More news items and new guides 

eVisa judicial review dismissed but court acknowledges real hardship from digital-only status 

Computer Weekly reports that the High Court dismissed the judicial review challenge to the Home Office’s eVisa policy in BSC & Anor v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2026] EWHC 705 (Admin). However, the judge recognised that the eVisa system has caused real hardship to a lot of people through no fault of their own. Over 81,000 genuine errors were reported between April and October 2025. 

Despite this, it was held the policy was not irrational because the Home Office is actively taking measures to improve the system. 

Computer Weekly includes comments on the case from the3million and from the Migrant Rights Network. 

‘Life story work’ with refugee and asylum-seeking children and young people 

The East of England Strategic Migration Partnership reports that Children and Families Across Borders in partnership with Blue Cabin and Therapeutic Life Story Work International have created a family of new resources to support life story work with refugee and asylum-seeking children and young people. The free resources are designed to provide guidance in an area where very little is currently available. 

English conversation groups for migrants 

The Refugee Migrant Centre (RMC) in Wolverhampton has created friendly conversation groups across the West Midlands to help resettled communities build confidence in spoken English while connecting with people from different cultures. Supported by trained staff and volunteers, participants will practise speaking, listening and meeting new people in a safe, welcoming space. 

The project will also introduce learners to other local services, further learning opportunities and useful digital tools to help them continue improving their English and feel more at home in the region. 

• Get in touch with the RMC’s Steven Bayliss at steven@rmcentre.org.uk  

Anti-discrimination provisions become law in England on 1 May 

Anti-discrimination provisions in the Renters’ Rights Act that take effect in May will make it unlawful for landlords and agents to have blanket bans on letting to tenants who have children or are in receipt of benefits or directly or indirectly discriminate against them. 

Landlords will also need to consider all tenants when making lettings and are not permitted to turn down tenants on the basis of affordability. 

These provisions apply to ‘relevant tenancies’ under the Renters’ Rights Act, which are assured tenancies (governed by the Housing Act 1988) and regulated tenancies (older tenancies governed by the Rent Act 1977). 

Government guidance for landlords has examples of behaviour that might amount to rental discrimination.  

The government has also issued a new code on discrimination relating to ‘right to rent’ checks. There is a consultation on the draft code, but it closes on April 29. 

New briefings and guides 

• Right to Remain — staying safe advice. Right to Remain have produced guidance and a flier on staying safe against the threat of far-right violence. It provides practical guidance on what to do if an individual experiences or is at risk of aggression or violence from far-right groups. 

• Migration and housing supply. Refugee Action has a new video addressing the myths around housing supply and migration. John Perry writes in Inside Housing about the myths about housing and migration and how to challenge them. 

• Small boat crossings. There is a new briefing on people crossing in small boats, from the Migration Observatory. The grant rate for people who arrived by small boat between 2018 and 2025 was 62 per cent, higher than the overall grant rate of 52 per cent. 

• Why personal finance is harder when you’re a migrant. In The Conversation, Kumbirai Mabwe and Kalsoom Jaffar argue that skilled migrants play an important role in the UK economy. But while the UK celebrates the skills they bring, it doesn’t always make it easy for them to thrive financially. 

• How can housing be a tool to improve education access for refugee and migrant children? Education, housing and support services need to work together to tackle schooling delays for refugee and asylum-seeking children, writes Fuad Mahamed, founder and chief executive of refugee and migrant housing provider ACH, in Inside Housing. 

• The impact of Brexit on immigration to the UK. A new analysis finds that Brexit raised the number of foreign-born workers in the UK by about 200,000 but resulted in a more dramatic shift in the countries of origin. 

• New national guidance for local authorities on social cohesion and responding to growing pressures across England. Common ground: building cohesive communities was commissioned by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and developed by the Belong Network in partnership with the Local Government Association. “This guidance is a practical toolkit grounded in evidence and real-world practice — to help councils and communities build a future of trust and belonging in every neighbourhood.” 

• Black and minoritised migrant women: Hibiscus has launched the Safe housing for Black and minoritised migrant women: Toolkit for implementing intersectional, gender-informed, rights-based frontline practice and accompanying Policy Briefing. See their newsletter article here. 

Other news items 

• Government drops manifesto plans for new immigration returns unit. A Labour manifesto pledge to create a new immigration returns and enforcement unit is no longer being taken forward, a Freedom of Information request from Full Fact has revealed. 

• Home Office EU Settlement Scheme update. The Home Office issued an update on the EU Settlement Scheme, including advice on: 
  • Keeping your UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account details up to date 
  • Changes to the residence requirement for people applying for settled status 
  • Changes to the process for automatically granting settled status. 
  • The changes are explained here. 

• “I’m part of this country”: Windrush man left homeless by Home Office inaction. George Campbell, 69, slept in a bus station as officials questioned his right to live in the UK after a hospital stay, reports the Guardian. Then the Guardian also covered a National Audit Office report showing that more than half of Windrush compensation claims are being rejected. 

• Improved wellbeing of resettled refugees in the West Midlands. The latest impact report from the region’s Refugee and Migrant Centre highlights how RMC’s Women’s Groups in Birmingham have become a vital lifeline for resettled refugees. 

• RAMFEL has become Refugee and Migrant Justice (RMJ). What started as a small advice service in an East London church hall has grown into RMJ, one of the UK’s largest providers of immigration legal advice and a leading national voice standing for the rights of migrants, refugees, and people seeking asylum. 
  • Read more here. 

• City of Sanctuary UK has been cleared of allegations against it by the Charities Commission. 

• Together with Refugees has announced a new strategy, Stronger Together.  

• West Midlands Strategic Migration Partnership has a new and refreshed website. 

• Big Issue’s 100 Changemakers of 2026: Refugees, migrants and asylum seekers. Big Issue’s award-winners have been announced — you can read more here.