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Windrush scandal ‘very far from being over,’ campaigners say
The National Windrush Monument at Waterloo Station. The statue - of a man, woman and child in their Sunday best standing on top of suitcases - was designed by the Jamaican artist and sculptor Basil Watson, June 22, 2022
THE fallout from the Windrush scandal is “very far from being over,” campaigners warned on Windrush Day today as hundreds of victims remain “trapped in legal and bureaucratic limbo.”
Today marked the 78th anniversary of the Empire Windrush’s arrival at Tilbury Docks, Essex, on June 22 1948.
The scandal erupted in 2018 when it emerged that British citizens, many of the Windrush generation, were being wrongly detained, deported or threatened with deportation despite having the right to live in Britain.
Eight years on, campaigners said too many victims were dying before receiving compensation, struggling with complicated forms and facing long waits.
More than a dozen compensation claims had been in the system for more than 18 months as of March, according to Home Office data.
A group including Action for Race Equality, the Runnymede Trust, Black Lives Matter UK and Justice 4 Windrush gathered at Downing Street today before handing a petition to the Home Office.
They are calling for a new independent redress authority, free legal help for claimants, a public inquiry into what happened and automatic citizenship for survivors.
Justice 4 Windrush chief executive Colin McFarlane said: “Sadly, there are hundreds of victims up and down the country who remain trapped in legal and bureaucratic limbo, suffering poverty and deep emotional trauma, being denied compensation that they are legally owed.
“Their stories are evidence that the scandal perpetrated by the Home Office is alive and well.”
Singer Annie Lennox said “agonising delays and complexities of the Windrush compensation scheme add insult to injury,” while Bridgerton actress Adjoa Andoh said: “We seek justice for all.”
According to the latest Home Office data, 11,759 claims had been made under the scheme as of March 2026, with £127.1 million paid out across 3,978 claims — an average of around £31,950 per claim.
Some 566 claims remained in the system, and 131 had been suspended.
More than half of fully closed claims were found to have no entitlement to compensation.
The Home Office has reiterated its “commitment to ensuring victims are heard, justice is sped up, and that the Windrush Compensation Scheme is run effectively,” adding that a £1.5 million advocacy support fund had been established to help people with claims.
