Building a culture of welcome

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• Building a culture of welcome
• city by city

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LOCAL GROUPS DECEMBER 2013

• Swansea
• Cardiff
• Bristol
• Gloucester
• Exeter
• Oxford
• Hackney
• Luton
• Bedford
• Ipswich
• Wolverhampton
• Birmingham
• Coventry
• Leicester
• Nottingham
• Lincoln
• Manchester
• Liverpool

• Sheffield
• Huddersfield
• Bradford
• Leeds
• Wakefield
• Hull
• Halifax
• York
• Newcastle
• Glasgow
• Edinburgh
• Belfast
• Derry
• Coleraine
• Dublin
• Doncaster
• Tees Valley
• Derby

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6th Century Irish Hymn

• I saw a stranger yestereen
• I put food in the eating place
• Drink in the drinking place
• Music in the listening place
• And in the sacred name of the Triune
• He blessed myself and my house
• My cattle and my dear ones
• And the lark said in her song
• Often, often, often
• Goes the Christ in the strangers guise

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(No Transcript)
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Why should we love the stranger? Because God
loves the stranger and remember, you were
strangers in Egypt.
Deuteronomy
1019
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• Do good - to parents, kinsfolk, orphans, those
  in need, neighbours who are near, neighbours who
  are strangers, the companion by your side, the
  wayfarer.
• Quran 436

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• I was a stranger and you welcomed me
• Truly I tell you, just as you did this to the
  least of my brothers,
• you did it to me
• 
  Matthew 25 35,40

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THE CORE PRINCIPLES

• Mainstream, grassroots movement all sectors
  involved
• Building bridges between local people and
  refugees
• Strengthening and broadening the support base for
  asylum seekers and refugees
• Helping create a culture of hospitality and
  welcome
• Celebrating the contribution of refugees to
  society
• Creating and enhancing networks between key
  players

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Asylum Process- Around 12 Months

• Arrival in UK port of entry
• Statement of Evidence form (SEF)
• BIA(NASS) Housing and Support (Reception centre,
  dispersal)
• (HO) asylum Interview
• Refused Accepted
• (28 days to leave NASS Support)
• Appeal in Court
  Time Limited (3yrs)
• 
  (ELR, HLR, ELE,
  DLR)
• Refused
• Tribunal Section 4 / case resolution
• (Judicial Review)
• (Refused - Destitute, Detained Deported or
  voluntary return)

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WHO WILL BE INVOLVED?

• Education schools, colleges, universities
• Sport big clubs, little clubs, football, rugby
• Health hospitals, health centres, community
• Faith- churches, mosques, temples, small
  groups...
• Business
• Voluntary charity shops, social groups, clubs
• Services police, fire service, libraries,
  council
• Politicians, celebrities, youth, elderly

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Resolution of Support

• xxxx (organisation or individual) recognises
  the contribution of asylum-seekers andrefugees
  to the City of xxxx, and is committed to
  welcoming andincluding them in our activities.
  We support xxxx becoming a City of Sanctuary
  for all newcomers, especially those seeking
  safety.

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WHAT IS NEEDED ?

• Welcome, inclusion and befriending for new
  arrivals
• Sensitivity to the times of greatest need
• Response to destitution and detention
• Healing of the trauma of forced migration
• Understanding and myth-busting across society
• Recognition of the contribution refugees make to
  society

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THE CHANGING SITUATION

• Cuts/ Home Office Contracts
• New arrivals
• Legal aid
• ESOL classes
• New Asylum Model
• Under-funded charities
• Increased barriers to family reunion
• Fresh ideas about working together

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WHAT CAN A FAITH GROUP DO?

• Welcome without discrimination
• Open eyes to see their neighbour
• Teach sanctuary principles
• Awareness raising on asylum issues
• Share resources (people, space, finance)
• Use existing structures (small groups, festivals)
  to practice hospitality and inclusiveness
• Lobby on issues of justice and human rights
• Practical examples of welcoming
• Encourage members to volunteer and get involved
• Apply for a Sanctuary Award

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WHAT IS GOING ON IN OUR CITY?

• Do an inventory of the work going on
• These are your first partnerships
• City of Sanctuary will support and promote these
  organisations and projects, NOT get into
  competition with them or give them extra work
• City of Sanctuary can help networking and
  partnerships across the city
• City of Sanctuary always gets the message out
  beyond the usual suspects

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Faiths in Sanctuary Awards Three Core Principles

• Learn about what it means to be seeking
  sanctuary
• Embed - take positive action to make welcome and
  inclusion part of the values of your church/faith
  group, to support sanctuary seekers and refugees,
  and to include them in your activities.
• Share your vision and achievements

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OVER TO YOU

• So what are you going to do next?