Windrush Justice Case Studies

Windrush Defenders Legal 

Windrush Defenders Legal provides independent support and advocacy to the African Caribbean community, with particular focus on the Windrush Generation. Read the case study below to learn more about their work.

Mr AR is 65 years old. He came from Jamaica to live in the UK in 1977. He served in the UK Army for 3 years from 1978 – 1981 and then remained as an army reserve for a further 4 years. After that, Mr AR worked in different factories and other jobs over the years. 

In 2016 Mr AR’s benefits, (Housing Benefit and Universal Credit), were stopped because he was unable to provide evidence of his legal status in the UK. He was told consistently by the Benefits Agency that there was no record of him anywhere, even though he had a National Insurance Number, and that there wasn’t anything that proves that he was ever in the army. 

This led to Mr AR accumulating rent arrears and begging for food from family and friends. During this time Mr AR’s mother passed away and left him some money most of which he used to pay off some of his arrears in the hope that he could keep his house. However, this was to no avail as he was still evicted leaving him sofa surfing. Mr AR’s sister who was newly married took him in; this caused him to suffer from anxiety and poor mental health. Eventually, the pressures of living on his sister’s sofa and imposing on her new life caused strain on their new marriage. This led to a breakdown in Mr AR and his sister’s relationship and after three years he was asked to leave. 
 
Mr AR was left begging for somewhere to stay again, “I didn’t feel like a man my dignity had been stripped, a grown man unable to sustain myself I had no money or a way of making money, no food or place to call home,” he explained. “I had to beg people I knew, I was embarrassed, in debt and felt really low.” During this period Mr AR’s health was affected because he was under so much pressure and stress trying to prove that he belonged. He began having dizzy spells and passing out. Mr AR’s daughter who had 4 children took him into her 3-bedroom house where he slept on her sofa for 4 months. He was in an unknown area isolated from his friends. These conditions further impacted his mental health and emotional wellbeing. 
 
In 2019 Mr AR got a letter from the army about his pension and this led to him eventually getting his resident permit card through the Windrush Scheme. He was then able to sign up for rehousing. He was offered a home in Sale, Cheshire, outside the community and area that he knew and although he was apprehensive about living there he accepted it so his daughter could get her life back.

*Names have been kept anonymous for confidentiality purposes