Issue February 2013

Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network

Active Voice
LRMN CLIENTS END OF YEAR PARTY
On the 19th of December 2012, the Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network held an end of year party inviting all its clients. Brockley Community Church provided an amazing and freshly prepared buffet and LEWCAS showered our children with beautifully wrapped presents. Some of our clients even received Christmas hamper from Kings Church Centre.

Listening to traditional Christmas songs and other world music, everyone joined in celebrating the end of the year in a positive spirit, whilst enjoying the delicious, freshly cooked food The children were entertained by Yaz and Becca who kindly offered their face painting skills free of charge, turning the little ones into clowns, lions and flowers upon request. A big Thank You goes out to everyone who helped make this event a pleasant and successful evening!

. LRMN

News & Information

Save Lewisham Hospital Digital/Social Media Training Lots of our clients will be affectProgramme
The Digital/Social Media training programme has started in January 2013. Weekly sessions are held at LRMN to support organisations to build their websites in order to showcase what they do and benefit from online technology. The programme also includes 8 workshops, once a month, starting from February, specifically on Social Media (Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, online videos, mobile etc.) with the aim of helping organisations to engage with their community, colleagues, donors. ed by the closure of the maternity and the full A&E at Lewisham Hospital. Our clients are part of the 750,000 Lewisham residents who will have to go to Woolwich, Kings or St Thomas to receive treatment. And as we already know, these hospitals simply do not have the capacity to accommodate Lewisham patients.

Refugee Week Celebration June 2013

We are now in the process of preparing for the Refugee Week celebration in partnership with the Horniman Museum. If you are interested to join and be part of the planning team, please contact Terry on 020 8694 0323.

Big Lottery Transition Fund

The Lewisham Advice Providers Consortium (LAPC) where LRMN is a member has put forward an application for the Big Lottery Transition Fund. Lets cross our fingers!!

Our website being revamped!!

With the help of Richard, our experienced IT volunteer, we hope to have a more sleek , modern and easy to navigate website very soon.

We are still looking for a house!!

LRMN is still at Parker House and is urgently looking for office spaces. Please contact Rosario if you could help.

The Save Lewisham Hospital campaign is not over, give your support, there are many ways you can help http:// www.savelewishamhospital.co We are fully booked for the cur- m/get-involved/ rent Digital/Training Programme but please feel free to contact us Want to know more about if you are interested in attending Refugees ? the training next year. We will start recruiting the participating If you want to find out more about the life and the plight of organisations later in 2013. Refugees in the UK and around For more information, please the world there are many articontact Cristina on 020 8694 0323 cles and reports available on the or via email at: internet. Both the Guardian and cristina.zorat@lrmn.org.uk The Independent news papers have a section on Refugees

New People:

LRMN Trustees Wanted!

We are looking for trustees with the following skills: Finance, Fundraising, Advice and Legal, Social Enterprise and Human Resource. If you have one of these skills, please contact Rosario.

We have volunteers and students on placement who joined us recently performing various tasks. They are:

You can access them at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/ immigration http://www.independent.co.uk/ topic/Refugees

Andrew Hanson , Jeanette WalFurther you will find a lot of incott, Sinotu Lawal, Danielle teresting information on the UK DMello, Luisa Hoque, Katya Boyer homepage of the UNHCR, which and Iqvinder Malhi. you can access at: A Big Welcome to all of you!! http://www.unhcr.org.uk/

LRMN News & Information

BENEFIT CUTS
It is now well documented that a number of welfare benefit cuts have been imposed following the Government comprehensive spending review. Nowhere are the effects felt more than in people who are ill or disabled. Richard Hawkes, chief executive of the disability charity Scope, said: "The government has not delivered on its promise to support disabled people into work, penalising those on ESA and jobseekers' allowance who have worked and paid national insurance in the past and who now cannot rely on getting the support they need when they need it, in an increasingly difficult employment market. Disabled people and their families do not have 'broad shoulders', so why are they bearing the brunt of these cuts?" As any adviser dealing with clients on Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) will be able to tell you, the situation is reaching crisis point. Advisers are now spending vast amounts of their time attending appeal tribunals for ESA. ESA replaced Incapacity Benefit and is for people who have a limited capability for work due to an illness or disability. It can be either contributory or incomerelated, and claimants either get the work-related activity component or the support component. Claimants on the work related activity component are subject to regular medical and work capability assessments, where they are assessed on a number of functions relating to mobility and cognitive functioning. The descriptors are very limited and dont cover issues like incapacity due to severe mental health problems. These clients are lucky in that they have someone advocating for them. How many more are there who have no one to speak up for them? What will happen to those people?

The needs of clients who have had their benefit stopped far outweighs the resources of organisations dealing with the problem Many of our clients have been and its only going to get worse affected and have had their ESA when the Universal Credit comes stopped after attending an assess- into effect. ment. We are appealing on their Margot Lawrence behalf and have several first-tier Welfare Benefit and Health Adviser tribunals coming up, and predict more and more as the benefit cuts really take hold. So far we have been successful on behalf of our clients. We effectively challenged the decision in the case of N, a young Ethiopian woman with severe learning difficulties who cannot even write her own address, and yet she was assessed as fit for work. The DWP accepted our submission and made a decision in Miss Ns favour without going to Please support LRMN! tribunal. LRMN fulfils a very important job in tough economic times and budget cuts. If you are able to make a donation this would be greatly appreciated . You can do so by either contacting us via phone and/or visiting our website.

We have just had a successful outcome at the tribunal regarding the case of Mr H, a Sri Lankan client with a severe heart condition, hearing impairment and mental health difficulty who was deemed fit to work.

Parker House, 1st Floor 144 Evelyn Street LONDON, SE8 5DD Mon-Fri 9:30 am - 5:30 pm Phone: 0208 694 0323 Fax: 0208 694 6621 www.lrmn.org.uk www.facebook.com/LRMNetwork

Established in 1991 Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network (LRMN) is a longstanding provider of information and advice on immigration, welfare benefits, housing, homelessness, debt, health and education to asylum seekers, refugees and migrants in South East London. LRMN also provides counselling and therapeutic support to women survivor of domestic and gender based violence and helps clients access medical services. ENGLISH AS SECOND LANGUAGE CLASS (ESOL for Beginners) Classes take place every Monday, Thursday and Friday from 1.003.00pm and Tuesday from 10.0012.00pm.

ADVISORY SERVICE
-Immigration -Social Care -Welfare Benefits -Housing We are registered with the Office of the Immigration Services Commission to provide advice up to Level 3. We are able to: - conduct casework - prepare cases in the Immigration and Asylum Chambers (IAC) including drafting full grounds of appeal. - represent clients at the IAC - instruct a barrister or advocate to appear at the IAC where permitted by BAR Council. Our advisors give advice at one-to-one consultations. If we are unable to help clients, we signpost them to specialist services. For an appointment contact 0208 694 0323 ALL SERVICES ARE FREE WOMENS SUPPORT SERVICES We offer one-to-one counselling service for refugee and asylum seeking women who are suffering effects of gender-based violence and other traumas. Appointments on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. For an appointment contact: Emma Brech - 0208 694 0323 ext 231

IT/COMPUTER CLASSES Basic training in using a computer. Learn how to operate a keyboard and mouse, get online and set up an email account. Tuesday from 10.002.00pm GARDENING PROJECT for Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Migrants Soon to start in New Cross and Lee. If you are interested please contact Rosario on 020 8694 0323.

Time To Talk - Lewisham Refuge Network Nurture/Health Group for Women Providing support and education around health and self-esteem. Includes a hot lunch. Every Wednesday 10am - 12pm. Sewing Club Every Thursday 10am-12pm Knitting Club Every Thursday 10am-12pm. Contact Margot.

HEALTH ACCESS PROJECT For information and advice about accessing NHS treatment or relevant health services, and help with health-related benefits. Appointments on Mondays and Thursdays. Contact Shepherd on 020 8694 0323

FREE CRECHE AVAILABLE