Freedom from Torture

The work of Freedom from Torture began more than 30 years ago growing out of Amnesty International’s Medical Group. Volunteer health professionals (including some of the most senior specialists in the medical profession) campaigned against violations of human rights and documented evidence of torture. Operating at first from a hut in the yard of the Amnesty International office, the six founding members of Freedom from Torture – then the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture – under Helen Bamber’s directorship began documenting evidence of torture through provision of consultation for survivors and campaigning against human rights violations.

The new organisation was granted charitable status on Christmas Eve 1985 and set out to provide survivors with medical treatment, counselling and therapy and to document evidence of torture. Moving to the National Temperance Hospital in late January 1986, it saw 45 clients that year. The organisation grew quickly, treating a peak of 2,000 clients in one year in the early 1990s. Every space available was used to see clients – even the stairs. It then moved on to premises in Grafton Road in Kentish Town, London. The organisation expanded through the 1980s and 1990s, taking it onwards to fundraise for a place where torture survivors would have a real sense of care and calm. This was 111 Isledon Road, London. It is one of the few purpose-built treatment centres for torture survivors in the world.

Following the then Government’s dispersal policy implemented in the year 2000, the organisation opened four centres across the UK to offer services to torture survivors living outside of London, and to share its knowledge with practitioners. Every year, hundreds of people seek Freedom from Torture’s help to overcome the effects of torture. Every survivor of torture has a different story, which means their needs are different too. We offer a wide range of services to support survivors to realise their right to rehabilitation. From one-to-one counselling to group therapy like gardening and music, we support survivors to begin rebuilding their lives. We help them navigate the complex and bureaucratic asylum and welfare systems with legal and welfare services and provide expert, independent, medical assessments to support survivors’ asylum claims.

Through our expertise and unique evidence, we protect and promote survivors’ rights and hold torturers to account. We support survivors to make their voices heard through creating platforms and enabling groups like Survivors Speak OUT (SSO), a survivor-led activist network, and Write to Life, our creative writing and performance group, to raise public awareness and influence decision makers about torture and its impact. We also provide training on best practices when working with survivors to professionals so we can work towards our mission of ensuring every survivor is able to realise their right to rehabilitation.