Butcher owners who escaped persecution in Zimbabwe face deportation from the UK due to changes in rules for “silly” home offices.
61-year-old Cheryl Robbins has been a pillar of the Abbotsbury community since moving from South Africa to the UK in 2022 and lived with her husband Mike, a British citizen.
The couple invested £65,000 in savings to run popular butcher and farm shops in Dorset Village.
However, their idyllic life within the country fell into chaos after the home office refused to renew Mrs. Robbins' visa for her to remain in the country.
The mother and grandmother are currently filing an appeal until February 24th to avoid being separated from their husband and adult son.
If Mrs. Robbins is not successful, she will be sent back to South Africa. She is a return called “death penalty” because of the country's reputation for always having one of the highest murder and rape rates in the world.
The employer had originally arrived in the UK on a 30-month spouse visa, but refused to apply for renewal after failing to meet the new financial threshold set for April last year.
As part of the government's five-point plan to curb migration, Home Secretary James Cleverly raised the minimum income normally required for British citizens to support spousal visas from £18,600 to £29,000.
61-year-old Cheryl Robbins has become a pillar of the Abbotsbury community since moving from South Africa to the UK in 2022
Mrs. Robbins and her husband Mike invested £65,000 in savings to run popular butcher and farm shops in Dorset Village.
In her bid to avoid deportation, she asked friends and family to document her experiences of violence within the country to highlight why it's not safe to return.
“We invested all our savings in our business and renovated them in our stores. It shows profits and pays all our bills,” Robbins said.
“But they refused my visa because it was our own business – I am not paid.
“In the application they ask you, 'Do you live in South Africa?' and technically I can, so I said yes. But I don't have a place to go. We invested in our lives here, I have nothing to go back.
“I need to go back and live on the streets, which will certainly be my death sentence.
“They claim I can go back to South Africa, and they obviously haven't read my cover notes.
Mrs. Robbins was originally born in Rodesia. It became modern Zimbabwe in 1980, an unrecognised country in South Africa in the 1960s.
However, the couple left in 2003 after being caught up in chaos under former President Robert Mugabe.
Mother and grandmother now have to file an appeal until February 24th to ensure they do not leave their husbands.
The visa change was announced last year by former Interior Secretary James James Crakeley and was announced as part of a five-point plan to curb the net transition.
The couple moved to South Africa in 2003, but the situation wasn't that good.
They faced a collapse in their engineering business and struggled to find new jobs for those over 50.
Four cities in South Africa – Nelson Mandela Bay, Durban, Cape Town and Johannesburg, are known to be some of the most dangerous in the world.
The UK government's own website says South Africa has a high rate of crime, including violent robbery, carjacking, rape and murder.
“Crime in South Africa is horrifying. I can't stop seeing someone being victimized. I was able to talk after the story,” Mrs. Robbins said.
“If someone breaks in and finds a gun, they will shoot you with your own weapon, so you can't have a gun to protect yourself.”
The couple decided to move to the UK as Mr Robbins, now 65, is a British citizen.
Ms Robbins moved in 2022 and worked in management and sales in April 2023 before the pair invested in butchers (photos).
Mrs. Robbins describes her return to South Africa as a “death sentence” due to the country's reputation as having one of the highest murder rates in the world (Photo: thousands of people in Kayaritssha, Cape Town Corrugated iron shed)
While living in Zimbabwe with her husband, the couple faced persecution from the Robert Mugabe government, who encouraged violence against White Zimbabweans
Mrs. Robbins' local MP Edward Morello also supported her, writing to Secretary of the Interior, Yvette Cooper.
He first travelled in 2019, but had to reach and maintain financial thresholds before his wife was allowed to join him.
After he accomplished this work for London traffic, Ms Robbins moved to management and sales in April 2023 before investing in butchers.
Mrs. Robbins said: “We were apart for three years, and I sat myself in this big house in South Africa at night.
Despite speaking perfect English, Mrs. Robbins was forced to complete three English tests.
She describes the entire process as “absolutely slippery.” So far, the immigration process costs around £10,000.
“They don't accept that we have a business,” Robbins said. “They don't acknowledge that we have been married for 24 years.
“They said I should be deported, my husband is welcome to stay here. Where is the value of the family?
“The whole thing is absolutely slick. I'm very emotionally and mentally drained from dealing with this. It was so traumatic and I've had panic attacks and nightmares.
“I have to ask friends and family to drown memories they don't want. It's not fair that I have to do all this.
“We had to put our business on the market and apply for jobs, and we worked so hard that breaks my heart, but we don't have any options.
“We invested around £65,000 in new equipment and renovations, our own savings. It's absolutely crazy. I don't know why the money has to be in the bank.
“I consider myself a good citizen and we are completely self-sufficient. We have no claims from the state. We don't want help and need help. We don't care about our business.
“The support I received from the community is incredible. Everyone was amazing.”
Mrs. Robbins' local MP Edward Morello also supported her, urging Interior Secretary Yvette Cooper to intervene.
“Cheryl and her husband run important local businesses in Abbotsbury and are extremely valuable members of the village community,” said Morello, a liberal Democrat in West Dorset.
“Cheryl is putting all her savings and energy into building a successful business, and it's ridiculous that the rules in the home office don't recognize it.
“I have once again brought up the Cheryl case and wrote to the Secretary of the Interior urging her to step in to reverse the decision. I hope that I can convince my home office to see the senses. ”
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Home Affairs said, “We are in touch with this applicant and confirming that it is supported while the application is being considered.”
