A CARE worker on the frontline of the battle against coronavirus has been told to leave the country.

Anugwom Izuchukwu Goodluck, 30, was working in care homes in Brighton and Hove when he was told by the UK Government that he is to be deported.

The agency worker cared for the city’s vulnerable from 8am to 8pm daily as Covid-19 hit the UK in February and March.

But, after gaining a Masters at the University of Sussex, he was told he must leave the UK where his remaining family live and return to Nigeria.

The Argus:

Mr Goodluck said: “I used to sing and dance for the residents, it was amazing to be with them, just pure happiness. Then it’s all gone in the blink of an eye and I didn’t even get to get to say goodbye.

“They stopped me from working amid the rising cases as I couldn’t offer my services to the agency.

“I was designated illegal for work, it’s very depressing.”

Mr Goodluck came over from Nigeria in 2018 to study a Masters in International Relations at Sussex University.

His mother and brother both live in the UK and his grandmother, who was his only family in Nigeria, has since died.

He trained to become a carer with Agincare during his course and, after graduating, began agency work in care homes across the area.

The Argus:

He also did some voluntary teaching for schools in the city.

Mr Goodluck had applied for a family visa but was told in March, amid the growing pandemic, that he was no longer allowed in the country and had to leave.

Mr Goodluck said: “I had to leave Brighton as I could not afford my rent and I went to live with my mother in London.

“I can’t go out because if I get sick, I don’t have the insurance documents that will cover it.”

Mr Goodluck said that in “an ideal world” he would like to become a UK citizen.

However, as he is penniless and facing a return to a country where he has no one to support him, he would like an extension to get back on to the frontline of the care sector.

When contacted by The Argus, the Home Office said Mr Goodluck must leave the country by the end of the month.

A spokesman said: “We are incredibly grateful for all the work that carers have done during coronavirus, which is why we have made them exempt from the immigration health surcharge.

“Those who are in the UK must follow the immigration rules – and that includes not continuing to work in the UK after applications for visas have been refused.

“We have granted individuals who cannot return home due to coronavirus leave to remain until July 31.”