I'm Peter
When people fall through the cracks in the system, they can find it almost impossible to live in safety. That was the situation facing Peter.
Peter was part of a severely persecuted group in his home country. As his friends began to ‘disappear’, he feared for his life. He knew he had to escape and so he fled to the UK to seek asylum. But the Home Office refused his claim and then lost all information about it.
And so he ended up forgotten and undocumented. He spent years having to take odd jobs to stay off the streets, never sure he would be living in the same place from one month to the next.
But things completely fell apart in 2018 when his kidneys began to fail. He was so sick that he needed dialysis treatment three times a week and was unable to work at all.
With no income and no support available, he wasn’t able to stay in regular housing – he went from homeless shelter to homeless shelter for two years, suffering from his illness and racking up healthcare debt because of his lack of status.
Even though he tried to access support to turn things around, due to cuts to legal aid and the complexity of his case, solicitors wouldn't take it on.
We don’t take on cases based on whether there is legal aid. We help because if we don’t, no one else will.
When our adviser James met Peter in September 2020, he saw a way out for him that others didn’t. He immediately got Peter into temporary housing, and spent 8 long months supporting him alongside a new solicitor. We were able to prove that he couldn't go back to his home country because of the life-threatening danger it would put him in. Now he lives in stable accomodation without fear of ending up back on the streets.
James didn't stop there. Continuing to fight for him, just this week, he got Peter leave to remain in the UK. Peter now has a home, access to support and can get on the waiting list for a life-saving kidney transplant.
“I’m so grateful. My health is not great, I have very strong pain, and having a place to live has made things so much better for me. When my health improves, I’ll be able to do anything now. I’m incredibly happy.”
There’s much more to be done, but James is dedicated to keep going until we get Peter access to all the support he needs to start to build a life for himself.
We rely on donations to fund cases like Peter's - your support means that we can be there for people in impossible situations like his and give them a new lease on life. If you'd like to help us keep doing this, please consider donating today.