of Sanctuary News No. 001, Jan-March 2018

Welcome!

BCoS receives a £60 donation from a 10 year old supporter! We have received a donation for £60 from the 10-year-old son of a supporter, who ran a canal-side stall on New Year’s Day to raise funds for BCoS, as part of a school project. George Phillips (pictured with his sister Violet) both of Primary are our little stars! Their mum Sarah Phillips a BCoS supporter forwarded the donation to us. We are humbled by the generous act and extend our sincere thanks to George, Violet and mum Sarah.

EDITORIAL Welcome to our first Newsletter. The idea is that we can all share some key stories and conversations on a quarterly basis. This is in addition to our monthly meetings and mail shots. We appreciate all our individual and corporate donors and funders. We are able to do our work thanks to our volunteers who donate their time. To you all we say a big thank you! Tell us about your stories lets share them. If you will like to support our work, please see the ideas for getting involved section on our website ______

ROHINGYA SOLIDARITY REFUGEE WEEK 2018 BCoS COORDINATOR BCoS in collaboration with the The Refugee Week 2018 Planning We welcome Sarli Nana, our new Rohingya community Group has released the Coordinator. His role includes members in Bradford, will be programme of this year’s being our first point of contact, organizing a solidarity charity activities. Our local theme this representing us and engaging event in Bradford in the year is: My Dream? For more with members. If you have any coming weeks. If you are details see: query please get in touch with interested in getting involved, www.facebook.com/Bradford- Sarli. please get in touch Sarli Refugee-Week-2018 (contacts on Page 4)

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them on the Page. Bradford City of Sanctuary News Jan-March 2018

SCHOOLS OF SANCTUARY Our Schools of Sanctuary Project has been running for six years now. To become a School of Sanctuary a school must provide evidence that it learned, embedded and shared knowledge about sanctuary seekers.

The Schools of Sanctuary (SoS) project is open to all primary and secondary schools in the Bradford district, whatever their pupil intake and whatever their form of governance. Bradford SoS started in August 2012. We have been very lucky to obtain funding, from a variety of sources, to keep the project running, with a paid development worker, ever since. There are seven schools in Bradford which have the School of Sanctuary award. They are Carlton Bolling College, Dixon's City Academy, Grange Technology College, Horton Grange Primary School, Horton Park Primary School, Oasis Academy Lister Park and St Cuthbert and the First Martyrs' Catholic Primary School. Other schools are working on SoS and we are hoping to make some more awards in Refugee Week next June. The SoS project worker is Mary Blacka. You can contact her on 07415 307389 or at [email protected]. For more information visit the schools page on the BCoS web-site UNIVERSITY OF SANCTUARY Bradford is the first university in the UK awarded University of Sanctuary status. The award recognises the University’s work to ensure that it fosters a culture of welcome and inclusion for sanctuary seekers. It offers scholarships to enable sanctuary seekers to participate in higher education – it has provided 16 scholarships so far. More here: www.bradford.ac.uk/about/university-of-sanctuary

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Bradford City of Sanctuary News Jan-March 2018

REFUGEE WEEK 2018

My dream? Refugee Week Art Exhibition, 18-23 June 2018 Capital of Cycling, Hall Ings, BD1 5SD. This year the theme for the Refugee Week Art Exhibition is My dream? This will be an all-age, mixed media exhibition, with individual and collaborative work from schools, art students, established artists and groups of all kinds.

The exhibition theme can be interpreted in any way you wish. It could be one person’s dream for their own life, or wider hopes for a better world, in which people do not have to flee from home and claim sanctuary in another country.

• Launch of RW 2018: Monday 18 June, at 5-00pm, at the Margaret McMillan Tower. Offers, by children, young people and adults, to perform music, drama or poetry, relevant to the RW theme, will be very welcome.

• Finale / Festival: Saturday 24 June, from 11-00am, in Centenary Square. We are joining in with the Windrush celebrations but will have our own space and spots on the big stage. Offers to perform on the stage are requested. This could be a good showcase for new bands, poets etc.

If you are interested in submitting work and would like to talk it through, please get in touch with Mary Blacka, Bradford City of Sanctuary, on [email protected] or 07415 307389. You can download the exhibition registration form here: http://bradford.cityofsanctuary.org/refugee-week-art-exhibition-2016 ______BCoS took part in the popular Saltaire Peace & Crafts Fair in November 2017. It was a huge success. A number of people left their details to get involved. Many thanks to Will Sutcliffe, Kay Holden, Deborah Mullins and Sarli Nana who manned the BCoS stand.

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Bradford City of Sanctuary News Jan-March 2018

Sharing Voices Bradford (SVB) is a community development mental health organisation actively supporting and working with diverse minority communities of Bradford. https://sharingvoices.net

African & African Caribbean Communities: Asylum seekers and refugees’ Unit: we kept supporting our members in both Befriending and The key activities we had in the last months One to One confidential sessions (no pics for were the trip to Whitby and the Christmas these activities). Party at the Bradford Great Victoria Hotel. This year also we will keep with the One-to-One sessions to support emotionally these vulnerable We met at the beginning of this year with our members of our communities. highly dedicated Well Being Café’s volunteers and many activities have already been planned Ben Mussanzi is the contact person for the above for 2018. projects on: [email protected]

CONTACT BRADFORD CITY OF SANCTUARY

Sarli Nana – Coordinator e: [email protected] t: 07378 304 724

Will Sutcliffe – Chair e: [email protected] t: 07505 053 149

Twitter: follow us @BradfordCoS Facebook: City of Sanctuary Bradford www.bradford.cityofsanctuary,org

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