The Home Office, under Theresa May’s leadership, deliberately created the ‘hostile environment’ which has directly caused the Windrush scandal. We are raising a legal fighting fund to hold the government to account for the impact of this devastating policy.

Let’s be clear about the purpose of the hostile environment: to make life in Britain so onerous and unpleasant for immigrants that those who cannot produce the correct documents or prove their legitimacy at the drop of a hat, no matter their circumstances, will be forcibly removed or self-remove.

The Windrush Generation are people who have lived and worked in the UK for decades. But many are now being told they are here illegally and the impact has been devastating. 

Windrush is in the news right now and is emblematic of this travesty of a policy but there are thousands upon thousands of cases where lives are being ruined under all of our noses. 

We are raising money for a legal fund to support the Windrush generation and those affected by the hostile environment. Please support our campaign and share this page on Facebook and Twitter.   

As a result of these policies you are now living in a country where: 

• Thousands of the Windrush generation who arrived in the UK as children in the first wave of Commonwealth immigration are being threatened with deportation: they may have been denied healthcare, are experiencing extreme insecurity in relation to housing, pensions and long-term security as British citizens.
• Racial discrimination has returned in the rental sector: according to the Home Office’s own Independent Inspectorate, the so called ‘landlord immigration checks’ simply don’t work and are not being monitored by the Home Office. 
• A pregnant woman reporting a rape can be arrested and interrogated about her immigration status: the Home Affairs Select Committee called for a review into the 'hostile environment' as a response.

People have had their lives turned upside down and are demanding answers as to why.

Please contribute and share this page to build up a fund for those that have been affected by the government's hostile environment policy who need legal advice and so we can hold the British government accountable for this disgraceful policy. 

Why do we need funds?

The hostile environment is embedded in every aspect of our society. It is impossible to know how many people have been affected and what legal help they need. But we know the scale of this is huge. More and more people are coming forward. To that end, we are raising a fighting fund to ensure we can provide support to those that need legal advice and challenge the hostile environment policies in court if necessary.

Who are we?

JCWI has been a leading organisation working to preserve migrants rights since 1967. JCWI has been fighting to raise the alarm about the impact of the hostile environment since it was first announced. We have been working alongside The Guardian and Channel 4 News and many other organisations in highlighting the issue in the media, together with The Runnymede Trust, iMix and members of the Caribbean diplomatic community. Those affected, celebrities and members of the Caribbean diaspora here in the UK came together last week to say enough is enough and demand the UK Government act quickly to resolve the problem.