What is NEST?
An asylum case depends on whether the asylum seeker can convince the authorities that what they say happened to them in the country from which they escaped, is true. It is the responsibility of the asylum seeker to find and supply this evidence. This is often very difficult because when someone is fleeing for their life there is seldom time to think of collecting evidence. NEST is a voluntary group of researchers affiliated to the City of Sanctuary which tries to help asylum seekers put together a convincing account of what happened to them and search for credible evidence.
NEST helps (in a confidential way)
➢ To understand what asylum evidence is
➢ To decide what new evidence an individual may need for their new asylum claim
➢ To look for evidence specific to the individual case
➢ To look for country information relevant to the case.
➢ To help present the evidence in a written form in good English.
NEST workers are not solicitors and are not empowered to give immigration advice
They will help you as a ‘concerned friend’ with a working knowledge of the asylum process and of what constitutes ‘evidence’ in asylum cases. However, the asylum system remains a lottery, and though our case workers can help, they cannot guarantee that any individual will be granted leave to remain as a result of their intervention.
How to contact NEST?
An asylum seeker can be referred to us by one of the organisations helping asylum seekers in Leicester – like British Red Cross, Refugee Action, Assist (the medical service for asylum seekers) or the Race Equality Centre.
