-
City of Sanctuary Sheffield hosted a group of visitors from a similar movement in Germany to share experiences about welcoming refugees. The ‘Save Me’ campaign enlists volunteers to lobby the government to take more refugees into the country. It is active in 56 cities and the Minister has recommended that the Government distributes new refugees to those places where people have reacted positively to the campaign.
During their visit to Sheffield the Save Me campaigners and others working with refugees in Munich attended an awareness raising session and joined in a Cafe Rendez-vous event (see photo) with French language students and francophone refugees.
-
Sheffield Councillors have voted unanimously to support a motion condemning the prevalence of destitution amongst people who’ve claimed asylum in the city. The resolution, proposed by Labour Cabinet member Councillor Geoff Smith and seconded by Councillor Sylvia Anginotti for the Liberal Democrats
asks the Leader of the Council to write to the Home Secretary to express concern about asylum destitution and to call for changes in the current system. Representatives from asylum supporting groups (pictured) lobbied Councillors as they went in to the meeting.
-
City of Sanctuary Sheffield (COSS)celebrated its first five years of existence with a conference to generate ideas about where its work should focus in the future. Around 70 people attended the lively event at St Mary’s Church and conference centre, coming from different areas of activity in the city including education, health, faith groups, football and gardening projects. After talks about some of COSS’ current work participants broke into groups to consider how we should tackle issues such as awareness raising, campaigning, mission, building support, and opportunities.
COSS trustees will consider all the comments and suggestions at an ‘awayday’ in April and use it to plan our strategy for the coming years.
-
The security firm G4S made a surprise appearance at the annual ASSIST carol service where they appeared as bodyguards to King Herod. In an updated version of the nativity story created by ASSIST stalwart Robert Spooner the congregation was also surprised to hear that the Sheffield-based charity had a new branch in Egypt, where Mary and Joseph were helped during their flight to safety.
There was standing room only at St Mary’s Church for the event where parts in the nativity, including a well co-ordinated camel, were played by some of the people who’ve been helped by ASSIST – Asylum Seeker Support Initiative Short Term.
Congratulations to all involved and for the continuing and vital work of that amazing group of volunteers who do so much to make Sheffield a real and living City of Sanctuary.
-
A poem inspired by the story of Sheffield refugee Lem Lem Hussain Abdu is featured in a ‘Digital Poetry Slam’ commissioned for the Off the Shelf literary festival. The project filmed 21 poets in 21 different locations across Sheffield – all venues used by the festival – to celebrate Off the Shelf’s 21st anniversary.
River Wolton wrote the poem “Home” in July 2010 after Lem Lem was detained in Yarl’s Wood and it was used during the campaign that led to Lem Lem being granted discretionary leave to remain this summer. Film maker Nathan Gibson recorded River reading the poem at the Lantern Theatre in Nether Edge.
You can see the performance here and then vote for it – or indeed one of the other 20 poems – by pressing the ‘vote’ tab on the 21poetsforsheffield website.
-
Volunteers and participants at Sheffield Conversation Club have helped create this fantastic new banner for the city. Assisted by art facilitator Cecilie Browne, the group sewed on their contributions over two sessions.
The banner will make a regular appearance at the Wednesday drop-in at Victoria Hall and anyone holding refugee-related events is welcome to borrow it. The project was funded by Sheffield Safer and Sustainable Communities Partnership for Summer of Sanctuary.
-
Sheffield has been receiving international recognition as an example of refugee and migrant integration. Over the past month (May) City of Sanctuary has been invited to participate in three international events to showcase and discuss our work with colleagues from around the world.
At a recent European conference organised by the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations (UN), Sheffield staff helped run a workshop on refugee integration in universities. At the same event, Sheffield Council’s Director of Community Services Jan Fitzgerald told delegates about the council’s pride in being the UK’s first City of Sanctuary.
City of Sanctuary was also held up as an example of a ‘welcoming city’ at a seminar in Seville hosted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). And on Wednesday we will feature in an international ‘webinar’ discussing ‘good ideas’ in integration. To take part in this you can register on the Cities of Migration website here.
-
City of Sanctuary has set off on a new path in its development following the appointment of a separate committee to take forward the national movement. This means Sheffield staff will be managed and operate independently though still connected with the rapidly growing network.
The City of Sanctuary movement which now has working groups in more than 26 towns and cities will retain its historic links with Sheffield, mainly in the figure of its new President and founder Inderjit Bhogal.
The new committee (pictured) consists of 13 members nominated by Cities of Sanctuary from Glasgow to Swansea, whose representative Alan Williams is the new Chair.
-
More than 50 representatives from City of Sanctuary groups all over the country got together in a beautiful Pennine setting for the movement’s first ever national ‘Awayday’.
During the course of 24 hours we heard about all the different ways people are putting the City of Sanctuary ethos into practice according to specific local circumstances -
-
From World Refugee Day on June 20th through to the end of August people in Sheffield will be staging a number of events to highlight the situation of refugees and celebrate all they bring to the city.
Starting with a launch event in Burngreave on Monday June 20th, moving on to the annual ASSIST World Over concert in Sheffield Cathedral on Saturday 25th, you can take part in a range of activities including music, drama and country walks.
-
Gleadless residents pulled together to lay on their second “Community Social” attracting approval from the Star newspaper, whose editorial described it as “a tremendous effort (that) will go a long way towards building closer understanding among people who have made the estate their home”.
The event, organised by City of Sanctuary and Gleadless Valley forum, and funded by the Community Assembly, brought together people from the many different cultures living in the area for a celebration of food and conversation.
-
Yorkshire is back in the frame to have a dedicated worker to assist victims of torture. The announcement was made by Keith Best, Chief Executive of the national torture care organisation the Medical Foundation (pictured here with Jim Steinke and David Price, chair and vice-chair of SYMAAG), speaking at the AGM of the South Yorkshire Migration and Asylum Action Group (SYMAAG).
Keith Best was in Sheffield to meet local supporters of the Medical Foundation, which is in the process of changing its name to Freedom from Torture. He also had meetings with health professionals at the Mulberry Clinic, as well as addressing the AGM. He made both announcements to a gathering of about 70 people, saying the new post would be possible following a successful application for European funding.
-
An international movement that creates gardens as places of sanctuary is looking for a partner to host a site for the use of asylum seekers in Sheffield. The Quiet Garden Movement was launched in 1992 to provide a network of local opportunities where people can retreat and reflect in solitude. More than 300 ‘Quiet Gardens’ now exist in countries from Kenya to Brazil, Australia to Finland, as well as most counties in the UK. The movement’s founder, Philip Roderick, now lives in Sheffield, where he’d like to create a garden specifically for people who’re seeking asylum.
-
Sheffield solicitor Carita Thomas shows her appreciation to all who supported her
60 kilometre walk for two local asylum charities. Her total sponsorship of more than £500 means that along with Rachel (see below) and four local medics they’ll have raised well on the way to £1,000 for ASSIST. Well walked Carita!
-
Congratulations to Rachel Westerby, who came in at an amazing 3,865th in the Sheffield half-marathon at the weekend, running in support of ASSIST (Sheffield Asylum-Seeker Support Initiative – Short Term).
Rachel, who until recently worked in Sheffield Council’s Asylum Team, covered the 13 miles in 2 hours 19 minutes and 30 seconds, and is two-thirds of the way to her sponsorship target of £300.
-
The Archsbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, has pleaded for Britain to take up the Easter message of resurrection and ensure refugees are given the protection they need. Writing in _The Independent_ newspaper the Archbishop argues that when the public-spending cuts bite, it should not be the most vulnerable of all who suffer.
-
Big thanks to all of you who came to our annual party, and if you didn't, you missed a great gig! There was loads of yummy food cooked by our refugee volunteers - just enough to fill the 100-plus people who turned up.
-
Residents from different countries and backgrounds came together in Gleadless at the weekend to find out more about their neighbours. City of Sanctuary organised the event with Gleadless Valley Community Forum after some local refugee families reported incidents of harrassment by local youths.
-
The Lord Mayor of Sheffield, Councillor Alan Law, JP, led the celebrations for the closing event of Sheffield first ‘Summer of Sanctuary’ at the Town Hall. Some 60 guests from refugee and supporting organisations which had hosted events during the last three months attended the ceremony, where the city council’s Executive Director of Communities Richard Webb handed out certificates to all who had contributed.
-
The documentary “Moving to Mars”, screened on More 4 on Tuesday Feb 2nd, shows the relatively smooth and managed migration of two Burmese families as they are transferred from a refugee camp in Thailand to begin new lives in Sheffield.
