The last few months have seen many of the people we have been supporting at Napier move on to their dispersal accommodation. We are keeping an eye on numbers and tailoring our offering accordingly. August was sadly a difficult month with the eruption of far-right protests targeting asylum seekers around the UK. We continue to offer support and stand in solidarity with all displaced people.
September began with a visit from Art Refuge and the Community Table. The table is a supportive space where people can sit and reflect with art materials provided and art therapists on hand to provide gentle trauma-informed support and reassurance.
Folkestone-based artist Thurle Wright attended the Drop-In with colourful post-it notes and pages from books in different languages. She asked people to write a meaningful message for them to weave into a 'Language Quilt' representing all of the languages in our community, and which we hope to display locally to promote solidarity and unity.
We're continuing to offer asylum advice in partnership with Samphire Project and connect people to an asylum solicitor. Unfortunately, East Kent is a legal desert with very little access to legal support for asylum seekers. Our work is key in addressing that imbalance and making sure people have representation prior to their substantive interview. The new government are ramping up processing rates which is positive in terms of settling claims quickly and not leaving people in limbo for years, but negative in terms of people not being able to access legal advice before presenting their claim to the Home Office.
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