CWR Since 2015… The Progress Being Made
CWR sets a high standard for refugee engagement in Gloucestershire. Issues impacting refugees and asylum seekers are urgent and can be complex, finding solutions require creativity and solidarity, so we’ve worked in a number of ways to closely support asylum seekers and resettled families, and keep the subject on the local agenda so more action is taken on a wider scale.
We’ve run a monthly Welcome Cafe for the past four years - a space for families to catch up with one another, share food and experiences about living in Cheltenham, and support new families joining them.
In 2017 and in 2019 for the snap general elections, we lobbied every MP candidate to hear their views on the refugee crisis, and how they believe we should provide for resettled people in Cheltenham.
Our annual Refugee Week celebrations are going from strength to strength – in 2018 our Events and Communities Team arranged amazing events including a storytelling event, film screening, and traditional dabke dance night. In 2019, we expanded our program to a cookery workshop and a quiz night, and collaborated with the Suffolk Anthology bookshop to promote refugee-themed literature.
We’ve been interviewed on BBC Radio Gloucestershire with Anna King to dismantle myths about refugees, and show residents of Gloucestershire some of the amazing work being done in their local area. Check out our landlords feature on Soundcloud.
In late 2019, Cheltenham became a Home Office settlement centre for people seeking asylum. We responded as quickly and proactively as possible, establishing a support and resource network and weekly hub meeting so that people had a safe, warm place to chat. We also helped to find bikes and arrange cycle lessons so that asylum seekers can find their way around town without needing to spend their very limited allowance on bus fare.
In 2020 and 2021, much of our work moved online but we were determined to continue to support the refugee and asylum seeking population in Cheltenham. We launched an incredibly successful fundraiser to alleviate digital poverty, enabling us to fund laptops and wifi connections for those in asylum accommodation and for children suddenly needing to access school lessons from home. We also held a series of online ‘conversations’ in coordination with the University of Gloucestershire’s refugee support group.
In 2022 we were relieved to see our activities resume fully and continue to grow. We held a wonderful summer picnic, got back in the swing with our monthly Welcome Cafes, and continued our work supporting asylum seekers with our popular weekly Hub and our conversation classes. We started a football group which now plays matches with other local teams. We responded to the crises in Afghanistan and Ukraine by supporting those newly arriving in Cheltenham as a result with our activities.
In 2023 we continued to provide all our core activities. We saw a huge increase in take up for English language classes and our weekly asylum seeker Hub. We worked with Cheltenham Volunteer Teachers and local churches to deliver more language classes. We had a very successful film screening of the movie, ‘Limbo’ in Refugee Week 2023 and spoke at the Cheltenham Literature Festival about Refugee Literature.
Our work continues in helping refugees and people seeking asylum to find the independence and autonomy they deserve, to find opportunities to flourish and connect with others through our activities, and to enjoy safety, comfort, and personal fulfilment.