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Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who holds both British and Iranian passports, was arrested in April of last year. Photograph: Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe/PA

The British husband of a woman imprisoned in an Iranian jail has appealed to the Foreign Office to raise her case during a visit to Tehran this week.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who holds British and Iranian passports, has decorated her cell with pictures from her infant daughter after being sentenced to five years in jail on secret charges last year, her husband told the Guardian.

Richard Ratcliffe, an accountant who lives in north London, hopes that the Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt will hold talks with senior Iranian politicians about the 38-year-old charity worker, who was arrested in April last year.

Burt is meeting Zaghari-Ratcliffes family and is due to attend the official swearing-in ceremony for the re-elected president, Hassan Rouhani, on Saturday.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested during a trip to Iran with her daughter, Gabriella, to visit family members. The daughter, who is now three, had her passport confiscated before it was returned. She is living with her grandparents in Iran and is allowed to see her mother twice a week.

Ratcliffe, 42, said his wife was finding the separation from her daughter especially difficult. He said he hoped Burt would insist on Zaghari-Ratcliffes rights as a British and Iranian passport holder.

Its one of the quirks of the law and UK policy about dual nationality, Ratcliffe said. Nazanin lives in Britain, she is British, her jobs here, her home is here. She is being held in part, or mainly, because she is British. The way in which you cant do anything about it because she is Iranian seems so counter-intuitive.

Ratcliffe has been campaigning for his wifes release since she was arrested at Tehran airport as she tried to leave the country at the end of her visit. She was accused of trying to topple the Iranian regime.

Iran hides behind dual nationality, said Ratcliffe. The reason they dont allow the British ambassador access to her is because, Oh, she is Iranian, which is a fiction, because the reason they took her is because she is British.

Ratcliffe has applied for an Iranian visa and is hoping to visit Gabriella and Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

I have promised Nazanin I wont do anything with Gabriella without her agreement, because of course the only thing Nazanin lives for at the moment is visits from her daughter. That is the worst thing at the moment, missing these months with her daughter. Nazanin has covered the walls of her cell with pictures drawn by Gabriella during the visits.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been imprisoned at Evin jail for several months and is suffering from mental health problems, as well as physical issues with her shoulder, neck, eyesight and teeth.

Ratcliffe said he had recently had a meeting with Burt, and hoped he would raise the issue during the visit. Labour MPs have criticised the lack of progress.

He was kind, said Ratcliffe. It feels like he cares. I do have a dispute with the Foreign Office that they are not pushing hard enough, and I have made that clear all along, but I do not doubt that he cares.

Ratcliffe said he remained hopeful that his wife would be released but said Foreign Office involvement would be critical. The Foreign Office are never optimistic, said Ratcliffe. They are just guarded.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe is not the only British-Iranian citizen in an Iranian prison. Kamal Foroughi, 77, is being held for alleged espionage. Both Foroughi and Zaghari-Ratcliffe have maintained their innocence.

Ahead of his trip, Burt said the UK was keen to maintain dialogue on issues including the detainees. He said: We hope to build further on improving UK-Iran relations during President Rouhanis second term.

The presidents personal commitment to the nuclear deal is welcome and it is vital both our countries work closely together to ensure the deal continues to be successfully implemented.

We are also keen to maintain dialogue on Irans regional policies, human rights and particularly our dual national detainees. Progress in all of these areas is important to the UK.

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British husband appeals to Foreign Office to help free wife in Iranian jail - The Guardian