A new national network has been established to examine statutory responses to destitute people from abroad with no recourse to public funds (NRPF)*.
The NRPF Network was developed in response to concerns about the complexity of the law governing practice in this area, the lack of statutory guidance for local authorities, the increasing costs of NRPF to local authorities and the implications for community cohesion. Typically people with NRPF are refused asylum seekers, people who arrived on a visa but whose relationship with their sponsor subsequently broke down and people who have overstayed their visa.
The NRPF Network is operating under the auspices of the Association of Directors of Social Services (ADSS) and aims to: share information and good practice amongst local authorities and other agencies working in the area; raise the practical and policy issues of NRPF with government departments; obtain reimbursement for local authorities of the costs of providing support to people with NRPF and develop a strategic response to NRPF. Though it is a network of local authorities it works in partnership with the voluntary sector and anyone can access the web pages.
Network activities include:
- providing guidance and information on service provision, legal obligations and entitlement to services
- providing information on developments in case law, research, policy and training
- researching and monitoring the scale of the issue and the associated costs to local authorities and other agencies
- making the case to central government for reimbursing local authorities for the cost of providing support to people with NRPF
- working with stakeholders to identify a strategic policy response to NRPF