All our stories
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“Although being thanked was never our main motivation on some level we did expect gratitude”
A volunteer acknowledges that she expected gratitude from the refugee family that her Group supports. She examines the roots of these expectations and explains how she came to understand her role better once she confronted these expectations.
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“Becoming a Lead Sponsor was a logical next step in terms of scaling up our impact”
Caritas Salford works as a Lead Sponsor for groups across the North West, mainly within two dioceses: Salford and Lancaster. To date, Caritas Salford has welcomed eleven families with the help of eleven groups. Anais Fahd, Community Sponsorship Development Coordinator, Caritas Salford, tells their story.
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"I know the importance of having a community – not just one person – but a community who is prepared to make that transition easier for you.”
Sofia Gamio is a junior doctor working at the James Cook hospital in Middlesbrough. In the little spare time she has, Sofia is preparing to welcome refugee families to Newcastle with her Community Sponsorship group, Tyneside Welcomes. Ahead of International Migrants Day, we chatted to Sofia about where her motivation for supporting refugees comes from, and how she got involved in Community Sponsorship.
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“I'm so proud of the communities across Devon that have come together to welcome refugees”
So far 8 families have been welcomed to Devon since Community Sponsorship began in the UK. Here the Resettlement Coordinator at Devon County Council, Stephen Matthewman, shares their experiences of working with Community Sponsorship groups reflects on the benefits that welcoming refugees has had on Devon communities.
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“Spread the word, never give up, and follow up on any lead”
Catherine’s Community Sponsorship group in North Wales, Croeso Menai, have had so much support from their community that they were able to furnish the family’s home for free and have now been offered a second property so that they can welcome another family to the area in the coming months. Here Catherine shares her top tips for finding and preparing a home.
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“They gave me hope.”
Zahar and Lena arrived in a small market town in Lincolnshire just as the Covid-19 pandemic took hold. At first they wanted to leave as quickly as possible and move to a bigger, more diverse city. But now they say they wouldn’t want to live anywhere else and are volunteering with their Community Sponsorship group to welcome another family to the area.
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“Well, now you have sons”
Community Sponsorship volunteer Svenja Powell is one of the founding members of Canterbury Welcomes Refugees. The group first welcomed a Syrian refugee family in 2019: a mother and father, their two grown-up sons and their two primary-age children. Here Svenja tells us about lifting language barriers, a cautious introduction to Father Christmas and doorstep story-telling during lockdown.
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“You're hoping to catch new people and inspire somebody to start another group in another locality”
Catherine’s Community Sponsorship Group, Croeso Menai, welcomed a refugee family to North Wales in February 2021 and is already preparing for a second family. The community there have been very supportive in helping Croeso Menai to smash fundraising targets and fully furnish a home for the family. Catherine shares her top tips on keeping your community engaged and enthusiastic.
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“As Lead Sponsors we strengthen the bonds that tie us together by supporting groups to welcome refugees”
The Pickwell Foundation is a grant making charity based in North Devon. Two families set up the foundation in 2012. It gives small to medium sized grants, by invitation, to charities that are working either with displaced people or in the area of climate change. A central part of its work is as a Lead Sponsor for community sponsorship groups in the North Devon area. Susannah Baker from the foundation tells their story.
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“As the Lead Sponsor we are like the trunk of a tree and each group we support is like one of the tree’s branches”
Tyneside Welcomes started out as a small group of volunteers with no single political or faith-based affiliation. As a group they resettled one Syrian refugee family in their neighbourhood and set up as a Lead Sponsor so that they can work with a broader network of people across Tyneside to resettle other refugee families. Members Richard Young and Lindsay Brigham tell their Lead Sponsor story.
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“By the time we got home, messages of support were waiting in our inboxes.”
Kirkby Stephen – or ‘Kirkby’ as it’s known by the locals – is a small, thriving market town on the edge of the Cumbrian Dales. Retired teacher Mike has lived and worked here for 36 years. An outdoors enthusiast who has white-water kayaked all over the world, Mike is currently taking on a new challenge: setting up a Community Sponsorship project. We spoke to Mike about how he and his team have got the whole town on board.
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“Community Sponsorship wasn’t just pie in the sky - this was something very real on the ground that very real people were doing.”
Svenja Powell co-founded Canterbury Welcomes Refugees in 2018. We chatted to Svenja about who’s who in her group, support from local students and how to organise a fabulous fundraiser.
