People seeking asylum get just £6 a week for travel. The Home Office says that's enough for “one return bus fare a week”. But one trip clearly ISN'T enough to access medical care, food & education. People seeking asylum in London urgently need free bus travel. www.helenbamber.org/resources/re...

The NAO’s report shows the issues we’ve raised for years. Successive governments have made kneejerk, short-term (cruel) changes that have ‘shunted problems elsewhere’. This has harmed people’s real lives, with survivors forced to spend years living in limbo & poverty: www.nao.org.uk/reports/an-a...

On #HumanRightsDay today, we celebrate 75 years of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) & 25 years of the Human Rights Act. For generations, these frameworks have protected people’s dignity & safety, limited the misuse of power & upheld fairness. But they are currently under threat 🧵1/5

Shipping people off to military land in the middle of nowhere does nothing to solve the problems in our asylum system. It's a completely failed experiment in expensive cruelty - it shouldn't be delayed, it should be cancelled completely.

The young people we work with say it best. 🎥 Hear their voices. 🧡 Help us keep this community going. This week, your support can help keep these spaces alive. Every donation is doubled through The Big Give. donate.biggive.org/campaign/a05...

Finally reunited🧡 When Afghanistan fell to the Taliban, 10-year-old Arman* fled to the UK with his aunt and was separated from his parents & siblings. He waited YEARS for the moment he could hug them again. It finally happened a few weeks ago. No words can describe this.

The day after Home Sec announced a raft of punitive policies that deny refugees the safety & stability they need to rebuild their lives, @freedomfromtorture.bsky.social joins @helenbamber.bsky.social in challenging Govt’s failure to consult experts ahead of harmful changes to asylum housing policy

🚨 Today we’re in court challenging changes to the Home Office’s 'Allocation of Asylum Accommodation' policy which force more trafficking & torture survivors to share rooms with strangers. These were introduced with no consultation or warning. 🧵 www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

New govt measures won’t deter people fleeing danger but they WILL cause significant harm. Forcing refugees into decades of limbo, tearing families apart & restricting support in the name of 'deterrence' will only worsen mental health and leave people at risk. www.helenbamber.org/resources/la...

25 years ago, the Palermo Protocol provided the ‘gold standard’ definition of human trafficking & mandated governments to protect & support victims. But countries, including the UK, are falling behind in meeting those commitments. Read more: www.helenbamber.org/resources/la...

Every day, we support hundreds of survivors of trafficking & torture who could be impacted by the government's proposal to make volunteering as a condition of being allowed to settle in the UK. This is both immoral and impractical. 1/2 www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

This vital new report sheds light on the horrific conditions in asylum hotels. While families live in crowded, mouldy hotel rooms and are served substandard food, private companies pocket millions. It’s time to end the use of asylum hotels and invest in communities.

"I was isolated and it was very re-traumatising..." Our client speaks to @claudiahammond.bsky.social on BBC Radio 4's All in the Mind about his experience of being placed in an asylum hotel & the harmful impact it had on his mental health. 📻 Listen in! www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Human being belong in communities, not camps. And our Government knows it. They said they'd shut the camps and stop wasting millions making people seeking sanctuary suffer - so why are they bringing this failed plan back now?

Children don’t stop moving just because safe routes are closed. But they do take riskier journeys. When the Government suspends vital safe routes, it leaves them with no choice but to turn to smugglers to reach their families in UK. Take action: act.safepassage.org.uk/email-home-s...

Legal advice is vital for survivors to navigate complex asylum systems. But many are unable to access it. Ambassadors for Change, a group of campaigners with experience of the UK asylum system, write about the barriers in getting free, quality legal advice 👇 www.helenbamber.org/resources/re...

Leaving the ECHR won't stop people risking their lives through Channel crossings but it WOULD harm the rights of both migrants in the UK & our wider communities. On 75th Anniversary of ECHR, we call on politicians to stop scapegoating & defend human rights. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/poli...

This #StressAwarenessWeek we're highlighting what stress really looks like for young people facing displacement. It’s living with constant uncertainty, about where you’ll stay, who you can trust, and what comes next. @helenbamber.bsky.social

This is not who we are as a country – we should not be forcing children to grow up without their parents.  Read this new British Red Cross report, which shows why refugee family reunion is such a crucial lifeline. redcross.org.uk/about-us/wha...

Latest post from us: Migrant Help to provide training to staff after admitting trafficking policy breach | Monika Glowacka

Thousands of families, including more than 6,000 children, will be hit by the shutdown of a lifeline visa route that allows refugees to reunite in the UK, according to new analysis. Data projections from the British Red Cross show the impact of the pause. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Yesterday, a parliamentary committee report warned that housing people seeking asylum in large sites is harmful. The response? Today, the government announced plans to accommodate hundreds in two ex-military sites. This is cruel & inhumane. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

"It is unacceptable that significant amounts of taxpayers’ money is being used to house often vulnerable people in sub-standard accommodation." This is YET another warning that asylum accommodation is harmful & eye-wateringly expensive. Here's what the Home Affairs Committee report found🧵

⏰ One week before the deadline! ⏰ Applications are open for the next cohort of Compass: The Asylum Aid Advisor Development Programme. This free programme offers 5 IAA Level 2 trainees in-depth training, shadowing opportunities, supervision & a peer support network. 👇

Really worrying findings from @helenbamber.bsky.social on the suspension of the refugee family reunion route: ➡️ Families pushed towards smugglers ➡️ Children + partners left in danger ➡️ One of the few safe routes to the UK is closing #FamiliesBelongTogether 🔗 www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Refugee family reunion saves lives. Last year, over half of those reunited were children fleeing dangerous situations & joining their parents. But the suspension of family reunion until next spring & plans to tighten rules afterwards could turn temporary separation into permanent loss for many. 1/3

"You are not the same person after you experience torture." Ambassadors for Change, a group of survivors of torture, trafficking & persecution, share their experiences & recommendations for better systems with the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture 👇 helenbamber.org/resources/re...

On #AntiSlaveryDay, let's remember that thousands of confirmed trafficking victims are still being left at risk. In 2024, only 4% were granted permission to stay in the UK, leaving 96% facing poverty & possible re-exploitation. Read our latest blog for more ⬇️ www.helenbamber.org/resources/la...

At our mobile clinic with @msf.org at RAF Wethersfield, 62% of patients seen in appointments faced severe mental distress, and 30% had suicidal thoughts. #CommunitiesNotCamps are vital for health 🔗 tinyurl.com/yux3w5xj @asylummatters.bsky.social @helenbamber.bsky.social @care4calais.org

REMINDER: Asylum hotels are NOT places of luxury. They are often dilapidated, squalid & overcrowded. Being forced to live there for months (even years) causes profound harm to people. Those seeking safety in the UK must be housed in communities where they can rebuild their lives with dignity. 👇📽️

Applications are now open for the next cohort of Compass: The Asylum Aid Advisor Development Programme! This free programme offers 5 IAA Level 2 trainees in-depth training, shadowing opportunities, supervision & a peer support network. Find out how to apply here: asylumaid.org.uk/what-we-do/c...

It is horrendous that people who come to the UK to seek safety after fleeing torture and trafficking, are met with further violence, creating more trauma. This is what happens when dangerous rhetoric and misinformation are spread, emboldened and legitimised. 1/2 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

The ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally is a terrifying example of what happens when politicians create performative, divisive policies to appease the far-right. With over 100 orgs, we ask the new Home Secretary to end the scapegoating of refugees & migrants. 📜 www.refugee-action.org.uk/OpenLetterHo...

With 63 other expert orgs, we’ve written to the government to strongly oppose the reduction in the length of time newly-recognised refugees get to move on from asylum accommodation. This could leave thousands more refugees destitute & on the streets this winter. www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

We cannot stress enough how harmful asylum hotels are — contrary to the perception that they are 'luxurious'. They must be closed urgently but not be replaced with crumbling, overcrowded & isolated large sites.  Thanks @benchu.bsky.social for dispelling the myths around asylum hotels 👇

We have been witnessing the fear, sadness & disappointment among the people we support over the last few weeks. The horrific attacks on asylum hotels are a direct outcome of the constant scapegoating of people seeking safety in our politics & the media. This must stop immediately. Our response 👇

In 2 years, the ‘move-on’ period has yo-yoed: 28→7→28→56 days. Now the government wants to slash it again. People who have finally had their refugee status recognised must now find a job and private housing in 28 days - or risk winter on the streets.

The plans to use facial recognition technology to assess the age of children seeking asylum are concerning, unless significant safeguards are put in place. Replacing poor human decision making with inaccurate AI will not prevent children being put at risk. www.thenationalnews.com/news/uk/2025...

53 organisations have joined RAMFEL to demand Yvette Cooper extend family reunion rights to those resettled under Afghan schemes. This is a vital step to fix the harm caused by the data breach, which exposed families to renewed risk from the Taliban. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...

Thousands of families with children arrive in the UK every year to seek protection. But they are pushed into extreme poverty by the Home Office. Two months ago, the government froze the rates of financial support given to people seeking asylum. This has a devastating impact on children. 🧵

In July 2024, Keir Starmer said he'd close Wethersfield asylum camp. Now, he's forcing hundreds more people to live there. Nothing has changed. Wethersfield is still isolated, still dangerous, still cruel. People still deserve to live in communities, not camps.

New Medical Justice report finds that failures in clinical safeguards put vulnerable people at unacceptable levels of risk and caused harm and suffering to people in immigration detention during 2024 medicaljustice.org.uk/annual-revie...

"I did not come here seeking wealth or running from poverty. In fact, I had a stable life back in my country, Yemen. "What forced me to leave was not economic hardship, but persecution and fear for my safety and the safety of my family." www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Many survivors stay silent due to trauma, stigma & fear of retaliation. We must build trust, create safe reporting channels & remove barriers so they can seek help without fear. On World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, we call for systems that protect & support survivors. #EndHumanTrafficking

🚨 Thousands of trafficking survivors continue to be denied permission to stay in the UK despite their critical need for safety and support — a new report by @helenbamber.bsky.social, ATLEU & @ecpatuk.bsky.social reveals. Instead survivors are left in fear and at risk of further exploitation. 🧵1/3

'Youth Support Collective’, a group of young people with lived experience of age assessments by the Home Office, has collaborated with @refugeecouncil.bsky.social and GMIAU to create a guide to support others going through the process, and social workers. 🔗 childhood1st.notion.site/age-assessme...

❓Did you know that hundreds of thousands of people are forced to wait over 10 years for the right to permanently settle in the place they already call home? And it’s about to get worse. 🧵

🚨 We welcome the government's decision to scrap 'scientific methods' of assessing age of children seeking asylum. X-raying children to decide their age is inaccurate, expensive & potentially harmful. But we remain concerned about the Home Office’s use of visual assessments & plans to use AI. 🧵👇

🚨 New report from @ecpatuk.bsky.social 'More Than Words' found that over 61% of child referrals as potential victims of human trafficking were rejected on the grounds that the case did not meet the definitional threshold required to proceed. 📖 Read it here: bit.ly/4nTZDpP #ChildTrafficking

New report by @HelenBamber, @ATLEU_UK & @ECPATUK - just 4% of trafficking survivors got permission to stay in the UK for their recovery/to assist the police in 2024 - of 699 confirmed child victims, less than 5 received temporary permission to stay as victims