Thousands of EU nationals ‘could be kicked out of domestic abuse shelters’ after Brexit

Exclusive: ‘Women in our society will be in a very vulnerable and precarious position and will be exposed to further risk of harm and exploitation from their abusers,’ says campaigner

Those who do not apply for the settlement scheme will no longer have access to public funds - meaning they will be denied support to leave their partners and refused refuge space (Getty/iStock)

Thousands of domestic abuse victims who are European nationals could be kicked out of refuges or blocked from even entering them after Brexit because they do not know they have to apply for settled status, campaigners have warned.

The Independent has previously revealed the plight of thousands of non-British women – many from the EU – who have experienced domestic abuse in Britain only to be refused help by authorities, pushed into homelessness and driven back into the arms of abusive partners.

But frontline service providers warn this number could radically increase when Britain exits the European bloc due to EU nationals subjected to domestic violence failing to apply for the EU settlement scheme as they do not realise it is necessary.

Those who not apply will be at risk of becoming undocumented after Britain leaves the EU, which would leave them in danger of being detained and deported in coming years.

They will also no longer have access to public funds – meaning they will be denied “lifesaving” support to leave their partners and refused refuge space.

The EU settlement scheme aims to establish the immigration status of citizens from the bloc legally residing in the UK post-Brexit but widespread concerns have been raised over complications with the application process.

The Independent revealed the European Parliament has warned the Home Office was making the “hostile environment” for EU citizens worse ahead of Britain’s exit from the EU.

A leaked draft resolution seen by The Independent shows MEPs are calling for a full review and replacement of the EU settlement scheme, which they say has seen some 42 per cent of applicants not given full settled status, but instead left with “pre-settled status”.

Pragna Patel, director of Southall Black Sisters, voiced concerns about the safety of EU nationals who have suffered domestic abuse after Brexit.

She said: “We are extremely concerned even more women could join that queue of women who have no access to public funds. This will mean a significant number of women in our society will be in a very vulnerable and precarious position and will be exposed to further risk of harm and exploitation from their abusers.

“Thousands of women already have no access to public funds, but this number will only increase after Brexit – it could go up by thousands. We fear that migrant women will be locked out of protection and access to justice because of the failure of government to ensure all women are adequately protected.”

The campaigner, whose organisation supports black and minority ethnic (BME) women escaping gender-based violence and specialises in supporting women who have no access to public funds, also said the charity, which has been running for 40 years, could lose funding when Britain leaves the EU.

“We are extremely worried that our funding will be cut because there is the possibility of huge funding constraints on support services for women overall as the public purse shrinks after Brexit,” she said. “This will be bad for all women but especially BME women who have already suffered disproportionately from cuts to public services. We are very fearful of what the future holds for BME women. Equality not austerity or discrimination should lie at the heart of all government policies addressing violence against women and girls.”

As refuges across the board have seen their funding decimated in recent years, those in need of a refuge to escape their abuser are already finding it harder than ever to find a free bed – with the most recent figures showing 60 per cent of them are unable to be housed, most commonly due to lack of space. Local authority spending on refuges has been cut from £31.2m in 2010 to £23.9m in 2017.

Specialist services for BME survivors have been hardest hit by the cuts – with funding moving towards generic service providers instead. Some 22 BME refuges across the country have had their funding cut or have been taken over by larger organisations in the past 12 years.

Gisela Valle, of the Latin American Women’s Rights Service, said they are helping women apply for EU settlement scheme but are coming across many who do not think it is necessary for them to apply due to never having encountered issues around immigration before.

She said: “They don’t understand that they need to apply. There is a lot of misinformation around the scheme. But domestic abuse survivors who do not apply for the settlement scheme will lose support from the government. The cornerstone of domestic abuse support is access to a refuge but if you do not have access to public funds, the refuges are not going to take you, because they cannot claim the money back. And if they cannot claim the expenses for housing these women and their children, it is likely they will be asked to leave.

“EU women are likely not to be aware that this could happen. There is a general lack of awareness of what the EU settlement scheme is or how it works. Women we work with say: ‘I don’t need to do this’.

“It is a worrying situation. There could be a large number of EU women or spouses of EU citizens who are not able to report domestic abuse for fear of deportation or of losing children due to concerns around police discovering their immigration status is not settled. Perpetrators already use domestic abuse survivors’ immigration status as a weapon to abuse them but this could become worse after Brexit, and the number of women in this situation could increase.”

Campaigners have long warned migrant women who have endured domestic abuse are too fearful to report violence to the police or other services due to the risk of being detained or deported. While guidance is already in place for police forces to support domestic violence victims, they often share data with the Home Office. As a result, the victims can be treated as suspects by immigration officials. The government suggests some victims of domestic abuse “may be best served by returning to their country of origin and, where it is available, to the support of their family and friends”.

Nicki Norman, of lead domestic abuse charity Women’s Aid, raised concerns about the impact Brexit could have on EU citizens who have experienced domestic abuse.

“For EU citizens in the UK, access to vital domestic abuse support services may be restricted, which is a serious concern and must be addressed,” she said.

The latest warnings come amid concerns over the EU settlement scheme after it emerged only around one million EU nationals resident in the UK have applied for settled status and at least a further 2.6 million have not yet applied.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “EU citizens who are victims of domestic violence are not going to be refused help if they haven’t applied to the EU Settlement Scheme by the end of 2020, but we encourage all EU citizens to apply as soon as possible.

“Where someone has reasonable grounds for not having applied by the deadline, such as if they were involved in an abusive relationship, they will be offered more time and support to make an application. We are providing up to £9m in grant funding for community organisations, including those who support victims of domestic abuse, to ensure they receive additional help if needed.”