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By John Glanville, Deputy National Coordinator, KIND UK This Pro Bono Week, I want to say a huge thank you to our pro bono partner firms and all the 900+ lawyers and legal staff currently working on KIND UK cases. We help undocumented children and families as they navigate the UK’s complex immigration, nationality and… Read More »Pro Bono Week – a big thank you to all our partners

Kids in Need of Defense UKSeptember 2024 Kids in Need of Defense UK welcomes the ICIBI’s inspection of Home Office processing of fee waiverapplications. KIND UK is a pro bono legal advice project assisting low-income children, young people, and family members with applications for leave to remain and British citizenship. We are hosted at Central… Read More »Submission to the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration relating to Home OfficeProcessing of Applications for Fee Waivers

We are hiring a triage supervisor to provide inital assessment, triage, and advice to clients. Closes 07/10/2024

Version 2 : 21 August 2024. The Government introduced a new regulation, which applies from 24 July 2024, which puts the Illegal Migration Act on hold indefinitely. This means that children and young people who arrived in the UK on or after 7th March 2023 are now able to have their asylum claims processed in the… Read More »The Illegal Migration Act and children and young people seeking asylum

30 May 2024 KIND UK and Central England Law Centre were saddened by the passage of the Safety of Rwanda Act (“Rwanda Act”) which became law on 25 April 2024.1 However, we are heartened by the Prime Minister’s statement on 23 May 2024 that there will be no forced removals to Rwanda before the general… Read More »Concerns about the UK’s Rwanda Act 2024  

18 April 2024 KIND UK has coordinated a submission from the Refugee and Migrant Children’s Consortium to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) study of care and human rights. “The national government’s approach towards refugee and migrant children has increasingly moved away from child protection and compliance with the… Read More »Care and human rights – submission to UN OHCHR

This guide was prepared by Cynthia Orchard for KIND UK. With thanks to KIND UK Supervising Solicitors Sumita Gupta, Satvinder Chahal and Sagar Shah, and colleagues at law firms Reed Smith, Covington & Burling, and Eversheds Sutherland for contributing. In this guide: 1. What is a citizenship fee waiver application? 2. Which children are eligible… Read More »Applying for a fee waiver for a child’s British citizenship application 

This page is also available in English 19 лютого 2024 року уряд Великої Британiї оголосив про важливi змiни до Правил та полiтики iмiграцiї, що стосуються схем для українцiв (див. Постанову про змiни до правил iмiграцiї: НС 556, 19 лютого 2024 року). Тут KIND UK наводить основні зміни, що випливають з оголошення уряду. Це оновлення було… Read More »Оновлення схем Великої Британiї для українцiв вiд 19 лютого 2024 року [UA]

Ця сторінка також доступна українською мовою On 19 February 2024, the UK government announced important changes to the Immigration Rules and policies relating to the Ukraine Schemes (see Statement of changes to the Immigration Rules: HC 556, 19 February 2024). Here, KIND UK sets out the key changes resulting from government’s announcement. This update was… Read More »Updates to the UK Ukraine Schemes from 19 February 2024 

We contributed to South London Refugee Association’s briefing for local authorities on the impact of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 and best practice for working with children who may be affected by it. KIND UK continues to work with local authorities and other stakeholders to protect and secure the rights of children in care, especially… Read More »SLRA Briefing for local authorities: the Illegal Migration Act

KIND UK wishes everyone a happy Christmas and

«Усім, хто залишає УкраЇну та приїжджає до Великобританії, я кажу не здаватись, тому що українці ніколи не здаються. Світ не без добрих людей, які зроблять усе можливе, щоб допомогти вам.» Цього року KIND UK поширив свою роботу з надання безкоштовної правової підтримки дітям, молоді та сім’ям, які тікають від війни в Україні. Ми допомагаємо тим,… Read More »Моє тіло тут, але душа в Україні

English language version – click here for Ukrainian language version. “To anyone fleeing Ukraine and coming to the UK, I say do not to give up because Ukrainians never give up. The world is not without kind people who will do their best to help you.”  This year, KIND UK expanded its work to provide… Read More »My body is here but my soul is in Ukraine 

British Citizenship for Children: A Guide from KIND UK In this guide: > 1. British Citizenship 2. Discretionary Citizenship 3. The Illegal Migration Act (2023) 4. The Good Character Requirement 5. Useful Resources & More Information 1.1 What is British Citizenship Having British citizenship means that the UK is your home, and you have the… Read More »British Citizenship for Children: 1. British Citizenship

In this briefing, we try to explain in relatively simple terms how the Illegal Migration Act 2023 affects children’s eligibility for leave to remain in the UK and British citizenship. There is a more detailed version of this briefing here.   Summary  The Illegal Migration Act (‘IMA’ or ‘the Act’) became law on 20 July 2023.… Read More »Summary: The Illegal Migration Act 2023: Leave to Remain and British Citizenship for Children

In this video, we hear from a client who has benefited from the amazing work KIND UK do as well as hearing from some of our volunteers about their experience of working on these cases. We are extremely proud to work with KIND UK and to support children applying for British citizenship, providing an opportunity… Read More »Watch: KIND UK and Simmons+Simmons

16 November 2023 KIND UK welcomes the UK Supreme Court’s decision of 15 November 2023 that the UK Government’s “Rwanda policy” to forcibly remove asylum-seekers to a third country rather than process their claims in the UK is unlawful. The Supreme Court’s decision is a victory for justice, human rights, and the rule of law.… Read More »Supreme Court ruling on Rwanda policy and implications for the Illegal Migration Act

October 2023 Introduction The Illegal Migration Act (IMA) achieved Royal Assent on the 20th of July 2023. Many of the provisions are not yet in force, and we await further guidance and information to understand the full impact of the IMA on people seeking safety, other migrants and local authorities. The Government will need to… Read More »Third Sector Statement for Local Authorities on the Illegal Migration Act 2023

Daniel Sahraee – Fourth Seat Trainee, Reed Smith I have been involved with KIND UK projects since I started the second seat of my training contract, which is just over a year ago now. I initially became involved as my trainee supervisor headed up a KIND team that was looking for extra support, so I… Read More »“Make a tangible difference to the clients’ lives” – Daniel Sahraee of Reed Smith talks about working on KIND cases

A statement on the Illegal Migration Act from KIND UK KIND UK provides free legal assistance to children with immigration and citizenship matters. We work with children in care and children who reside with their families. We partner with 27 corporate law firms to deliver the highest quality legal advice and representation on a pro… Read More »An Act of Destruction

Nathan Menon – Partner, Reed Smith I started working on KIND UK cases when I was a senior associate back in 2019 and I have been involved in three different cases since then. I have always been interested and keen to participate in pro bono during my career, progressing from trainee through to associate and… Read More »Reed Smith Partner Nathan Menon talks about working with KIND UK

Elle Todd – Partner, Reed Smith I have been involved in the KIND UK project for over 3 years and there were many reasons which drew me to joining. Having a politics degree background and being interested in policy around immigration, I knew I wanted to know more about this in practice and the real… Read More »“The real stories and lives behind the headlines” – Elle Todd, Partner at Reed Smith on KIND UK

“Becoming a British citizen is a significant life event… British citizenship gives you the opportunity to participate more fully in the life of your local community.” Home Office Citizenship Guidance Alison – a former KIND UK client “I was trafficked into the UK when I was in my early 20s. I was told I was… Read More »Illegal Migration Bill – Briefing for Peers

By Tahmim, Reed Smith I am a current SQE Intern at Reed Smith and am due to start my training contract next year. I have been seconded to KIND UK for the past 6 months and have been working as part of the Central England Law Centre team. I have been involved in pro bono… Read More »SQE Intern at Reed Smith working with KIND UK

Ця інформація також доступна українською мовою / This page is also available in Ukrainian Kids in Need of Defense UK (KIND UK) offers free advice for children and young people who are currently in or have left Ukraine who wish to apply to come to the UK or extend their stay in the UK. We… Read More »Advice for children and young people from Ukraine [EN]

Clauses 30-36 of the Illegal Migration Bill represent a severe challenge to the rights of children to acquire British citizenship. Learn more in our briefing to MPs.

by Roderick Dirkzwager, Covington & Burling LLP What struck me most about this case was what a huge exercise it was – a team of four lawyers from Covington and Microsoft working tirelessly to make sure everything was watertight. You would think this would apply to a multi-million-pound corporate dispute or M&A deal, rather than… Read More »A not so straight forward Leave to Remain case 

Issues: Child in care > EEA national > good character requirementDownload this case study as a pdf If you met Marco at age 16, you’d have thought that he was British. He had a British accent, had lived in the UK his whole life, and thought of himself as British. But he was not a… Read More »Case Study: Marco

Issues: Child in Need > adult sibling > domestic violence Lena was born in a non-EU country and came to the UK as a small child in 2010, with her mum, Maria, and older brother, Jon (a young teenager when he came to the UK and now an adult). Maria and the children entered the… Read More »Case Study: Lena

Issues: Children in need > NRPF > disabilities > inadequate legal advice Download case as a pdf Atu and Ebo are brothers who were born in the UK in 2007 and 2010. Their parents came to the UK legally in 2004, for their mum, Emma, to pursue advanced studies. Emma and her husband, David, had… Read More »Atu and Ebo

KIND UK’s Strategic Plan for 2022-25 sets out our goals for the next three years of our project.

Download this resource by clicking here Changes Effective 4th October 2023 – the fee associated with registering a child was increased to £1,214. Children’s nationality and immigration status This is a summary of some of the ways that a child’s immigration status can be improved or they can acquire British citizenship. Complexity This summary illustrates… Read More »Routes to children’s nationality and immigration status

Free training on UK citizenship, immigration and nationality law for local authority practice managers, trainers, IROs and others who train, mentor or review children’s social work

Katie Fennell, KIND UK’s National Coordinator, reflects on her time with KIND, how she arrived here, and the changes to the UK’s immigration landscape that have made our work so vital. As this week is the 20th anniversary of Pro Bono Week it felt like an opportunity to reflect on KIND UK’s journey; from a… Read More »Reflecting on KIND in Pro Bono Week 2021

We’ve currently switched our website provider around – please bear with us if you can’t find something, or send an email to info@kidsinneedofdefense.org.uk. Our referral form has been comprehensively overhauled, so please let us know if you encounter any problems.

KIND joined Little Amal on her Walk through Europe – we met her before we held a children’s citizenship ceremony.

By Antonio Michaelides and Katie Fennell | 8 April 2021 Research by the University of Wolverhampton commissioned by the Mayor of London in January 2020 estimated that there were more than 133,000 children and young people living in London without secure immigration status. Looking across the UK, that number rises to 215,000 children and 117,000… Read More »City lawyers have a role to play in the society we seek to improve

The strategic plan documents the strategy and objectives for Kids in Need of Defense UK for 2020-22. We strive for a world where the rights and well-being of all children and young people are protected by ensuring access to high-quality, free legal assistance to navigate a complex immigration system. Research suggests that there are 215,000… Read More »Strategic Plan 2020

We asked ourselves, how do you tell the story of undocumented youth without getting all lawyerish about it? Well here’s how!  PositiveNegatives produce comics, animations and podcasts about contemporary social and humanitarian issues. They combine ethnographic research with illustration, adapting personal stories into art, education and advocacy materials. Together with artist, Asia Alfasi and youth activists, Let… Read More »Ola: A British Love Story Against All Odds

Our pro bono lawyers and the firms they work for are the backbone of KIND’s project – without them, we couldn’t begin to have the impact that we do, or help nearly as many children, young people, and families obtain documentation and access their rights to residence and citizenship. Georgia Iacovou sat down with Olivia Clark and… Read More »Interview: Olivia Clark and Kristin Bong

It’s pro bono week, so we thought we’d have a chat with Alexander Kolmakov from DLA Piper — he’s close to completing his 15th case. DLA Piper are one of KIND UK’s longest standing partners, and Alexander has been working at their London offices for five years now — right when our project started. He’s… Read More »15 pro bono cases that couldn’t have been completed without KIND UK

The uncertainty surrounding Brexit means that people need to know what their rights are, and what they can do now to protect them. Many children and young people living in the UK do not know that they are eligible to apply for British citizenship. It’s, therefore, critical to understand all of the possible options. This… Read More »EU Settled Status and British Citizenship: What You Need to Know

Brighter Futures is a group of active young migrants working together to bring about positive change. In this short film they share their experiences to help our pro bono lawyers learn how to work with children and young people.

Of the tens of thousands of children and young people in the UK with unresolved immigration issues many have an entitlement to British citizenship or a right to remain. People with unresolved immigration issues are vulnerable to exploitation, homelessness and abuse. Young people are prevented accessing higher education and employment and they are at risk… Read More »Because every child has the right to dream