Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to assist members of the Roma community to apply for settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme before 30 June; and what assessment they have made of the barriers (1) to obtaining the required documentation during the COVID-19 pandemic, and (2) to accessing, and completing, online applications, experienced by that community.

The Home Office has provided £17million in grant funding to a network of 72 organisations which provide bespoke support to vulnerable and hard to reach EU citizens and their family members eligible to apply to EUSS, including members of the Roma Community.

Of the 72 Grant-funded Organisations (GFOs), 54 support members of the Roma community to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme, with 5 organisations primarily focused on working with vulnerable members of this cohort (Clifton Learning Partnership, Tros Gynnal, STEP Northern Ireland, Tower Hamlets Law Centre, and Positive Action in Housing).

On top of the £17million in grant funding, the Home Office recently announced a further £4.5million of funding to the current 72 organisations to continue these support services well beyond the 30 June 2021 deadline.

Whilst the GFN directly funds 72 organisations, these organisations have expanded their network across the UK by forming partnerships with other organisations. These partners are similar, they are on the ground, giving direct support to the vulnerable including homeless/rough sleepers, victims of domestic violence and members of the Roma community.

This network is also supported by the Home Office through an online GFO forum called ‘Basecamp’. This platform allows organisations to share ideas, best practise and for organisations to reach out to one another for help and support. It is the innovative ways of working demonstrated by the Grant Funded Network during the COVID-19 pandemic, which have continued to meet the needs of vulnerable individuals for completing online applications or accessing digital status, such as virtual face to face meetings and, were necessary, face to face appointments with use of lateral flow testing, enabling them to do so in a safe way for both themselves and these vulnerable individuals.

The EU Settlement Resolution Centre, will also continue to provide over the phone digital assistance to applicants who require support to access their digital status.