Safety for LGBTQI young asylum seekers, and the role property can play.

June marks both Pride month as well as Refugee Week. At LandAid we recognise how intersectionality affects many young people, forcing many to face homelessness and insecurity. Our sector has a huge role to play in providing safety and dignity for our society’s most vulnerable.

Location

East London, UK

For many LGBTQI young people around the world, home is not a safe place. In over 60 countries, being LGBTQI is still criminalised, and every year, hundreds arrive in the UK fleeing violence and abuse.

But arriving here doesn’t mean danger disappears. Too often, young people are placed in unsafe shared accommodation alongside people who hold the same homophobic or transphobic views they came to escape.

That’s where LandAid funded charity, Micro Rainbow, comes in.

What LandAid funding is making possible

LandAid is proud to support Micro Rainbow with a £40,000 grant, helping deliver safe housing and tailored support for up to 100 young LGBTQI asylum seekers over 12 months.

This funding is enabling a holistic programme built around three critical areas:

Safe housing – though the grant young people will access safe, secure accommodation. This allows young people the help they may need with urgent needs like registering with a GP, navigating the asylum process, and accessing legal support.
Social inclusion – funds are also going into weekly workshops and peer support sessions that bring young people together to rebuild confidence and connection. Through these activities, the young people can begin to process their experiences and feel part of a community.
Moving on and employability – with additional support, the young people supported are gaining the skills and confidence they need to move forward. Support ranges from CV writing workshops to interview preparation, and understanding their legal rights, giving these young people a pathway to employment or education.

LandAid’s funding helps Micro Rainbow increase access to safe, inclusive accommodation for young LGBTQI people fleeing persecution and facing homelessness in the UK. For many LGBTQI people seeking asylum, stability is difficult to find. In our homes, residents not only have a secure place to live but also access to a holistic programme of support while focusing on their asylum claims. Living alongside other young people with similar experiences, they begin to form a sense of community and belonging, building chosen families, restoring their confidence, and taking their first steps towards independent and fulfilling lives.”

Sebastian Rocca, Micro Rainbow founder and CEO

Why safe housing matters more than ever

Young LGBTQI asylum seekers face a unique and often overlooked set of challenges.

Many have been forced to leave family behind, friends, and support networks. Others have experiences forced marriage, trafficking, or exploitation. Once in the UK, they can find themselves places in further harm.

Nadia, Housing Manager for the South East, says:

“The young LGBTQI people fleeing persecution we work with are navigating huge challenges – language barriers, isolation and loneliness, all while trying to understand how the UK works. Even small acts – helping someone open a bank account or cook their favourite meal – can have a huge impact.

But safe, secure and inclusive housing is crucial in that journey. It allows our young residents to begin to open up and embrace their whole selves. You can see the change in residents from when they first move in to when they have lived there a while – from feeling shy and hiding when they first arrived, to rediscovering joy and self-expression.”

I moved into Micro Rainbow housing in September 2025. When I moved in, I felt so safe. When you are in the hotels, if you go outside, you will feel some fear that everyone knows you are an asylum seeker. And in the hotel, some of the other residents know your sexuality and everything. So, you’re afraid of the people inside the hotel and outside… In Micro Rainbow housing, no one knows who I am here or how I came here. I can live my life freely

Alyaan, young gay man from Pakistan who lives in Micro Rainbow housing in East London

Where the property sector comes in

This is, at its core, a housing issue. Safe housing isn’t just about four walls. It’s about security, dignity, and the ability to live openly without fear. This is something the property sector is uniquely positioned to support with.

Through funding, LandAid is able to connect the specialist expertise from charities like Micro Rainbow, with the resources, influence, and reach of the property industry.

There are clear ways our sector can step up:

Increase safe access to safe, appropriate housing – Developers, landlords and housing providers can work with specialist charities like Micro Rainbow to create pathways into accommodation that is genuinely safe for LGBTQI asylum seekers, not just available.
Design with inclusion – Shared accommodation, HMOs and temporary housing must consider safety, privacy and inclusivity. For LGBTQI asylum seekers, these factors can be the difference between stability and harm.
Partner with purpose – Collaboration with LandAid gives access to organisations such as Micro Rainbow to grants that ensure housing provision is backed by expert support, helping tenancies succeed long-term.
Support move-on pathways – Housing is just the first step. The sector can play a role in creating routes into longer-term accommodation, employment hubs, and stable communities.

A foundation for rebuilding lives

For young LGBTQI asylum seekers, safe housing is the foundation everything else is built on. It enables access to healthcare. It makes education and employment possible. It allows people to rebuild confidence, form connections, and begin to imagine a future again.

Through our partnership with Micro Rainbow, LandAid is helping make that foundation possible, and showing what can happen when the property sector works alongside expert charities to create real, lasting change.

Get involved

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Projects we’ve supported

Find out more about the projects that have given young people a safe and affordable place to call home.

Projects we’ve supported

Partner with Purpose. Change Young Lives.

By partnering with us, your business can make a real, lasting impact — funding life-changing projects for young people facing homelessness, engaging your employees in meaningful ways, and standing alongside a powerful network of like-minded companies already driving change.

Partner with Purpose. Change Young Lives.