The Greater Manchester Migrant Destitution Fund: Alleviating destitution during the Covid-19 crisis

The Migrant Destitution Fund GM aims to support people in Greater Manchester who are forced into destitution by their immigration status – refused asylum seekers and others whose right to be in the UK is not recognised by the Home Office. The fund was first established in January 2018 by an action group formed under the Manchester Homelessness Partnership. Members of the action group whose immigration status denied them the right to work or to access state benefits played a key role in setting the fund up. As one participant put it: ‘The system is designed to make you a beggar’. As a result, while a fund already existed in Manchester for homeless people to access specific items, the action group decided that this fund should make cash grants, with no strings attached. At the same time as meeting material needs, the fund sought to reduce feelings of dependency, affording some measure of freedom through providing recipients with cash. The fund gave out more than 200 grants, totalling nearly £15,000, before closing due to lack of resources in April 2019.

In light of the Covid-19 crisis, the fund reopened last month. The virus does not respect boundaries between citizens and non-citizens. But the crisis it has engendered hits the most vulnerable the hardest – not least those forced into destitution by Home Office policy. Frontline services – offering shared hot meals, bus fares, advice, therapy, community, care and friendship – make up a crucial part of many people’s material livelihoods, as well as offering relationships that help tackle trauma, depression, anxiety and social exclusion. As these organisations are now, for the most part, unable to maintain face-to-face contact, social worlds have drastically contracted. At the same time, ‘social distancing’, for many, means confinement in cramped conditions where their presence was already contingent on the goodwill of friends or family.

The Migrant Destitution Fund does not resolve these issues. However, monthly cash grants of up to £50 should enable people to access fresh food, reducing dependency on overstretched foodbanks, and to buy crucial phone credit/data which can maintain contact with friends and family both in the UK and in countries of origin, thus reducing loneliness, social isolation, and anxiety about loved ones. Further, in cramped conditions where people are sofa surfing, the degree of independence afforded by cash may help restore dignity and reduce tensions. As a result, we hope, the grants can foster greater resilience in tackling anxieties and stress relating both to the Covid-19 crisis, and to the multiple exclusions already faced by the fund’s recipients.

Looking ahead, sustainability is a key question for the fund as grant-making bodies do not look kindly on giving cash to individuals. Please consider making a donation here. To make regular monthly donations, click on one of the suggested donation values (£10, £50 or £100 – you can change the value on the next step to whatever you can afford), then tick ‘make it monthly donation’ on the next page. Please include ‘Migrant Destitution Fund’ in the message so we can make sure the funds go to the right place.

For more information and updates about the Migration Destitution Fund also see our Facebook page.