Dear all,

**Apologies for cross-posting**

Below is an open letter that has been drafted in response to the extremely negative press coverage you may have seen over the last week, about 'Newcastle taxpayers funding Ethiopian asylum seeker's flying lessons'. The case is explained further in the letter below. To add your name to the list of signatories please email [log in to unmask] by 10am on Friday 8 November. We aim to have the letter published in The Independent, which has provided the best coverage of this case so far, and will also send it to the other media outlets that have covered the case.

I think it's vital that we intervene in such situations, particularly as academics when it concerns access to education. Please take the time to read the letter and add your name.

Best wishes,

Tom

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Dear Editor,

The July 2013 ruling by the Court of Appeal, that Newcastle City Council should offer a loan for two recent care leavers who sought asylum in Britain to continue into higher education, has been widely reported this week. It has been portrayed by sections of the local and national press as a waste of taxpayers' money*. We believe this portrayal is divisive, irresponsible and damaging – for refugees, care leavers, and society as a whole. We regard the ruling as a victory for the human right to education. The request for support came to the council only because every other avenue had been closed. Yonas Admasu Kebede and Abiy Admasu Kebede came to Britain in 2004 from Ethiopia and were taken into foster care in Newcastle after they became separated from their family. They were granted discretionary leave to remain until 2014, when they will be legally entitled to apply for permanent residence in the UK. Until that time they are in limbo, with few rights and under threat of possible deportation to a country they left as children. This is the status of many people who arrive in Britain as unaccompanied minors, or who become separated from their carers after arrival, as Yonas and Abiy were.

Since 2011 prospective students in England with discretionary leave to remain have been disqualified from 'home student' status, which means they are not entitled to a normal student loan, and they can be charged the same fees as overseas students, often more than £10,000 a year. Many migrant workers and their children are also in this position. In this context, the court ruled that Newcastle City Council's continuing duties toward young people leaving its care should extend to supporting the costs of their education. As the appeal judge pointed out in his ruling, it was extremely unlikely that a young person leaving care would have the resources to pay for higher education, and as a result of their immigration status Yonas and Abiy were prevented from accessing the same support available to other students. 

Research in Newcastle has shown that care leavers are at particular risk of homelessness, and research nationally has shown that even those refugees who secure permanent leave to remain suffer disproportionately high levels of unemployment and insecure and exploitative employment. Young people like Yonas and Abiy belong to both groups, having arrived in Britain seeking asylum and then having left care; these are very good reasons to offer them the support they need. To deny them this support would deny them an education, and in doing so would undermine their opportunities to gain employment, to support themselves, and to contribute to society. Education is not a drain on taxpayers, it is an investment in the future. We believe that all young people should have access to higher education, regardless of their immigration status. Universities also have a responsibility: they can choose to charge home fees or to waive fees for asylum seekers and those with discretionary leave to remain. Some already do so, and we urge others to follow suit.

The denial of home student status to young people with discretionary leave to remain is an injustice, and compounds the stress and uncertainty they face rebuilding their lives without knowing if they will face deportation once their discretionary leave expires. The court ruling in favour of Yonas and Abiy should be celebrated, and seen as one victory in the broader struggle for access to higher education.

* Emily Duggan's article 'Giving the other side...' in The Independent 6 November provides an important corrective, which presents Yonas' perspective.