The SLF aims to tackle injustices and inconsistencies in law and
practice that disadvantage or discriminate against vulnerable young migrants as
a result of their migration status.
Aims
SLF aims to advance the general principles of the UNCRC as follows:
§ The right to life, survival and development.
§ The right to non-discrimination.
§ Respect for the views of children.
§ The requirement to give primary consideration to the child’s
best interests in all matters affecting them.
Funding Information
§ The total amount available for SLF grants from
October 2017 to September 2020 is £450,000.
Maximum funding for any one application will be £30,000 but, in view of the
limited funding available, lower applications are encouraged.
§ The average grant size is around £12,000.
Length of grants
The SLF aims to complement longer-term funding with short-term
grants to respond to legal opportunities. The maximum grant length is 12
months and most grants are for six months or less.
Areas of Law
§ The SLF funds strategic legal work in any area of law where
vulnerable young migrants experience disadvantage or discrimination as a result
of migration status.
§ This includes (but is not restricted to) potential cases in the
areas of:
§ Immigration
§ Asylum and asylum support
§ Human Rights
§ Education
§ Housing
§ Welfare benefits
§ Discrimination
§ Access to justice
§ Community care
Beneficiaries
The SLF supports strategic legal work in the UK which benefits
vulnerable young migrants. They define this as:
§ Migrants or the children of migrants,
§ Who are under 25,
§ Who are living in poverty,
and
§ Who face significant disadvantage or discrimination in
connection with their (or their parents’) migration status
Eligibility Criteria
Those eligible to apply to the SLF are organisations based in
the UK which are:
§ Not-for-profit (NFP) organisations that
provide specialist level legal advice to vulnerable young migrants. If
applicants work for a NFP organisation regulated by the Office of the
Immigration Services Commissioner (OISC) and are applying to undertake work in
the asylum or immigration field, applicants must confirm that staff leading on
the proposed work are accredited at Level 3, Advocacy and Representation, in
the relevant category of law.
§ Firms of solicitors that provide specialist
level legal advice to vulnerable young migrants. Solicitors’ firms need to
demonstrate that the funded work does not include any element of profit and, as
for all applicants, that there is a pro bono element included.
Exclusions
In general, the SLF will not make grants where:
§ Funding is sought for pre-litigation research on an issue where
work is already in progress by other legal representatives.
§ There is an unreasonably low prospect of a positive outcome for
vulnerable migrant children and young people.
§ The funding will not produce any significant positive change to
the rights of vulnerable young migrants in the UK.
§ The applicant is based outside of the UK. Partnership
applications where the lead partner is based in the UK may be considered.
§ It is judged that the goals of the application may be more
successfully achieved through an alternative route e.g. policy work.
§ Organisations have already received two grants from the SLF in
the last 18 months, except in exceptional circumstances.
§ Organisations are in serious financial deficit.
§ Not-for-profit organisations have significant unrestricted
reserves (including designated funds). Generally, reserves up to the equivalent
of six months’ expenditure is acceptable.