lack of good quality legal advice, can leave individuals seeking asylum caught in a perpetual legal limbo. It is disheartening to know asylum seekers are often teetering between destitution and detention simply because they cannot access good quality specialist immigration advice and legal representation.
As part of my work at JRS UK, I am organising our participation in this year’s London Legal Walk to raise funds for the Legal Project. For 19 years, the London Legal Walk has brought together the legal community to support and fundraise to provide free frontline legal advice services. The asylum system has been hit hard by cuts to legal aid in the last few years, and, as the cost-of-living rises, the need is greater than ever.
To read the rest of this blog and find out how to get involved please click here
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