Our vision is one of equity of rights and justice for migrants, enabling effective integration and social change.
Migrant Action is a migrant justice-based organisation enabling migrants to feel welcome, access justice and effectively integrate and thrive in the UK. As an organisation, our analysis of migrant justice is rooted in humanity, empowerment, systemic justice and transformational change.
We view migrant justice in terms of holistic support provision including; safe spaces for information, advice & guidance, advocacy support, access to legal immigration advice, ESOL & employability support, and other forms of practical assistance to ‘vulnerable’ migrants. We facilitate pathways to mainstream services provision and ensure equity of access to rights and justice for migrants.
In addition to our direct assistance to migrants, Migrant Action’s work is also focused on system/structural change. Through research, campaigns, and service delivery partnerships, we highlight and help influence positive change of systems/structures that perpetuate vulnerability and hostile migration experience for migrants.
Why we exist
Service provision for non-asylum seekers is undefined and limited. In Leeds, migrants seeking information, guidance, advice, advocacy and integration support struggle to find where to go to for help. Many vulnerable migrants are confined to the ‘edges’ of society and face daily, the real risk of exploitation, destitution, child poverty, detention, forced removal and deportations without access to proper legal advice and wider forms of justice. Vulnerable migrants with entrenched complex needs encounter restricted access to service provision which has far reaching implications for their health and well being. Migrant Action set up as a response to this gap in service provision.
By delivering early and proactive interventions through a combination of casework, research, advocacy and campaign, Migrant Action aims to reduce vulnerability and ensure rights, justice and effective integration of migrants. Our work aims to make a meaningful contribution to Through our work we combat and help to reduce the effects of the government’s ‘hostile environment’ policies that broadly impacts on all migrants.
Our Values
ADVOCACY & EQUITY
The government’s immigration policy is deliberately aimed at creating a hostile environment for migrants whereby migrants’ basic rights and justice are systematically eroded. Through advocacy, we seek to challenge all forms of discrimination, inequality and injustice. We enable migrants to access their rights and justice through working collaboratively with legal, corporate, voluntary, public organisations.
LIVED EXPERIENCE
Migrant Action is an organisation rooted in lived experiences of migration and working directly with different groups of migrants. Our lived experience underpins our values, mission, vision values and how we work.
EMPOWERMENT
Migrant Action supports migrants to overcome the barriers they face and enable people to make informed decisions. Through providing information, advice, good guidance and advocacy support, migrants become more aware of their rights and choices.
PREVENTION & EARLY INTERVENTION
We recognize that crisis intervention is not only costly but often counter-productive. The prospects for positive outcomes are significantly enhanced through early and targeted interventions. Migrant Action adopts a proactive and early interventionist approach to work with migrants and other services.
CONFIDENTIALITY & IMPARTIALITY
Migrant Action offers migrants a safe space to openly explore sensitive and complex issues. We respect the individual’s right to privacy. When and where information needs to be shared, we would follow strict information sharing protocols. We are an independent organization and adopt a non-judgemental and non-directive approach to advice and guidance by enabling migrants to fully explore the range of options and in order to confidently make informed choices.
PARTNERSHIPS
Migrant Action works collaboratively with other agencies and builds strategic alliances in order to effectively support migrants and influence wider policy/systemic changes.
MIGRANT LED
Our work is based on and shaped by the needs and experiences of migrants.
