My name is Rosie Goodship, and I have been working in the refugee support sector for over five years. This page is for a person that I met exactly five years ago, while working at a local charity in Portsmouth. They are a dear friend to me and a well-known and well-needed advocate, leader, and representative of the local asylum seeking, refugee and migrant community in Portsmouth.

The UK Home Office is demanding £1,533, which comprises a £1033 immigration fee and a £500 NHS surcharge. A local benefactor has kindly stepped in to offer a donation of £833, however, this still leaves a shortfall of £700 to pay.

This person does not have the means to meet this demand. Failure to do so will result in them losing their home, immigration status, and consequently everything that they have been working towards in the last sixteen years. The current situation is having a severely detrimental impact on their mental heath.

Since being granted the eligibility to work in the UK , this person has been employed full-time (and worked over-time hours) to support themselves, their daughter, two siblings (both of whom live with them in the UK), as well as many other family members in SE Africa. They are on a ten year route plan to obtain ‘leave to remain’ status, on the basis of their family life as a parent - FLR (FP) - please see link below.

When I started working at the local charity I recognised very quickly that this person was the ‘glue’ holding the drop-in service together. Beyond co-ordinating volunteers, running the kitchen and food distribution, they would always provide that voice of hope, reassurance and encouragement to individuals struggling to process their immigration claims. Indeed, the would always be looking for ways to expand the well-being services of this charity.

They also dedicate time to present poetry at various events across the city, using it as a platform to counteract the negative public discourse on migration in Portsmouth, and expose the everyday struggles and structural abuses of an unjust UK immigration system. This person has always seen it to be their duty to help those in a worse situation than themselves, despite experiencing destitution for years, homelessness for a period of time, and imbalances in their mental health.

This is a truly phenomenal person who has given so much to the local community in Portsmouth and continues to do so. I am asking that we all pull together to help them out at this time. A small donation can add up to help meet this Home Office demand and allow him to stay on track to eventually gain UK citizenship.

NHS Surcharge

FLR-(FP)