Resisting the 'hostile environment' - free training for social workers
Published by Professional Social Work magazine, 4 April, 2023
Free online training on how to “resist the hostile environment” against refugees is being offered to social workers by a campaign group.
The first of 20 Stand Up! Speak Out! sessions starts today hosted by Solidarity Knows No Borders (SKNB) and is entitled ‘Is the hostile environment racist?’.
Subsequent sessions will take place every Thursday until June. They will cover topics such as supporting migrants access employment, healthcare and legal aid. Other training offered includes helping people with mental health problems seeking asylum, reuniting families, providing immigration support for children in care and care leavers and the Rwanda policy.
The sessions will be led by migrant justice organisers, campaigners, case workers and academics.
SKNB said the training aims to equip public sector workers “with the practical tools and knowledge to show up in solidarity with migrants and refugees”.
The training comes in the wake of an increasingly hardline approach to refugees and asylum seekers being pursued by the government.
The Illegal Immigration Bill, published last month, will see people deemed to be arriving in the UK illegally detained and removed to Rwanda or a “safe” other country within weeks.
They will also be banned forever from claiming asylum in the UK.
Ministers say the approach aims to stop criminal gangs exploiting people by putting them on small boats to make the perilous journey across the channel in exchange for thousands of pounds.
But BASW, along with refugee support groups, has criticised the policy. The association said: “BASW firmly believes that any person arriving in the UK seeking asylum, no matter the route they took to get here, should have a fair hearing on UK soil.
“Under international law, there is no ‘illegal route’ to enter the UK. There are unsafe routes, and the government could make it easier to claim asylum in the UK from another country rather than force people to risk their lives to travel here.”
BASW accused the government of creating “unworkable and discriminatory practices that are in breach of human rights”.
Campaigners have also criticised the government’s treatment of 8,000 refugees from Afghanistan who have been housed in hotels for the last 18 months at an estimated cost of £6.8 million a day.
They will be giving three months’ notice to accept permanent homes, backed by £35 million extra funding to local authorities. If they refuse, they could be made homeless.
Concern has been expressed over the standard and suitability of the accommodation offered.
The government is also exploring housing refugees in ex-army barracks and a giant offshore barge.
There's no such thing as an illegal immigrant - see here