Two separate roles here with Refugee Legal Support, both for a new Family Reunion from Europe pro bono project; job descriptions for each one as follows.

1. Project Casework Supervisor

6-month initial contract with a view to extension subject to need and funding.

Part time – 21 hours per week across three days (potentially full time also possible with the additional hours devoted to other RLS projects / casework)

Salary: £32,500 to £35.000pa, pro rata 

About us

Refugee Legal Support (RLS) is a registered charity (no. 1191680) in England and a non-profit company in Greece. RLS provides free legal support from UK asylum lawyers to those seeking sanctuary in Greece or reunification with their family members in the UK or elsewhere in Europe.

Commencing 1 February 2021, the PBFR Project is a new project that RLS will deliver in collaboration with five leading commercial law firms. The project aims at utilising pro bono capacity to help with family reunion work for applicants in Greece with family members in the UK following the Dublin Regulations coming to an end in December 2020.  The work of the project will also feed into strategic efforts by RLS and others in the sector to influence policy and decision making around replacements for the Dublin regime post-Brexit. The project will likely run for one year only, although there is possibility of extension. 

It is envisaged that in practice the PBFR Project will focus on securing Exceptional Case Funding (ECF) for family reunion cases, preparing comprehensive referral packages to maximise the prospect of successful referral to legal aid providers. Exceptionally, if following a grant of ECF it is not possible to place cases with a legal aid provider, firm pro bono lawyers may undertake the entry clearance applications supervised by the Project Casework Supervisor. 

Job Role 

The role of the Project Casework Supervisor will primarily be to coordinate and contribute to the training of firm pro bono lawyers and be responsible for the supervision of their casework including case preparation, ECF and entry clearance applications. The Project Casework Supervisor is also responsible for feeding into and overseeing case management record keeping and data collection to contribute to the strategic aims of the project. 

The successful candidate will contribute to the development of the comprehensive training package (based on already existing RLS materials), coordinate and contribute to the delivery of this to firm pro bono lawyers by the end of February, and maintain and update all training and casework materials going forward, including the production of monthly legal updates and FAQ’s.  The successful candidate will also feed into strategic collaborative efforts with external partners in the UK and Greece. 

We are looking for a dynamic and enthusiastic practitioner. 

Essential Attributes:

• 2 years full time asylum casework 
• Demonstratable knowledge of online immigration applications 
• Demonstratable knowledge of refugee family reunion procedures and applications 
• Demonstratable knowledge of legal aid provision and ECF applications
• Demonstratable supervision experience
• Have a strong commitment to upholding the human rights of asylum seekers, migrants, and refugees
• Be either; a member of the Bar, a solicitor and accredited to IAAS Senior caseworker level, accredited to IAAS Senior caseworker level, or OISC accredited to Level 3 

Desirable:

Our ideal candidate would have specific experience supervising commercial lawyers in a pro bono project setting. 

Application process

To apply, please send a one page CV with covering email expressing your interest to Annette Elder Refugee Legal Support UK rlsunitedkingdom@gmail.com

Closing date for applications: 23:59, Wednesday 13 January 2021

Interviews (by Zoom): Monday 18 January and Tuesday 19 January 2021 

Start date: ideally 1 February 2021 or as soon as possible after this date. 

RLS is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. RLS is particularly keen to receive applications from those with a lived experience of migration and immigration systems.

2. Project Coordinator

6 months initially with a view to extension subject to need and funding  

Contract role, Part time (14hours per week across two days) (potentially full time also possible with the additional hours devoted to other RLS projects)

Salary: £22.000 to £26.000 pa pro rata 

About us

Refugee Legal Support (RLS) is a registered charity (no. 1191680) in England and a non-profit company in Greece. RLS provides free legal support from EU asylum lawyers to those seeking sanctuary in Greece or reunification with their family members in the UK or elsewhere in Europe.

Commencing 1 February 2021, the PBFR Project is a new project that RLS will deliver in collaboration with five leading commercial law firms. The project aims at utilising pro bono capacity to help with family reunion work for applicants in Greece with family members in the UK following the Dublin Regulations coming to an end in December 2020. The work of the project will also feed into strategic efforts by RLS and others in the sector to influence policy and decision making around replacements for the Dublin regime post-Brexit. The project will likely run for one year only, although there is possibility of extension. 

Job Role 

The Project Coordinator will be responsible for:

• Registration of incoming referrals according to RLS procedures 
• Preparation of and allocation of referrals to firm pro bono project leads
• Monitoring the progress of referrals within the firm pro bono teams
• When a grant of ECF is notified by firm pro bono teams, making the referral to legal aid providers
• Maintain LAA provider referral networks and relationships 
• Recording project data in accordance with procedures
• Maintenance of case management records and data capture for analysis and evaluation purposes
• General support to the Project Casework Supervisor

We are looking for a dynamic and enthusiastic individual with ideally experience of working within asylum related voluntary sector projects, good data management and administrative skills, demonstratable knowledge of the UK asylum system and an understanding of family reunion. 

Our ideal candidate would also have experience working with both corporate lawyers and NGOs on a similar pro bono project, although this is not required. They must have a strong commitment to upholding the human rights of asylum seekers, migrants, and refugees. 

Application process

To apply, please send a one page CV with covering email expressing your interest to Annette Elder Refugee Legal Support UK rlsunitedkingdom@gmail.com

Closing date for applications: 23:59, Wednesday 13 January 2021

Interviews (by Zoom): Monday 18 January and Tuesday 19 January 2021

Start date: 1 February 2021

RLS is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. RLS is particularly keen to receive applications from those with a lived experience of migration and immigration systems.