Justice Collaborations (justice Together Initiative)

Charity Number: 1187441

Annual Expenditure: £10.0M

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Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: £10+ million (over £10 million awarded from 2021-2022)
  • Success Rate: Not publicly disclosed (high demand noted)
  • Decision Time: Varies by grant round
  • Grant Range: £90,000 - £500,000
  • Geographic Focus: UK-wide (all regions of England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland)

Contact Details

Website: https://justice-together.org.uk

Email: Via enquiry form at https://justice-together.org.uk/get-in-touch/

Phone: 2030055697 (via parent organization)

Registered Charity: 1187441

For grant enquiries, applicants should indicate their region of work and the grant stream they wish to apply under when using the contact form.

Overview

Justice Collaborations (Charity Number: 1187441) is the registered charity that hosts the Justice Together Initiative, established in 2020 as a subsidiary of The Legal Education Foundation. Launched with £9 million initial funding from a collaboration of 14 independent funders, Justice Together aims to operate for a decade with the vision that people who use the UK immigration system can access justice fairly and equally. The initiative has already awarded over £10 million to 42 recipient organisations (2021-2022 data), with grants reaching 125 organisations through partnership structures. Their strategic approach combines grant-making with connecting lived experience, front-line advice, and influencing strategies to transform access to justice in the UK immigration system. The collaboration now brings together 14 funding partners with shared values including trust, inclusion, and anti-racism.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

Advice and Representation Grants: £90,000 - £200,000 (individual applications) or £200,000 - £500,000 (multi-organisation partnerships)

  • Initial 3-year funding period
  • Free or low-cost immigration legal advice at OISC level 2 or above
  • Focus on areas of law out of scope of Legal Aid
  • Regional budget cap of £500,000 per region

National Influencing Grants: £90,000 - £200,000 (individual) or £200,000 - £500,000 (partnerships)

  • Up to 3 years funding
  • Systems and structural change work targeting national government, statutory agencies, or UK-wide audiences

Local Influencing Grants: £90,000 - £200,000 (individual) or £200,000 - £500,000 (partnerships)

  • Up to 3 years funding
  • Local authority, metro mayors, or regional body influencing
  • Community organising and campaigning work

Infrastructure Support Grant: Up to £300,000 total budget

  • Applications assessed monthly, potentially faster for urgent/time-sensitive needs
  • Currently closed as budget allocated

Priority Areas

  • Immigration legal advice and representation (OISC level 2+)
  • Coordination between advice providers and referral pathways
  • Strategic litigation and legal action on immigration issues
  • Community lawyering and community organising
  • Policy and public affairs work on immigration
  • Research and analysis on immigration system issues
  • Alliance building between advice providers and grassroots groups
  • Anti-racism development and embedding anti-racist practice
  • Work led by people with lived experience of the UK immigration system
  • Strategic communications and campaigns
  • Organisational resilience building for immigration sector organisations

What They Don't Fund

  • OISC level 1 advice only
  • Work that replaces statutory funding
  • Isolated work (not connected to wider sector or collaborations)
  • Housing or healthcare influencing work (outside immigration focus)
  • Specific litigation cases
  • Non-charitable activities
  • Work that does not embed anti-racism
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Governance and Leadership

Trustees of Justice Collaborations

Paddy Sloan (Chair) - Currently Project Director with A Million & Me; former Chief Executive of Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (8 years); extensive experience in funding, government, and local council work.

Jen Ang - Founding Director of Lawmanity; human rights lawyer; Professor in Practice at University of Glasgow School of Law; expert in asylum and human rights law working to tackle inequalities in the law.

Jacqueline Broadhead - Director of Global Exchange on Migration and Diversity at University of Oxford; previously managed Refugee and Migrant Team at Islington Council; received Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship.

Matthew Smerdon - Chief Executive of The Legal Education Foundation; previously Deputy Director of Baring Foundation; former Director of Community Work at Community Links.

Leadership

Hazel Williams, Director of Justice Together Initiative - Former National Director at NACCOM; former Director at Asylum Support Appeals Project; 17 years experience in refugee and humanitarian sector in UK, Europe, and Sudan.

“Joining the Justice Together Initiative is the dream job for me, being able to combine my passion for all things law and justice to improve the lives of people in the UK who have migrated here. For so long I have witnessed the shocking damage that lack of quality legal advice can have on individuals, coupled with a complex legal system to navigate.” - Hazel Williams

Justice Together is supported by the wider team at The Legal Education Foundation.

Application Process and Timeline

How to Apply

Applications are made through specific grant rounds announced on the Justice Together website funding updates page. Historical process:

  • Online application process
  • Two-stage approach for some grant streams
  • Applicants encouraged to contact Justice Together before applying to discuss fit
  • Contact via enquiry form at justice-together.org.uk/get-in-touch/
  • Applicants should indicate region of work and grant stream

Decision Timeline

Timeline varies by grant round. Historical example: February 2021 deadline with May 2021 award announcements (approximately 3 months).

Infrastructure Support Grant decisions made monthly, potentially faster for urgent applications.

Applicants are directed to the funding updates page for current round information and timelines.

Success Rates

Specific success rate percentages are not publicly disclosed. However, Justice Together has noted “high level of demand and expectations from the sector,” indicating competitive application processes. From 2021-2022, they made grants to 42 organisations (reaching 125 organisations through partnerships) and expected to make 10-15 influencing grants in that period.

Reapplication Policy

Not publicly specified. Contact Justice Together directly for guidance on reapplication.

Application Success Factors

Key Success Criteria

Anti-racism is non-negotiable: "Anti-racism must be embedded in the organisation and the work, and the Grants Committee will review organisations' approach to anti-racism in terms of their external work and internal structures."

Lived experience leadership: They particularly welcome applications from organisations that are led and/or informed by people with lived and learned experience of the UK immigration system. “People with lived experience leading the change” is a key emphasis.

Collaborative approach: Strong preference for partnership applications and coordination between advice providers. They prioritize applications showing plans for sharing knowledge, learning, and evidence to support the wider immigration sector.

Links between advice and influencing: Interest in applications combining specialist advice and local influencing work, though recognize not all applications will look the same.

Expertise by experience: Value applications demonstrating skills and knowledge to undertake proposed work, including expertise by experience.

Examples of Funded Work

  • Praxis and Coram Children's Legal Centre: Three-year grants to coordinate immigration advice sector in London to improve accessibility and capacity through greater collaboration
  • Islington Law Centre: Grant partner for advice work
  • Multiple organisations across all UK regions funded for advice and influencing work

What They're Looking For

For Advice Grants:

  • Training and supervision provision
  • Triage and referral system development
  • Organisational resilience building
  • Collective care strategies
  • Data management system improvements
  • Flexible core-type funding to strengthen local capacity
  • Expanding coverage to underserved populations and areas of law

For Influencing Grants:

  • Community lawyering approaches
  • Strategic communications campaigns
  • Alliance building between different sectors
  • Systems and structural change focus
  • Evidence-based policy work

Balance Considerations

In prioritising applications, they consider balance across:

  • Different areas of immigration law
  • Beneficiary groups
  • Geographical locations across UK

Standing Out

  • Demonstrate strong anti-racist practice embedded throughout organization
  • Show meaningful involvement of people with lived experience in leadership/governance
  • Articulate clear coordination plans or partnership approaches
  • Connect advice work to influencing strategies
  • Provide evidence of organizational sustainability and resilience approaches

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Anti-racism is essential: Applications must demonstrate embedded anti-racist practice in both internal structures and external work - this is reviewed by the Grants Committee and is non-negotiable
  • Partnership applications preferred: Justice Together strongly favours collaborative approaches - consider partnering with other organisations or demonstrating coordination plans
  • Lived experience leadership matters: Organisations led by or meaningfully involving people with lived experience of immigration system are particularly welcomed
  • Connect advice to influencing: Applications showing links between frontline advice work and local/national influencing are valued, though pure advice or pure influencing applications are also accepted
  • Substantial funding available: Grants range from £90,000 to £500,000 over 3 years - this is significant long-term funding with flexible core-type support
  • Long-term commitment: As a decade-long initiative, Justice Together is interested in building sustained capacity and relationships, not one-off projects
  • Contact before applying: Reach out via their enquiry form to discuss fit and approach before investing time in a full application - they want to make the process straightforward

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