## **Time to be Out** 

## **Trustees' Annual Report, 13th June 2023 -  12th June 2024** 

Charity Number 1183884 

Website: www.timetobeout.org.uk 

## **Names of the charity trustees** 

|Name of trustee|Role(if any)|Dates(if not for the wholeperiod)|
|---|---|---|
|William Roche|Chair||
|David Sylph|||
|Malcolm Wren|Treasurer and Charity<br>Commission contact||
|Angela Carter|||
|Noor Boksh|||
|El Parnham|||
|Drew Richardson|||
|Issam Ghariba||3rd November 2023|



## **Constitution** 

Charitable Incorporated Organisation, dated 12th June 2019 

## **The objects of the charity as set out in its governing document:** 

TO PROMOTE SOCIAL INCLUSION FOR THE PUBLIC BENEFIT BY PREVENTING PEOPLE WHO ARE REFUGEES AND ASYLUM SEEKERS WHO IDENTIFY AS LGBT+ FROM BECOMING SOCIALLY EXCLUDED, TO RELIEVE THE NEEDS OF THOSE PEOPLE AND TO ASSIST THEM TO INTEGRATE INTO SOCIETY, PARTICULARLY BUT NOT EXCLUSIVELY BY: 

- PROVIDING WORKSHOPS, ADVOCACY AND GENERAL SUPPORT 

- INCREASING AND CO-ORDINATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR MEMBERS OF 

- THE ABOVE COMMUNITIES TO ENGAGE WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES 

- RAISING PUBLIC AWARENESS OF THE ISSUES AFFECTING REFUGEES AND ASYLUM SEEKERS WHO IDENTIFY AS LGBT+, BOTH GENERALLY AND IN RELATION TO THEIR SOCIAL EXCLUSION 



## **Summary of the main activities undertaken for the public benefit in relation to these objects.** 

We attempt to prevent the social exclusion of LGBT+ refugees and asylum seekers in the following ways: 

- Offering casework support so that people can successfully claim refugee status, allowing them to work and integrate fully into society 

- Providing befrienders, who, amongst other things, help people with practical matters (such as registering with a doctor or dentist) 

- Arranging social events and fostering social contacts to break down isolation 

- Where necessary offering 1:1 English language tuition 

- Referring people to other agencies and appropriate sources of support (e.g. with housing) 

- Providing hardship funds in cases of emergency (e.g. when Home Office support is not available through delays and technical problems) 

- Giving talks and presentations to community groups about the special needs and circumstances of LGBT+ asylum seekers and refugees 

- Collaborating with other groups to put pressure on decision makers to develop policies that do not further stigmatise and isolate the people we are supporting 

## **Summary of the main activities and the impact of our work in 2023-24** 

## _Casework_ 

The second half of 2023 was the time when the Government was trying to clear the 'heritage backlog' of asylum claims that had built up since the pandemic. This meant many of the people we had been supporting for two years or more were offered substantive interviews with the Home Office. At the same time more recent arrivals were also sometimes being processed. Our volunteers had to work hard to ensure that people were ready for their interviews and, where possible (on around 40 occasions), we accompanied them and sat in with them as they told their stories. 

Over the course of this financial year 65 of the clients we had supported were granted Leave to Remain. We then had to respond quickly to direct them to sources of further support as they applied for jobs, somewhere to live, Universal Credit etc. A critical situation emerged in the spring of 2024 when the Home Office began cutting off housing and financial support only one week after the grant of Leave to Remain. This meant that we had to provide emergency financial support, which was a major drain on our resources in the second half of our financial year. 

Another unintended consequence of this drive to 'clear the backlog' was that a sizeable number of claimants who we know to be genuine had their asylum claims refused. Because of our support letters, the Home Office did not claim that the applicants were lying about their sexual orientation or their gender identity, but they did argue that the country of origin was safe. We have therefore had to spend a great deal of time and effort helping these people prepare for Asylum Tribunals. In many cases, we have been able to commission Country of Origin reports that will help with these appeals, but people who 



have already been in the system for too long are still stuck waiting for their applications to be processed (it can take a year or more between a refusal and a Tribunal hearing). 

In the spring of 2024 the Government started detaining some asylum seekers who were eligible to be sent to Rwanda. This created enormous stress and our volunteers and befrienders had to work hard to offer what reassurance was available. In some cases, asylum seekers had to sign on at the Home Office once or twice a month, and a number of them feared that they would be detained when they arrived at the office. In some cases, our volunteers were able to accompany them as they signed on in order to be available if the worst happened. 

All of this pressure, and the general hostile attitude to asylum seekers, put great pressure on a number of our beneficiaries, some of whom we had to refer to specialist mental health support services. There were at least two cases that we know of when our beneficiaries were subjected to violent attacks (possibly motivated by homophobia). Again, our volunteers were able to intervene to help people report hate crimes and get moved to safer accomodation. 

## _Befriending and breaking down isolation_ 

Half a dozen volunteers kept in regular touch with asylum seekers, both online and in person. We also continued to encourage peer-to-peer support in an attempt to break down isolation. 

Time to be Out successfully applied to the Good Things Foundation so that we can distribute free SIM cards to over 100 beneficiaries (all of whom are in digital poverty) on behalf of the National Databank. Access to data is fundamental in breaking down isolation and making connections with the rest of society. 

## _Social Events_ 

Our volunteers organised weekly online (Zoom) social events and a monthly lunchtime meeting in central Sheffield.  In August 2023 we arranged a day trip to Scarborough for about 50 asylum seekers from across the north of England. 

## _English tuition_ 

Three volunteers provided 1:1 online tuition for LGBT asylum seekers, allowing them to develop their language skills in order to take more control over their asylum claim and preparing them to integrate into society after they win their case. 

## _Financial Support_ 

In the crisis that developed when the government suddenly stopped offering housing and financial support to successful refugees a week after them getting Leave to Remain, Time to be Out was able to bridge the gap between NASS (National Asylum Seekers' Support) and Universal Credit for 18 individuals. We were also able to offer emergency financial support 



on three occasions when technical problems meant that expected Home Office support did not arrive. 

## _Collaboration and awareness raising_ 

We have been actively involved in the Yorkshire and Humberside Community of Practice, which brings together all the local charities involved in supporting refugees and asylum seekers. We were able to use this forum to point out the particular problems facing LGBT+ asylum seekers and we made a number of useful contacts as a result. Through this network we were able to commission pro bono Country of Origin reports from Clifford Chance. 

We were asked to give talks to a number of LGBT groups (e.g. at York University and Amnesty International). We are active members of the Centre for Language and Social Justice Research at York St John University. 

On behalf of our beneficiaires, we were active in engaging with MPs across a range of political parties and others in an attempt to challenge the plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda. We also lobbied MPs and members of the House of Lords to vote against the Illegal Migration Bill, but without success. 

In September 2023 Time to be Out was nominated as 'Small Charity of the Year' at the Third Sector Awards. 

## **Plans and priorities for 2024-25** 

The trustees of Time to be Out are now involved in a detailed analysis of the strengths, benefits, risks and opportunities for the charity at this point. Strategic priorities will be set out more clearly. It is envisaged, though, that the charity will remain volunteer based. It will continue to work collaboratively with other agencies. 

Increasingly, asylum seekers do not have access to lawyers because of the limitations of Legal Aid. This means that Time to be Out will have to change its model of casework, whereby we primarily encourage applicants to develop their own witness statements. 



## **Time to be Out** 

|Income and Expenditure 13th June 2023 to 12th June 2024||
|---|---|
|Balance carried forward|£8 693.10|
|Total Income|£22 636.53|
|Total Expenditure|£28 273.84|
|Balance<br>|- £5 637.31|
|Balance carried forward (£8 693.10 - £5 637.31)|£3 055.79|





## **DETAILS OF INCOME** 

## **Restricted Grant Funding** 

Two Ridings Community Foundation £1 000.00 **Unrestricted Income** Donations from monthly standing orders / direct debits £7 449.00 One-off individual donations directly to the bank or in cash              £9 198.91 HMRC gift aid (2022 - 2024) £2 541.11 Donations via the Just Giving button on the website £2 447.51 

Total Income 

£22 636.53 



## **DETAILS OF EXPENDITURE** 

## **Restricted Grant Funding** 

|National Lottery Community Fund (Teesside)|National Lottery Community Fund (Teesside)||
|---|---|---|
|Total Expenditure||£2 751.05|
|Two Ridings Community Foundation|||
|Total Expenditure||£1 000.00|
|Total Restricted Expenditure||£3 751.05|
|**Unrestricted Expenditure**|||
|Hardship and emergencies||£8 833.58|
|Casework, befriending and English tuition||£3 453.89|
|Shopping vouchers||£3 295.00|
|Social events: Sheffield monthly meeting||£1 013.56|
|Other social events: (trip to Scarborough,|York Pride etc)|£3 388.26|
|Volunteer expenses||£2 143.54|
|Data||£643.85|
|Period payments||£296.08|
|Administration (insurance, website etc.)||£1 455.03|
|Total unrestricted expenditure||£24 522.79|
|* * * * *|||
|Total restricted expenditure|£3 751.05||
|Total unrestricted expenditure|£24 522.79||
|Total expenditure|£28 273.84||





## Further Details of Restricted Budgets 

Restricted Grant Funding: National Lottery Community Fund (Teesside) [NB this spans two different financial years, from July 2022 to October 2023] 

## _Income_ 

|22/7/22|£8 200.00|
|---|---|
|_Expenditure_||
|Transport (bus passes etc)|£4 125.70|
|Social events|£1 018.56|
|Food and clothes vouchers|£1 830.00|
|(Primark, Asda, Tesco)||
|Phone data|£823.00|
|Volunteer expenses|£237.03|
|Administration|£166.10|
|Total expenditure|£8 200.39|
|Overspend|39p|
|taken from general expenditure||





## Restricted Grant Funding: Two Ridings Community Foundation 2023 

Statement of Account 

|_Income_|||
|---|---|---|
|17/10/23||£1 000.00|
|_Expenditure_|||
|17/11/23|Purchase of 4 Lidl vouchers @ £50|£200.00|
|18/11/23|Hardship payment to Ebikeye Dede|£50.00|
|22/11/23|Purchase of 6 Aldi vouchers @ £50|£300.00|
|24/11/23|Purchase of 4 Lidl vouchers @ £50|£200.00|
|24/11/23|Purchase of 5 Aldi vouchers @ £50|£250.00|



Total expenditure £1 000.00