Immigration and asylum lawyer Jennifer Morgan- a law lecturer in the University’s School of Law and Politics, has initiated Ukraine Project Cymru in collaboration with Asylum Justice, with funding from Welsh Government.

It is anticipated queries will be wide-ranging and implicate work across a wide range of immigration and asylum law classifications, including student and family routes, work, and specific Home Office immigration schemes.

About 25 law students have been recruited to the project, with the team offering advice initially to any Ukrainian in need in Wales.

Jennifer, who worked in the field for about 20 years, said many Ukrainians have arrived in the UK or been able to remain here since the war through various schemes set up in regard to the crisis. But as support related to some of these schemes is complete, many Ukrainians now need guidance on what happens next.

Due to the status, they have been provided, Ukrainians are not formally recognised as refugees and do not authorize for state-funded legal aid. Jennifer added I, therefore, expect that we are going to get multiple queries from families needing help in navigating our complicated immigration system.

Ukraine Project Cymru is one of a number of pro-bono schemes directed by academics at the Law School, giving students first-hand casework experience while delivering a vital service to those in need.

Before becoming a lecturer, Jennifer consumed her career in the charity and legal aid sectors, including toiling for national charities such as the Citizens Advice Bureau and Immigration Advisory Service. She is a trustee at the Welsh Refugee Council and a member of the (WiRL)- Women in Refugee Law Network.

She added the urgency of this work can't be stretched. Ukrainians who have come to Wales are just beginning their journey, and appropriate aid must be open to those who need it.

A second-year Law student, Katherine Carter, said refugees flee their homelands with little to no belongings and come to foreign nations knowing very little about their new home. She added it is our job to help make them feel welcome and support them as they reconstruct their lives via the Ukraine Project Cymru.

Senior Lecturer in Law at Cardiff University and Chair of Trustees at Asylum Justice, Dr. Bernadette Rainey, stated that with funding from the Welsh Government via the Wales Sanctuary Services Programme, Asylum Justice is proud to host the Ukraine Project Cymru directed by an elite Pro Bono Unit in Cardiff’s School of Law and Politics.

Rainey said Asylum Justice is the only charity in Wales that offers the full range of free lawful advice to refugees and helpless immigrants, and the collaboration with the Pro Bono Unit permits Asylum Justice to increase its capacity, supporting a dedicated project that addresses the precise legal advice requirements of Ukrainians in Wales.