Having fled persecution and gained protection to live in the UK long-term, refugees have a human right to family life. Family members are often in peril, living in squalor or lost in the home country and needing to be traced. This is their top priority, without which, settling and integrating effectively is very difficult. Getting visas for children or spouses to join a refugee in the UK is complicated. Without expert help it is easy to make mistakes that jeopardise progress, adding years to the process. While demand is understandably massive, in Scotland, solicitors rarely take on these cases because legal aid fees for this work are capped at £250, which is the equivalent of 5 hours work: nowhere near long enough to complete a case, which each take an average of nine months. Realistically we can only help a small number of the hundreds of valid cases, so we prioritise the most vulnerable, isolated children and people with disabilities. Once taken on, we work with an individual client, filling out the application and submitting the evidence to the British embassy overseas. We then pursue each case through a long-winded process with obstacles at every turn, working with the Red Cross and UNHCR to trace missing relatives and ensure they are safe. Over the last 5 years we have provided a unique family reunion service in Scotland which has been supported by a variety of charitable trust donations. We want to build on the learning gained over the years to develop a consistent, sustained service. On average we complete 18 annually, at an average cost of £2,700. In 2007, we reunited 21 families, bringing 43 people to safety in Scotland Our family reunion project has been independently assessed for the Home Office twice and was awarded their top appraisal, ‘Beacon Status’ both times. a new report into familt reunion can be found on our website at: http://www.scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk/pub/Family_Reunion_Apr10