A retired shopkeeper, Nelson Shardey, who faced the threat of deportation despite residing in the UK for nearly five decades, has been granted indefinite leave to remain by the Home Office. Shardey, 74, moved to Britain from Ghana as a student in 1977 and settled in Wallasey, Wirral.
In 2019, he was informed he had no right to live in the UK. The government has now acknowledged his situation as “exceptional” and allowed him to stay permanently, according to the BBC. Shardey’s family has announced that over £48,000 ($61,000) raised for his legal battle will be donated to charity.
Shardey, who arrived in the UK on a student visa, could not get his parents to pay his fees due to a coup in Ghana. He worked various jobs, including making Mother’s Pride bread, Kipling’s Cakes near Southampton, and Bendick’s Chocolate in Winchester.
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Throughout his time in the UK, his right to live and work was never questioned. Shardey, who married twice to British women and fathered two sons, ran a newsagent called Nelson’s News in Wallasey. He has never left the UK, considering it his home. In 2007, he received a police award for bravery after confronting a robber attacking a delivery man with a baseball bat.
In 2019, he discovered however that he was not considered a British citizen when he applied for a passport to visit Ghana after his mother’s death. He was advised to pursue a costly 10-year route to settlement, totaling £17,500. Desperate over the expense, Shardey’s case against the Home Office highlighted his long residency, bravery award, and community service, arguing for exceptional treatment.
The Home Office said it had exercised its discretion under the Immigration Act to grant Shardey indefinite leave to remain outside standard immigration rules, waiving the application fee.
Shardey said he was “overwhelmed, very very happy and relieved”.
“I would like to thank everybody who believed in us and supported us in words and donations,” he said.
Shardey added that while the “battle” was won, he and his supporters “hope to win the war, for the authorities to agree that the 10-year route is inhuman and abolish it or shorten it”.
Nicola Burgess, Shardey’s lawyer from the Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit, expressed her delight at the Home Office’s decision to grant him indefinite leave to remain.
“Nelson’s bravery in the face of dysfunctional immigration system has been inspirational,” said Burgess. She urged the new government to simplify the system to avoid “many more” Shardey being forced into “an endless cycle of applications, bureaucracy and expensive fees”.
Shardey’s sons, Aaron and Jacob, said his victory “means the absolute world to us”.
“We are so grateful to our legal team… and everyone who supported us… from sharing our story to donating, we cannot thank you enough,” they added.
The Shardey family plans to donate raised funds to The Boaz Trust, Clatterbridge Cancer Charity, and Wirral Foodbank.
A Home Office spokesperson confirmed they are collaborating with Shardey to finalize his application for indefinite leave to remain.
“We apologize for any inconvenience and distress caused,” the spokesperson added.
