Advice & Advocacy

The Advice & Advocacy team is mainly able to provide support for people who are in the asylum process. Our team is made up of a mixture of caseworkers, advocacy workers and helpline staff. The best way for people to contact us to request support is to call the GCP helpline.

The GCP helpline is freephone number that you can call to make a request for support. It is open at the times listed below. When you call, the person on the phone will take some information. If you need an interpreter, we will call you back either later the same day, or during the next day. We have a waiting list, so the person on the helpline will do their best to advise on how long you might be waiting for a call-back. As we are a small team, we are not able to take work with everyone who contacts us. If we are unable to assist ourselves, we will always try to suggest alternative organisations to contact.

Call us on:

0800 310 0054

Our helpline is open:

Monday: 10:00am – 1:00pm
Tuesday: 10:00am – 1:00pm
Wednesday: 10:00am – 1:00pm
Thursday: 10:00am – 1:00pm
Friday: CLOSED

Planned Helpline Closures:

In 2026, the team will be closing to new referrals in the following weeks to allow for staff training and service development:

16th -19th March 2026 | 15th -18th June 2026 | 14th -17th September 2026

During these weeks the helpline and email inbox will be closed.

What we do

The work we do includes, but is not limited to: asylum support applications (Section 95/ Section 98/ Section 4 and Schedule 10), submitting asylum support appeals, asylum support discontinuations and evictions, support with ASPEN issues, destitution support, social work referrals, food support, relocation requests and/or maintenance issues in asylum accommodation, NEC bus pass eligibility, access to ESOL, referrals to social activities and youth groups, accessing ARC cards and access to NHS services.

We cannot advise on issues of access to mainstream benefits (i.e. Universal Credit) or mainstream homelessness services. For this, we would recommend that recently granted refugees approach the Scottish Refugee Council and others to approach Citizen’s Advice Bureau or Shelter.

Immigration Advice:

We are registered to provide immigration advice under the Immigration Advice Authority (IAA) up to Level 1 Immigration and Level 2 in Asylum Protection. We are not currently acting as anyone’s main legal representative during their asylum claim, as we are not legal aid providers. For most people approaching us with requests for immigration advice for we will support you to access legal advice elsewhere. If you require further information, contact Lizzie, Service Manager at lizzie@govancommunityproject.org.uk.

The Advice & Advocacy team is made up of:

  • Lizzie- Service Manager
  • Tilly- Caseworker
  • Sean- Caseworker
  • Tamima- Advocacy Worker
  • Anna- Helpline Assistant
  • Sarah- Helpline Assistant

Referrals

If you would like to make a referral from another external organisation or ask questions about what services we provide, you can email us at adviceteam@govancommunityproject.org.uk so that we can keep our phone line free during opening times.

To make a referral please download and complete our referral form. This email address is monitored during the same hours as the helpline. Please be aware that no one in the Advice & Advocacy team works on Fridays.

Download our referral form

Need advice?

Call our helpline

0800 310 0054

Our helpline is open:

Monday: 10-1pm
Tuesday: 10-1pm
Wednesday: 10-1pm
Thursday: 10-1pm
Friday-Sunday: Closed

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH GCP

Subscribe to our seasonal newsletter.