160% increase in destitute people seeking help
OVER 100 PEOPLE A WEEK NOW VISITING THE JRS UK LONDON CENTRES

Monday, 31 August – According to the JRS UK annual report, published in August, more than 100 destitute unsuccessful asylum seekers and refugees per week sought assistance from the organisation last year.

JRS UK Director, Louise Zanre, writing in the latest annual report, described the increase as presenting the charity with considerable challenges. The increase of more than 160% since 2007 forced the organisation to move its day centre facilities to new premises in Forest Gate and Stamford Hill in east and north London respectively.

Ms Zanre also fears some people may end up slipping through the net, especially if they lack self-confidence. The sense of abandonment among refugees and asylum-seeking is palpable – along with their sense of personal worthlessness.  The ever greater challenge JRS staff face is restoring a sense of dignity and in challenging society to remember and respect the worth of each person in the UK, Ms Zanre added.

JRS UK has also seen a rise in the number of refugees volunteering regularly to help in its office and day centres, according to the annual report. This helps them feel they are contributing to the work and making a difference in their own way, Ms Zanre said.

Research validates JRS concerns

JRS figures on destitution are broadly in line with those published in a report by Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust (JRCT), Still destitute: A worsening problem for refused asylum seekers, which found that destitution among refused asylum seekers in the UK has more than doubled in 18 months. In addition, early this summer, the Independent Asylum Commission estimated that 283,500 failed asylum seekers were living homeless in the country.

The JRCT report found that an “unacceptably high” number of families with children and vulnerable adults were living in the UK without the right to undertake paid employment or access social services. The biggest reason for destitution was error or delay in the only government support available. Of the 331 unsuccessful asylum seekers and refugees identified in the Rowntree report as destitute, nearly 50 percent were from Zimbabwe, Iran and Eritrea.

In addition to their annual report, JRS UK also produced a 23-minute DVD about their work entitled JRS UK: Serve, Accompany, Advocate. For copies of either, contact uk[at]jrs.net or telephone +44 207 357 0974.