Refugees being sent to areas of UK with little or no legal aid, study finds

People are missing out on immigration status they are entitled to because of shortfall, says report's author

Refugees fleeing violence and persecution, including those who face being deported to Rwanda, risk being denied expert advice because many areas of the UK have little or no legal aid provision for people seeking asylum, a major report has found.

The study found that some towns and cities to which people seeking asylum are dispersed, including Plymouth, Stoke and Hull, had only one legal aid caseworker, while another, Swindon, had one provider with a legal aid contract but provided no provision because it could not recruit a caseworker.