Roy Harrison Emergency Fund

Roy Harrison is a 44-year-old Londoner who arrived in the UK, aged 6, to join his Windrush family. In his country of birth, Jamaica, Roy was found abandoned, as a baby, on a verandah, and lived a very difficult life until he was informally adopted into his aunt's family in the UK. His aunt had arrived in the UK as part of the Windrush generation and Roy was granted Indefinite Leave to Remain.

In the UK, things did not get much better for Roy who was eventually put into the care of Lewisham Council. In files obtained from their social services department, there is evidence of discussions re Roy's immigration status, but no follow up action was taken. Roy should have become a British citizen.

Roy left school with no qualifications and very little life skills. He suffered physical and mental ill health, no doubt linked to childhood trauma.

During the social disturbances of 2011 in London, which saw looting in some areas, Roy went out to find his son who he'd been informed was in one of the shops. Several hundred people were kettled in and taken to police stations where Roy says that a duty solicitor encouraged those present to plead guilty. Roy maintains that he had no idea what was happening, was bewildered to find himself under arrest, but agreed to plead guilty as he wanted to go home. He was shocked instead to be told to return to court where he obtained a custodial sentence of 16 months, of which he served 8. Roy maintains his innocence of the theft charges he was convicted of but accepts that he pleaded guilty, and that the conviction stands.

From then onwards, Roy's life got worse than he could imagine. He was served with a deportation order by the Home Office, lost his home, a newly formed gardening business, and a relationship. Moreover, both his physical and mental well-being deteriorated further.

At the time of the Windrush scandal, Roy was homeless and sleeping in a bin shed on a Clapham housing estate. Efforts to resolve his immigration status through the Windrush Task Force were met with resistance and after a couple of years, he was advised that he couldn't have his immigration status resolved unless the deportation order was successfully revoked. In May 2022, the deportation order was revoked but even then, it took the Home Office 7 months to overturn a decision to grant him limited leave rather than settlement.

This week, Roy's immigration status was finally restored to Indefinite Leave to Remain. He describes the moment as one of a bittersweet occasion because of the suffering he has endured over the past decade and his fears for the future having lost so much.

Roy faces a bleak winter. He is currently living in a discarded caravan given to him by a well-wisher but there is no running water or heating. He's been advised that his benefits won't be restored until January. The London Borough of Lambeth, where he has been living rough for the past decade, have not yet been able to provide any emergency accommodation, just a series of forms.

Roy's story is detailed in the Guardian by Diane Taylor who first wrote about his plight back in 2019. I encourage you to read her most recent article for further background on Roy’s case.

Article Link:

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/dec/07/windrush-victim-roy-harrison-finally-granted-right-to-remain-in-uk-after-10-year-battle

Many of you have kindly asked how you can assist Roy to get through this immediate period in which his most pressing need is a generator. Roy does not yet have a bank account, so I have set up this Go Fund Me campaign for persons wishing to support him.

Please note that all proceeds will go towards meeting Roy's urgent needs.

Thank you very much for your kind support for Roy. He has also asked me to pass on his thanks to the many of you who have enquired about his welfare and asked how he could be supported.

Antonia Gundona, Roy Harrison's befriender.