The S.A.F.E (Strategic Alliance for Europeans) project is a three-year partnership (2023-2026) between Here for Good, Seraphus and Wilsons Solicitors with the aim to challenge systemic injustices that put Europeans and their families at risk. This is a project that intends to encourage and facilitate collaboration with the EUSS sector.
EU citizens and their families not protected by the Withdrawal Agreement and / or the EU Settlement Scheme are very vulnerable in terms of legal protections afforded to them. Evidence suggests they are more likely to include those who are homeless/destitute, digitally excluded, on a low income and marginalised groups due to race/ethnicity. Similarly, there are EU Citizens temporarily protected by pre-settled status who might not achieve settled status for a number of different reasons.
The main objectives of the project are to:
1. Broaden the remit of the EUSS so that people currently excluded by the scheme can have their rights protected by the scheme in future.
2. Improve the EUSS sector’s ability to respond to unjust and unlawful policies and practices by adding capacity to collaborate on legal policy and strategic litigation.
3. Influence immigration law outside of the EUSS, to reflect changes since Brexit to benefit EU citizens, their family members and wider vulnerable groups in the future, so that people currently excluded by the scheme can have alternative protections.
To achieve this, we will:
- Gather case data and monitor trends from our own casework and from the EUSS sector on EU Citizens who cannot obtain settled status or fall outside of EUSS/Withdrawal Agreement
- Share expertise and resources with the EUSS sector in how to deal with complex cases/issues via the alliance/stakeholder meetings and further training/briefings
- Write briefings and reports to influence change and encourage flexibility in decision making on applications made under the EU Settlement Scheme. We will do this by using case trends and further insights from the EUSS sector including working with the EU Delegation to the UK
- Liaise with the Home Office on EUSS application issues commonly impacting the EUSS sector’s ability to support EU Citizens and their families
- Research and identify public interest cases which are to be challenged via Judicial Review
- Conduct legal challenges on strategic issues
- Research and run test cases in wider areas of immigration law for EU Citizens and their families not protected by the EUSS or the Withdrawal Agreement