Vucaj Family — Photography by Robin Taudevin

The Vucaj family is from Albania. Their asylum claim was rejected. In September 2005 they were deported.

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Saida Vucaj (in pink) plays with her friends at Kingsway, three days before she and her family were deported.
Kingsway, Glasgow, 10 September 2005

Elvis Vucaj (second from left).
Kingsway, Glasgow, 10 September 2005

Nimet Vucaj walks quickly out of the Home Office reporting centre at Brand St. The Vucaj family is from Albania. Their asylum claim was rejected, and they were reporting weekly to the Home Office.
Brand St., Glasgow, 3 September 2005

Returning to their home in Kingsway after reporting to the Home Office, Nimet Vucaj looks out of the window.
Brand St., Glasgow, 3 September 2005

Issen Vucaj smiles with relief as he walks out of the Home Office.
For this week, they had been asked to prepare a list of medicines and provide birth certificates. This request is usually an indicator that a family is about to be deported. On this occasion, son Elvis had told the reporting officer that the following week he had a rugby match, and could not report. The officer said fine, off you go then, and the family knew they had at least one more week in Glasgow.
Brand St., Glasgow, 3 September 2005

Saida Vucaj’s bedroom.
Kingsway, Glasgow, 15 September 2005

The Vucaj parents' bedroom, two days after the family was taken into detention. On 13 September the Vucaj family was taken into detention, prior to being ‘forcibly removed’ from the UK. Immigration officials and police arrived early in the morning, woke the family, gave them a short time to pack their belongings, and then transported them to a detention centre in England. Two weeks later, they were deported from the UK and flown back to Albania.
Kingsway, Glasgow, 15 September 2005

A school tie lies on the bed in the Vucaj parents' room.
Kingsway, Glasgow, 15 September 2005

The Vucaj kitchen.
Kingsway, Glasgow, 15 September 2005

Majlinda on the phone to the Vucaj’s lawyer. A close friend of Nexhi Vucaj, she spent days on the phone, trying to find out if there was any chance of stopping the Vucaj family being deported.
Kingsway, Glasgow, 15 September 2005