More than £1 million has been offered in compensation as part of the ongoing work to right the wrongs experienced by the Windrush generation, Home Secretary Priti Patel announced today.

In a statement to Parliament, the Home Secretary announced that internal figures show that over £1 million has been offered to applicants of the Windrush Compensation Scheme. Once the offers are accepted by the applicants, the payments will be made.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said:

I am pleased that the compensation scheme has now offered over £1 million to those members of the Windrush generation.

But I want us to continue to work to put things right. That is why I launched a Cross-Government Working Group this week, bringing together talented experts from across the country, to get more people to come forward so they can claim the compensation they rightly deserve.

Independent adviser to the compensation scheme, Martin Forde QC said:

I am pleased that the rate of offers and payments under the scheme is increasing and I am certain that this will continue. What is more impressive is that the rate of offers is increasing during a pandemic, which highlights the dedication of the caseworkers.

It is also important to note that a high proportion of these are interim payments, so people will get higher awards in the coming weeks and months.

The scheme, which has been operational since April 2019, continues to make payments week on week. Payments are being made as quickly as possible, with the first payment made within just four months of the scheme operating.

The payments made under the scheme vary, depending on the facts of the case, with some claimants receiving offers of over £100,000. Payments also include interim payments, which means people will likely receive more at a later date.

All those who have applied to the compensation scheme are then contacted by the Home Office and case workers work closely with claimants to process the claims as quickly as possible.

While the scheme is making good progress and continues to process claims as quickly as possible, the Home Office is committed to getting more people to come forward and claim.

That is why the Home Secretary has this week launched the Windrush cross-Government Working Group.

The group, co-chaired by the Home Secretary and Bishop Derek Webley, brings together stakeholders and community leaders with senior representatives from a number of government departments to address the challenges faced by the Windrush generation and their descendants.