We help people access their rights and receive the compensation they are entitled to
Only around 20% of people who might be able to claim compensation have done so.
Much of this reluctance is because of a lack of trust in the Home Office.
Several years ago, the UK government finally accepted that it had wrongly detained, deported and denied legal rights to Commonwealth citizens from the Caribbean, Africa, and Southern Asia in what is now known as the ‘Windrush Scandal’ The government established The Windrush Compensation Scheme to provide victims of the scandal with compensation for their suffering.
Thousands of people have been affected by this scandal, but many are reluctant (and often frightened) to ask for help. Only an estimated 20% of people who may be eligible for help have come forward, mainly because of mistrust of the Home Office.
Southwark Law Centre works to support Windrush victims.
We offer free independent legal advice so that people can successfully apply for compensation which accurately reflects their loss and suffering.
We are currently closed to new referrals for a short period and hope to reopen soon.
People may be able to apply to the scheme if they arrived in the UK from a Commonwealth country before 1973 or before 1988
And
They have experienced issues with the Home Office questioning their immigration status or they have ever been refused access to services like health care? People can claim on behalf of parents or grandparents, even if they have passed on.
THE WINDRUSH COMPENSATION SCHEME: UNMET NEED FOR LEGAL ADVICE
WINDRUSH 75: To introduce our Windrush series in the countdown to #Windrush Day 2023, watch Van Ferguson, a solicitor at the Southwark Law Centre @SouthwarkLawCen, explain who the Windrush Generation are, and the Windrush Compensation scheme https://twitter.com/KCL_Law/status/1670775223275143169?s=20
and
Watch Sharon Anthony-Tewkesbury, the Windrush Justice Clinic’s Project Coordinator at Southwark Law Centre talk about the challenges of people who have been affected by the Windrush scandal.
Southwark Law Centre Windrush Justice team with colleagues from the Windrush Justice partnership
The WJC is a collaboration between Southwark Law Centre and North Kensington Law Centre; the University of Westminster Legal Advice Clinic, Kings College Legal Advice Clinic, London South Bank University Legal Advice Clinic; and community groups Claudia Jones Organisation, The Windrush Compensation Project and The Jigsaw House Society.