Windrush Scandal Victim says the Compensation Scheme is not effective

Leeford Hammond, 65, a father of five, was stranded in Jamaica for six months and was forced to close his estate agent business of 12 years after he couldn’t return to London.

A Windrush scandal victim is calling for the Windrush Compensation Scheme to be reviewed after he waited almost
two years for an offer.

Leeford Hammond, 65, from north London applied to the scheme in April 2019, after he was denied entry back into the UK after a holiday in 2017.

The father of five, was stranded in Jamaica for six months and was was forced to close his estate agent business of 12 years after he couldn’t return to London. Mr Hammond has slammed the £40, 000 he was offered in February 2021 and says it doesn’t take into consideration the full extent of his circumstances.

Speaking exclusively to The Voice, he said: “This offer is not good enough. I would like to see the compensation scheme handed to an independent body who can do a better job.

“The Home office keeps making low offers and they are being rejected and then we have to wait again.
“We need someone to take over who can get things right the first time.”

He also recalls the measures he had to go through to survive, he said: “I had to sell equipment from my business like
computers and desks to pay for things.

“My health also deteriorated because of the stress of being away from my family. I also had to withdraw money from my private pension to pay medical and legal fees.”

Mr Hammond came to Britain from Jamaica in 1971, when he was 15 years old with his two brothers. They came to join their parents and two older sisters who arrived in the 1960s. He said despite living and working here for over 40 years and having indefinite leave to remain, he feels “unwelcome”.

His circumstances impacted his entire family, who were put under immeasurable financial and emotional strain.
Mr Hammond has told The Voice, his daughter has now also applied to the compensation scheme as she was supporting him during his ordeal. But is yet to be given an official offer.

Mr Hammond was granted a visa in October 2017 and returned to the UK, but upon arrival he found his business in ruins and had rent arrears – which put him at risk of losing his home. The long and agonising wait for answers has seen many Windrush victims die before they receive compensation. High-profile cases include the deaths of Sarah, O’Connor, Hubert Howard, Jashwa Moses and most recently Windrush victim and campaigner Paulette Wilson.
According the the latest Home Office figures, more than 500 victims of the Windrush Scandal have been waiting for more than a year to have their compensation claims processed.

But it not just the long wait and small pay outs that are affecting victims, many are being denied British Citizenship because they are failing to meet the “good character” requirement.

This is something Mr Hammond has experienced first-hand. He told The Voice, he was denied British Citizenship even though he should have qualified and says he was given a No Time Limit (NTL) card instead.

He said he will appeal the decision and hopes his citizenship will be granted as he has lived here for 50 years.
His decision comes after recent reports found High Court had been unlawfully denying Windrush victims British citizenship on the grounds of minor criminal records. Mr Hammond’s story comes as no surprise for prominent
Windrush Campaigner and Social Commentator, Patrick Vernon, who said: “The Home Office is still carrying out
deportation flights and enforcing the hostile environment, so I don’t see how they can be empathetic to Windrush scandal victims.

“The compensation scheme is not working because if it did, we wouldn’t have so many still waiting two years on.”
He has also criticised the “good character’ rule and called this clause “ridiculous” and said it will ultimately prevent people entitled to British citizenship from getting it. He also added that the recent Race Report was wrong in
denying racism exists in the UK and was a kick in the teeth for Windrush survivors who are still fighting for their rights.

But some Windrush survivors have settled their compensation claim, like Glenda Caesar, who was initially offered £22,000 in 2019, which she described as “insulting.”

She has had her claim revised and has now settled for an undisclosed amount.

She said: “I fought for them to validate me and they did that by what the revised compensation offer was.
Ms Caesar from Hackney, east London, is part of Windrush Lives which is a support group which helps others going
through the compensation scheme process.

The mother of four arrived in the UK with her mother as a baby from Dominica in 1961. She always thought she was British and only discovered she wasn’t when she was refused a passport in 1998.

As a result, she was sacked from her part-time job as a GP administrator because she wasn’t considered ‘British’.
She was unable to work or claim benefits for 10 years and she had to rely on her children for financial and emotional support. Recalling this period in her life, she said: ‘It was horrific and I became depressed and contemplated suicide.
“The hardest part was as a mother, I was relying on my children.

“II wasn’t able to do simple things like buy Christmas presents for my grandchildren which made me feel like I had failed them.”

Her son’s mental health was affected by what she went throughand now he has also settled his compensation claim.
Ms Caesar is urging children of victims and other close family members to put in claims also.

For campaigner, Vernon, he is calling on people to sign his latest petition to see the Windrush Compensation Scheme
assigned to an independent body and not the Home Office.

To sign the petition, go to: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/improve-the-compensation-scheme-for-windrush-survivors-and-family-members

Comments Form

1 Comment

  1. | gerald robinson

    There seems to be an emergence of hundreds of people who have applied for Windrush compensation been denied compensation according to recent figures obtained from the internet, for one reason or another from getting justice. I happen to be one of them if you do not fit into the tick box application form that they have provided. You may not be considered eligible for compensation. This attitude is wrong. And the matter should be looked into. How can it be be that the people who caused this problem are now marking their own homework. What a lot of people are not aware of is that in 2014 even if you have indefinite leave to remain or enter stamped in your expired passport and can provide your expired passport as proof. And no up to date stamp in your new passport. Your expired passport no longer has any potency when it comes to seeking accommodation and employment Because a new ruling was made that proof of residency and for employment must be stamped in in a current passport. So if you have been relying on your old passport to prove your status here in 2014 it no longer can endorse your status to gain employment or accommodation for example. Anybody caught giving accommodation or employment to people on the strength of their expired passport despite the visa been in it are liable to potential prosecution. If there is anybody out there who has been affected in this way I would be very happy to hear from you. The Windrush compensation has no flexibility for people who are in that position and as a result you will more than likely be told that you can prove you have residency here however the same proof that they refer to is not strong or lawful enough to provide employment or indeed seeking accommodation. Just to name a few examples. The only thing an expired passport can do with your visa stamp in it is to allow you to go out of the country and with any luck re enter into the country subject to the discretion of immigration control. It does not allow
    you proof that you can actually work in the country on the strength of an expired passport with a visa stamp in it. From 2014 no landlord or employer would entertain the idea that you have the right to work or indeed seek accommodation. As a result of this a lot of people will probably be refused Windrush compensation. Because it is still considered as proof of your immigration status. Under those circumstances it could be a problem in qualifying for compensation. If you have been experiencing something on these lines that I’m trying to explain will you please get in contact with me. Also if there’s anybody who has self deported during the Windrush fiasco at their own expense to avoid the Windrush hostile environment would you please get in touch. As it appears that there is no level of understanding relating to people who self deport built into the Windrush application system. If you have come back as a returning resident regardless to the means in how you arrived back into the UK since the Windrush scandal was exposed because there was a softening of attitude in order for you to come back will you please get in touch. There appears to be a tick box culture in the application which is detrimental to people in the real world who have experienced a variety of abuse at the hands of the hostile Windrush environment. If you have experience anything relating or similar would you please get in touch. If you are still feeling the effects of the aftermath of the Windrush hostile environment please get in touch. Thank you.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*
*

Support The Voice

The Voice Newspaper is committed to celebrating black excellence, campaigning for positive change and informing the black community on important issues. Your financial contributions are essential to protect the future of the publication as we strive to help raise the profile of the black communities across the UK. Any size donation is welcome and we thank you for your continued support.

Support Sign-up