The Project continues to see an increasing number of people using our services each month. For example, in July, we had 33 new registrations, largely people from Iraq, Iran, Syria, Afghanistan, Eritrea and Honduras. During July we supported 535 individuals and families and this number is increasing each month. So, your donations of food, toiletries and finance are welcomed even more than ever. In addition to food items, toiletries are very much in demand – shampoo, conditioners, shower gels, deodorants, toothbrushes and toothpaste frequently run low. The full list of items required is available here.
We have recently seen an increase in clients with babies and small children at the project and they receive a warm welcome from our volunteers. There are several activities provided for the children, such as a sand pit, soft play area and toys. We are also able to give out nappies and some other baby items and to provide good quality second-hand clothing donated to the SVP to support our clients with childcare.
Our Project Co-ordinator, Azad, our Deputy Co-ordinator, Sarah and our volunteers continue to support many clients through signposting and referrals. We always try hard to respond to clients’ queries and try to point them in the right direction to receive the advice and support that they need. Clients continue to be supported with bicycles through the Recyke charity and meetings have taken place with Jet staff to promote training opportunities for some of our clients. A few of our clients whose asylum claim has been refused, with no government support, have been supported with applications to the Home Office and this has resulted in some of them receiving help. In the last month, several clients received an awareness session given by a nurse from the North East Ambulance Service.
As you may be aware, many of our clients wait a long time, sometimes years, to receive a decision on their asylum claims, so it is always a cause for celebration when a client is granted leave to remain. We were thrilled to discover recently that one of our clients, who has also been a committed and hardworking volunteer for the SVP, has been given leave to remain. This is great news both for him, the project and the SVP!
We are thankful for and continue to rely on your generous financial support for our work. Details of our bank account (DHN Justice and Peace Refugee Project) can be found on our webpage. If your donation is by cheque please send this to St Vincent’s Centre, New Bridge Street, Newcastle NE1 2TQ for the attention of Azad Hasan. Please remember to include a contact name and address when sending in a financial donation to the centre, to ensure that we can acknowledge safe receipt of the funds you have kindly donated or if we need to get in touch. Please consider Gift-Aiding, a Gift-Aid Declaration form is available here or you can request one from marjory.knowles@gmail.com or 07929 343418.
For more details about our work and how you can assist, please contact Azad Hasan, Project Co-ordinator at azad.hasan@diocesehn.org.uk or 07407 091184 or visit our webpage which also gives details on how you can make financial donations.