#NoEnNuestroNombre: Luchando contra la instrumentalización de la violencia contra mujeres y niñas
Todas las mujeres y niñas deberían poder vivir una vida libre de violencia. Sin embargo, hay muchos grupos que utilizan el tema de la violencia contra mujeres y niñas como un medio para difundir desinformación y odio, en beneficio de sus propias agendas políticas.
Por eso, en colaboración con EVAW, Hibiscus, Imkaan, Women for Refugee Women, Southall Black Sisters y Asylum Matters, hemos lanzado una guía práctica sobre la instrumentalización de la violencia contra mujeres y niñas como parte de la campaña #NotInOurName (#NoEnNuestroNombre).
¿Para qué sirve esta guía?
La guía esta diseñada como un recurso práctico para las personas que quieren rebatir discursos falsos y perjudiciales y tener conversaciones productivas con personas en sus vidas sobre la violencia contra mujeres y niñas e inmigración. Esta guía te brinda las herramientas para identificar y contrarrestar narrativas falsas que ponen en peligro a nuestras comunidades.
¿Por qué importa?
En calidad de organizaciones especializadas que defienden a mujeres y comunidades de personas migrantes, consideramos que la instrumentalización de la violencia no beneficia a mujeres que han sido víctimas y sobrevivientes de ella. Por el contrario, la instrumentalización genera violencia y división. La agenda anti-inmigrante pone a las mujeres en riesgo.
¿Qué pedimos?
Necesitamos cambiar la narrativa a una que sea precisa, basad en evidencia y en experiencias vividas. Esto, sin embargo, necesita una acción colectiva de tod@s.
Junt@s podemos crear cambios en nuestras comunidades, manteniéndonos fuertes contra aquellos que usen la violencia contra mujeres y niñas para promover sus agendas anti-inmigrante y anti-mujer, exigiendo responsabilidad de las personas que toman decisiones a nivel institucional en esta cuestión tan crítica.
¡Empecemos la conversación!
Puedes descargar la guía en inglés aquí.
#16DíasDeActivismo - Derechos humanos y política migratoria: una brecha cada vez mayor
Por María Monserrat Escudero y Dolores Modern
Los derechos humanos en contexto
Este año, conmemorar el Día de los Derechos Humanos resulta crítico.
El marco de los Derechos Humanos ha guiado a gobiernos, políticos y sociedades en general durante décadas, consagrando el valor de la vida humana, la dignidad y la compasión más allá de las fronteras. Resulta alarmante que este consenso se vea ahora cuestionado a nivel mundial. En el Reino Unido, esto se ve claramente en el compromiso de algunos miembros del Parlamento de derogar la Ley de Derechos Humanos y abandonar el Convenio Europeo de Derechos Humanos. Pero no es necesario llegar tan lejos para poner en peligro nuestros Derechos Humanos. Al demonizar la inmigración, este gobierno está alimentando el discurso que cuestiona si todos merecemos los mismos derechos.
Los Derechos Humanos están interrelacionados y, lo que es más importante, son inherentes a todos los seres humanos. Al privar a ciertos grupos de personas de sus derechos fundamentales, les estamos despojando de su humanidad. En el contexto de los 16 días de activismo, en los que el foco está puesto en la importancia de erradicar la violencia contra las mujeres y las niñas, la interconexión de los Derechos Humanos cobra protagonismo.
El efecto deshumanizador del entorno hostil hacia la inmigración
No se puede exagerar la crueldad del entorno hostil en el que vivimos actualmente las personas migrantes, solicitantes de asilo y refugiadas. Nuestras comunidades han visto aumentar progresivamente su vulnerabilidad durante años. Y cuando pensábamos que las cosas no podían empeorar mucho más, un gobierno en el que muchos habíamos depositado nuestras esperanzas se volvió contra nosotros.
Los migrantes se han convertido en el chivo expiatorio de todo tipo de fallas del Estado. Se nos culpa de la crisis de la vivienda, de la austeridad que afecta a la clase trabajadora, de la caída de los salarios y del empeoramiento de las condiciones laborales. No hay pruebas que demuestren que la migración haya causado ninguno de estos problemas, ni que reducirla podría solucionarlos. Sin embargo, la idea de que los/as migrantes, solicitantes de asilo y refugiados/as están empobreciendo al Reino Unido al quitarles recursos a los ciudadanos británicos se difunde en los medios de comunicación, en los debates parlamentarios y hasta en los hogares.
El objetivo de estas narrativas no es solucionar las causas reales de los problemas a los que se enfrenta el Reino Unido. Son utilizados y explotados para crear división, encubrir fallas estatales y obtener apoyo político en un contexto de crisis y preocupación. Estas narrativas y las políticas que derivan de ellas son también una prolongación del proyecto colonial, que se benefició de la explotación y la extracción de comunidades racializadas. Ahora vemos cómo esto ocurre dentro de las fronteras del Reino Unido al permitir la deshumanización de seres humanos que han hecho de este país su hogar, aunque sea de forma temporal.
El impacto real de la deshumanización de los migrantes
El deterioro del marco de derechos humanos y los discursos que lo propician nos afectan a todos. Una madre puede tener miedo de hablar con su hijo en su propio idioma en público. Una niña puede sufrir acoso en la escuela. Un trabajador puede temer denunciar a su empleador por abusar de sus derechos. Una estudiante puede decidir no continuar sus estudios en el Reino Unido por miedo a la violencia. Esto crea una sociedad fragmentada, en la que el miedo se infiltra en las comunidades y erosiona la confianza y la solidaridad que nos mantienen unidos. También abre la puerta a una mayor restricción de los derechos para todos.
Para las personas más vulnerables, incluidas las mujeres con las que trabajamos, que son sobrevivientes de la violencia de género, la trata y la explotación, este contexto hace aún más difícil acceder a apoyo, justicia y reparación. Estas mujeres, que a menudo se enfrentan a problemas interseccionales relacionados con el racismo estructural y la discriminación de clase, están siendo sistemáticamente abandonadas por este gobierno en múltiples frentes. Son precisamente las personas a las que el gobierno dice querer proteger.
Los derechos de los migrantes y los derechos de las mujeres son Derechos Humanos.
No hay seres humanos menos merecedores de una vida digna. La violencia contra las mujeres y las niñas no se erradicará si, como sociedad, marginamos a las mujeres que, debido a su condición de inmigrantes, son objeto de violencia y discriminación institucionales. La idea de «ganarse» los derechos humanos, por ejemplo, mediante condiciones cada vez más complejas para la residencia permanente, va en contra de los compromisos que este país ha asumido para abandonar el proyecto colonial y convertirse en un firme defensor del avance de todos los pueblos.
En este contexto, las comunidades y redes de solidaridad están asumiendo el papel del Estado y protegiendo a los más vulnerables. Sin embargo, las organizaciones y comunidades no pueden revertir las consecuencias de estas restricciones por sí solas.
Pero nos negamos a perder la esperanza. En tiempos de crisis, la humanidad ha salido adelante fortaleciendo los lazos comunitarios, y ayudándose mutuamente. El Reino Unido fue en su día una voz destacada en la adopción de los derechos humanos a nivel mundial, siendo la primera nación en ratificar el Convenio Europeo de Derechos Humanos. Necesitamos un gobierno que pueda retomar este mandato, que no esté cegado por los beneficios políticos a corto plazo, y que esté a la altura de los retos a los que se enfrenta nuestra época.
Todos merecemos vivir con dignidad. Un sistema migratorio justo que ofrezca protección real e igualitaria a todos es la única forma de garantizar los derechos humanos.
LAWRS y la política migratoria del Partido Laborista
El White Paper sobre Inmigración
En mayo de este año, el Gobierno del Reino Unido publicó su White Paper sobre Inmigración, en el que propone una serie de cambios a la política migratoria. Estas propuestas han generado gran incertidumbre y miedo en las comunidades migrantes que persisten hasta hoy, ya que muchos detalles aún no han sido definidos.
La dirección que ha tomado el gobierno es sumamente preocupante. En lugar de desmantelar el entorno hostil a inmigrantes creado por los anteriores gobiernos conservadores, busca reforzar y expandirlo, en detrimento de la sociedad en su conjunto.
Las medidas propuestas son, y seguirán siendo, especialmente perjudiciales para las mujeres migrantes —en particular aquellas que son sobrevivientes de violencia de género, trata, esclavitud moderna o condiciones laborales precarias e inseguras.
LAWRS, junto con organizaciones aliadas Southall Black Sisters, Hibiscus y EVAW, y más de 100 otras organizaciones, están luchando contra estas políticas crueles. Publicamos una respuesta señalando cómo afectarán a las mujeres migrantes, y concluimos con una protesta frente al Ministerio del Interior (Home Office) el 15 de octubre. Sin embargo, sabemos que esta será una lucha larga — una que requerirá de acción colectiva sostenida, solidaridad entre movimientos y un compromiso continuo con centrar las voces y el liderazgo de las mujeres migrantes.
¿Por qué estamos tan preocupadas?
Normalización de la extrema derecha en las políticas migratorias
El White Paper representa una posición peligrosa y discriminatoria que culpa a las personas migrantes —y no a la austeridad— por la pobreza y problemas económicos y sociales. El gobierno está normalizando la retórica de la extrema derecha y usándola para justificar políticas reaccionarias en un momento en que la violencia contra migrantes, solicitantes de asilo y personas refugiadas está aumentando.
Esto se evidencia no solo en el White Paper, sino también en declaraciones posteriores del Primer Ministro y otros miembros de su gabinete, así como en la falta de condena hacia los grupos de extrema derecha que están atacando a migrantes y solicitantes de asilo.
Mujeres migrantes sobrevivientes de violencia doméstica
El gobierno ha prometido reducir a la mitad la violencia de género en 10 años. Sin embargo, en su White Paper, ignora la vulnerabilidad de las migrantes sobrevivientes de violencia de género. Organizaciones de servicios como LAWRS apoyan a migrantes que no pueden acceder a refugios, a apoyo financiero, vivienda estable o asesoría legal de calidad, lo que les impide escapar del abuso y reconstruir sus vidas.
Las protecciones existentes para ellas, como la Concesión para Víctimas Migrantes de Violencia Doméstica (MVDAC) y la Residencia Permanente por Violencia Doméstica (DVILR) son extremadamente limitadas y solo cubren a un pequeño número de mujeres con estatus migratorio precario.
Además, el riesgo de que los servicios públicos, incluida la policía, compartan información con las autoridades migratorias es utilizado por los perpetradores de violencia como herramienta de control, manipulando a las mujeres para evitar que denuncien y que tengan acceso a la protección. Incluso, miembros del gabinete actual del gobierno han reconocido anteriormente la necesidad de establecer mecanismos seguros de denuncia para evitar que los servicios compartan información con autoridades migratorias. Aun así, los compromisos previos para eliminar estas barreras no se han cumplido, dejando a la mayoría de las sobrevivientes migrantes sin protección.
Mercado laboral e inmigración
Este gobierno continúa menospreciando los trabajos considerados como “poco calificados”, ocupados en Reino Unido más que nada por mujeres migrantes: cuidado de personas, limpieza y servicios de apoyo. Estas trabajadoras esenciales ya enfrentan condiciones laborales precarias y falta de protección. La decisión de eliminar las visas para cuidadoras es especialmente alarmante y amenaza con colapsar un sector ya frágil.
Nos preocupa profundamente que la planificación laboral y la inversión en sectores clave estén siendo sustituidas por la dependencia en trabajadores migrantes como solución temporal a la escasez de mano de obra. Al restringir su acceso a estabilidad y residencia a largo plazo, estas políticas obligan a las trabajadoras a aceptar condiciones abusivas y aumentan su dependencia de sus empleadores o parejas, incrementando el riesgo de abuso y explotación.
También rechazamos totalmente el uso que este gobierno hace del control migratorio como estrategia para abordar la explotación laboral. Esta narrativa distorsiona las causas reales del abuso en el mercado laboral y criminaliza a las víctimas, en lugar de responsabilizar a los empleadores que se benefician de su precariedad.
Criminalización de las sobrevivientes
En el Reino Unido, la mayoría de las mujeres en prisión o bajo supervisión comunitaria han sufrido abuso o explotación. En el caso de las migrantes, el crimen suele ser consecuencia de la coerción o la precariedad económica. Como se señaló antes, las mujeres migrantes además enfrentan múltiples barreras para denunciar la violencia o la explotación, lo que las deja sin protección hasta que terminan en contacto con el sistema penal. Las deportaciones automáticas y los procedimientos acelerados de expulsión impiden que las sobrevivientes puedan acceder a justicia y reconstruir sus vidas.
Prioridades urgentes de acción
El Gobierno enfrenta una decisión crucial: seguir reforzando la ideología de extrema derecha o actuar de inmediato para proteger a las víctimas y sobrevivientes migrantes.
Exigimos al Gobierno que:
- Abandone el White Paper sobre Inmigración del Reino Unido (mayo 2025), que perjudica a las sobrevivientes de violencia de género, trata y esclavitud moderna.
- Implemente mecanismos seguros de denuncia de crímenes.
- Ponga fin a la criminalización de las sobrevivientes de violencia de género, trata y esclavitud moderna.
- Derogue completamente la Ley de Migración Ilegal (2023) y la Ley de Nacionalidad y Fronteras (2022).
- Enfrente el racismo sistémico y las desigualdades estructurales.
- Garantice financiamiento sostenible para organizaciones lideradas por y para mujeres migrantes.
- Extienda el modelo combinado MVDAC-DVILR a todas las sobrevivientes, sin importar su estatus migratorio.
The Unheard Workforce
The Latin American Women’s Rights Service (LAWRS) is launching its latest report: “The Unheard Workforce: Experiences of Latin American migrant women in cleaning, hospitality and domestic work”
On the 17th July 2019, LAWRS launched the research “The Unheard Workforce: Experiences of Latin American migrant women in cleaning, hospitality and domestic work”. Funded by Trust for London
The research draws on 326 cases of women supported at the Employment Rights Advice Service of the organisation. It presents an array of deeply concerning labour rights violations experienced by Latin American migrant women employed in three key feminised sectors of London’s manual labour: cleaning, hospitality, and domestic work.
Among the key results arising from these cases, we found that:
- Over half of the workers faced breaches to their contracts (62%). Unlawful deduction of wages was the most common type of abuse (151 cases, 46%).
- 1 in 5 (20%) experienced illegal underpayment of the National Minimum Wage.
- 17% were unlawfully denied the annual leave they were entitled to, and 16% were not paid accrued in lieu annual leave once they left the company.
- Health and safety issues were present in 25% of the cases – predominantly injury due to the nature of the work (33%), limited or no protective equipment (17%), and lack of training (12%).
- Over two in five (41%) of women in the sample have experienced discrimination, harassment or unreasonable treatment.
- 66% experienced bullying or unreasonable treatment as regular occurrences.
- A large proportion endured verbal and/or faced physical abuse, 37% and 11% respectively.
- 16% of the women endured a total of 13 different types of sexual harassment and abuse in the workplace.
- Abuse on the grounds of maternity was experienced by 9% of women. This includes failure to pay for hours spent at prenatal appointments and denial of risk assessments during pregnancy.
- 11 cases of potential trafficking for labour exploitation were identified: 7 were cleaners or hospitality workers and 4 were domestic workers.
“We are not machines or numbers. We are human beings who want to work and to be treated with dignity and respect. We want nothing more and nothing less.”
Watch the full short documentary below:
“Undocumented Latin American migrant woman’s experiences of labour abuse in London”
This documentary was made with the support of Media Trust by the filmmaker Andrew Contreras
LAWRS 35th Anniversary report is out!
35 year ago, we started our work in a time where domestic violence was only physical abuse and we increased our services accordingly to the development of policies and legislation through the years. We are proud to follow the steps of amazing Latin American women who came before us and we hope to do our part for the ones to come. As a specialist service, we will continue providing survival, security, safety, and well-being and also advocating and campaigning for human rights and social justice for migrant women and migrant women workers in the UK.
During the last year 2017-2018, our main achievements were:
- 1,890 hours of comprehensive wellbeing support offered
- 1,691 advice and information sessions
- 339 survivors of violence supported to find safety
- 285 school students better able to lead healthy relationships
- 266 women joined in our integration programme
- 515 women supported in Southwark
- 124 women supported in Haringey
- 93% improved their knowledge about rights
- 85% improved their wellbeing
- 40% of our drop-in service users accessed more than 1 service in a single visit
- 70% found LAWRS through word of mouth
- Evidenced-based campaigning work to tackle violence against women and girls, labour exploitation and reduce the impact of Brexit
Read more here: LAWRS 35th Anniversary Annual Report
Voices of Resilience: short documentary
Migrant and refugee women face multiple barriers when arriving in the EU and the current political anti-migrant climate has made their situations direr. Experiences of gender-based abuse, exploitation at work and isolation have been exacerbated by the progressive erosion of migrant and women’s rights.
On International Migrant Day 2018, LAWRS launches the short documentary titled: “Voices of resilience: Migrant and Refugee women in Europe” which highlights the experiences of migrant women in the UK, Spain, Poland and Italy and sharing their experiences and calls for change.
The short documentary was made as part of the Women, Empowerment, Integration and Participation project (WEIP) run by LAWRS (UK), Differenza Donna (Italy), KARAT Coalition (Poland) and Red Acoge (Spain) and brought the voices and experiences of migrant and refugee women to the forefront. The documentary was first screened in November at the WEIP’s international conference in London, where more than 20 migrant and women organisations in Europe highlighted the role of migrant women’s lived experiences and provided recommendations to uphold their right to integrate and to live free of violence and discrimination.
Sophia Gomez Pelaez, a migrant woman in Spain, interviewed in the short documentary states:
“We come looking for other opportunities, especially as women as we are searching to cover family needs. However, it is difficult to find shelter as we often face rejection”
Moreover, Cathrine Nsamba, a migrant woman in Italy also interviewed (and photographed above) recommends:
“I was supported by the organisation to learn more and to understand more […]and my advice for women like me are to go inside leadership and campaign for these leaderships”
Finally, Alma Gatica, the WEIP Coordinator at the Latin American Women’s Rights Service stresses the importance of a migrant and gender perspective in our work.
“We, migrant women, have to get access to decision-making spaces where policies are discussed so we can fully participate in the host country: socially, politically and economically. We are the leaders of our own empowerment journey, both as migrants and as women”
Watch the full short documentary:
Co-funded by the Asylum, Migration and Integration fund of the European Commission
We can’t fight in the dark: Brazilian women facing violence
A research by the King’s College in partnership with LAWRS found out that VAWG among Brazilian women in London is “alarmingly widespread”, with 4 in every 5 Brazilian women in London have experienced some kind of violence.
The study, published in March 2018, shed a light on cases of violence suffered by Brazilian women in London, provided data and offered policy recommendations to tackle the issue. According to the study emotional/psychological violence was the commonest type of violence experienced in London (48%), followed by physical violence (38%), with 14% experiencing sexual violence.
The study also found that cases of VAWG are intersectional as women of mixed race were more likely to experience violence (63%) than white women (44%). Insecure immigration status prevented women from coming forward and reporting the cases of violence to the police. Apart from highlighting the need for the Domestic Violence and Abuse (DVA) Bill to set standards for the protection of migrant victims’, some of the proposed solutions to prevent VAWG cases with Brazilian women are extending ‘recourse to public funds’ to domestic violence victims, specialist training for agency officers; and increased collaboration between support organisations and government authorities. The study reinforces the need for safe reporting mechanisms to be implemented as we campaign in Step Up Migrant Women.
La escasez de agua afecta la vida y el desarrollo humano.
Relaunch of Sin fronteras: Empowering young women from Latin America
We are thrilled to announce the return of Sin Fronteras! Launched in June 2015, Sin Fronteras (No Limits) focuses on empowering young Latin American women and girls. Sin Fronteras provides them with a safe space to develop their full potential and lead on actions for social change through the use of arts. During the first two and a half years of the project, LAWRS offered different workshops and activities to more than 100 Latin American young women and girls. Through art, dance and music the young women and girls were able to identify themselves as agents that can generate a social change in our communities.
“We want to set an example, leave a footprint and speak up for Latin American people and for people from all over the world whose voices are silenced or to whom language is a barrier,” said the manifest written by members of the group.
They advocated for the recognition of young migrant women’s rights by calling for a recognition of rights through photography exhibitions, by demonstrating against detention at Yarl’s Wood, and by joining the campaign Against Border for Children (ABC). Here is Sin Fronteras standing up for the the right to education free from racism and state surveillance.
LAWRS is thrilled to relaunch Sin Fronteras in November 2018. We will run a 3-month creative leadership programme with the support of the University of London, a 1-year programme to access free university lectures thanks to King’s College London, and a 3-year programme of arts, development and social change funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Stay tuned to get more news about the awesome things this group of young leaders will be doing in the coming months.
Step Up Migrant Women: Mayor of London calls for safe reporting for migrant victims
Prompted by our Step Up Migrant Women UK coalition, the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan urged the Home Office to protect domestic abuse victims who are vulnerable due to hostile environment policies. Migrant women with undocumented status are denied access to support and remain trapped in abusive relationships.
LAWRS worked with the Mayor’s office in drafting his letter to the Home Secretary, with measures and guidelines to ensure victims have access to justice and support services.
The Mayor’s demands were backed by Victims Commissioner Claire Waxman, who has been hosting a series of roundtables on the issue, and MP Jess Phillips.
“Both the mayor and I are clear that all victims of abuse must have full confidence to report crime and their abusers to ensure justice is done, no matter what their status might be,” said Claire Waxman
The current lack of safe-reporting mechanisms creates a barrier for migrant women to flee violence and gives greater impunity to perpetrators. An Imkaan study has shown that 92% of women with insecure status have received threats of deportation from perpetrators.
LAWRS’ Director, Lucila Granada, commented:
“The hostile environment policies have led to this extremely dangerous situation where many victims of severe crimes are too afraid to go to the police. Their perpetrator is dangerous, but the police can be even more dangerous to them. Perpetrators are hiding behind these policies and using them to abuse their victims.”
Step Up Migrant Women is a campaign led by LAWRS and supported by over 30 women’s and migrants’ rights organisations. We campaign for the implementation of safe-reporting mechanisms and the end of data-sharing policies when victims approach the police.
Photo by Angeles Rodenas
Research: Minorities face Barriers to Islington Health
LAWRS Development and Outreach Coordinator Nahir de la Silva explains how LAWRS and the consortium Diverse Communities Health Voice found that Latin American women in Islington need better quality and gender-specific interpretation services to access healthcare.
Diverse Communities Health Voice, a consortium of ten Islington-based organisations*, has published its findings on research into how ethnic minorities are accessing the NHS: Community research 2016-2017 Black and minority ethnic groups accessing services in Islington.
As a consortium member, LAWRS interviewed 22 Latin American women* within our organisation, with research broken down into five different areas: pharmacies, wellbeing, accident & emergency, interpreting services, and referrals to specialist services.
We offer services including linguistically-specific counselling and yoga to help our community keep healthy.
Our interviews found that women experienced their first barrier when trying to make appointments. Reception staff did not provide appointments due to a lack of language understanding of our service users. We also heard of cases in which staff members would not offer interpreting services, despite the knowing that our users were not comfortable only using English.
This interview-based research has helped LAWRS identify different issues faced by our service users while trying to access the NHS. It is also helping us work with the community and local government to tackle these problems.
At LAWRS we wrote letters addressed to administrative staff from GP clinics asking for appointments and interpreters. We managed to get some much-needed appointments. LAWRS also provided information on services on offer in pharmacies, as well as free sports and wellbeing activities, dentist services, walk-in-centres, and complaint procedures.
Our research has also helped us conclude that language interpreting services need to be improved in Islington, as well as become more culturally and gender secure. We would also appreciate reception staff receiving appropriate Equality and Diversity training.
The final report makes the following recommendations
• To extend GP hours in order to make it possible for people working in different jobs to get appointments
• To promote information about the services available
• To translate this information into key languages to increase uptake
Read the full report here.[:es]
LAWRS Development and Outreach Coordinator Nahir de la Silva explains how the consortium Diverse Communities Health Voice also indicates that Latin American women in Islington need better quality and gender-specific interpretation services to access healthcare.
Diverse Communities Health Voice, a consortium of ten Islington-based organisations*, has published its findings on research into how ethnic minorities are accessing the NHS: Community research 2016-2017 Black and minority ethnic groups accessing services in Islington.
As a consortium member, LAWRS interviewed 22 Latin American women* within our organisation, with research broken down into five different areas: pharmacies, wellbeing, accident & emergency, interpreting services, and referrals to specialist services.
Our interviews found that women experienced their first barrier when trying to make appointments. Reception staff did not provide appointments due to a lack of language understanding of our service users. We also heard of cases in which staff members would not offer interpreting services, despite the knowing that our users were not comfortable only using English.
This interview-based research has helped LAWRS identify different issues faced by our service users while trying to access the NHS. It is also helping us work with the community and local government to tackle these problems.
At LAWRS we wrote letters addressed to administrative staff from GP clinics asking for appointments and interpreters. We managed to get some much-needed appointments. LAWRS also provided information on services on offer in pharmacies, as well as free sports and wellbeing activities, dentist services, walk-in-centres, and complaint procedures.
Our research has also helped us conclude that language interpreting services need to be improved in Islington, as well as become more culturally and gender secure. We would also appreciate reception staff receiving appropriate Equality and Diversity training.
The final report makes the following recommendations
• To extend GP hours in order to make it possible for people working in different jobs to get appointments
• To promote information about the services available
• To translate this information into key languages to increase uptake
Read the full report here.[:pt]LAWRS Development and Outreach Coordinator Nahir de la Silva explains how the consortium Diverse Communities Health Voice also indicates that Latin American women in Islington need better quality and gender-specific interpretation services to access healthcare.
Diverse Communities Health Voice, a consortium of ten Islington-based organisations*, has published its findings on research into how ethnic minorities are accessing the NHS: Community research 2016-2017 Black and minority ethnic groups accessing services in Islington.
As a consortium member, LAWRS interviewed 22 Latin American women* within our organisation, with research broken down into five different areas: pharmacies, wellbeing, accident & emergency, interpreting services, and referrals to specialist services.
Our interviews found that women experienced their first barrier when trying to make appointments. Reception staff did not provide appointments due to a lack of language understanding of our service users. We also heard of cases in which staff members would not offer interpreting services, despite the knowing that our users were not comfortable only using English.
This interview-based research has helped LAWRS identify different issues faced by our service users while trying to access the NHS. It is also helping us work with the community and local government to tackle these problems.
At LAWRS we wrote letters addressed to administrative staff from GP clinics asking for appointments and interpreters. We managed to get some much-needed appointments. LAWRS also provided information on services on offer in pharmacies, as well as free sports and wellbeing activities, dentist services, walk-in-centres, and complaint procedures.
Our research has also helped us conclude that language interpreting services need to be improved in Islington, as well as become more culturally and gender secure. We would also appreciate reception staff receiving appropriate Equality and Diversity training.
The final report makes the following recommendations
• To extend GP hours in order to make it possible for people working in different jobs to get appointments
• To promote information about the services available
• To translate this information into key languages to increase uptake
Read the full report here.
*Overall, 207 people were interviewed, across all participant organisations in the consortium. LAWRS has now been a consortium member for two years.
*The ten Islington-based organisations work to listen to and represent members of society that are not being heard by mainstream agencies.