H is for Hostile Environment

Storyline

The work aims to provide a space for people who have suffered under the UK’s border regime to speak about their experiences, whilst also celebrating the rich contribution that people who’ve moved to the UK from overseas have made to our shared social and cultural life. The work comprises 26 sections, each made in collaboration with a partner who has first-hand experience of the issues at hand. Each section is developed, and then collaboratively made, together. The Hostile Environment is the name given by then-Home Secretary Theresa May to a basket of government policies which aimed to co-opt large parts of UK society into policing the UK’s borders — from doctors to landlords, employers, homeless services and more.