Salusbury WORLD

In Brief

has been approached by Comic Relief to make a DVD and training pack highlighting good practice in supporting refugees and asylum seekers in schools. The project, called 'Shared Futures', will last for 2 years, and will be accessible to hundreds of schools and also in Teacher Training settings around the country.

A Karin Littlewood painting

Salusbury Primary school, Salusbury WORLD and Kilburn Library worked together to 'Celebrate Somalia' for Refugee Week this year. Activities included visiting storytellers, drama, coffee mornings, a museum visit and a visit from Karin Littlewood, illustrator of 'The Colour of Home'. This was shared with the community with a celebration in the local library.
We had a surprise visit from Cherie Blair on 21st March. She enjoyed a friendly cup of tea while we talked about our work and some of the issues our families face. We were also able to give her some information about the detention of asylum seeker children which we are sure she will be interested in as a human rights lawyer.
Regulars to our monthly coffee mornings enjoyed a day trip to visit Hillcroft Residential College in Surbiton. Set up in the 1920s the college offers a range of courses to women from all backgrounds. Because of its history, the college is particularly sensitive to the needs of single women and mothers. Several people signed up for courses then and there. www.hillcroft.ac.uk

The UK government

continues to tinker with the asylum system on the premise that making it 'less attractive' will reduce the number of people seeking safety here.

The numbers of people in detention continues to rise
failed asylum seekers are increasingly being returned to countries like Zimbabwe, deemed to be 'safe' by the Home Office
it is now a criminal offence to arrive in the UK without valid travel documents, despite the fact that many asylum seekers are pressured into destroying documents by agents
in August 2005, the government decided that refugees will no longer be granted Indefinite Leave to Remain, but only limited leave, initially for five years.

No place for a child

Stop detaining children now!

In the UK the government currently detains more than 2,000 children, including babies, in immigration detention centres every year. That's equivalent to the number of pupils at a large inner-city secondary school.

These children have not committed any crime but are held behind locked doors and high barbed wire fences. Five years ago it was rare for families and children to be detained for immigration purposes. Now, members of the No Place for a Child coalition have documented detentions lasting anything from 7 to 268 days.

Detaining these children is wrong - regardless of the merits of a family's asylum case.

"Detention is like a cage, and I was like a small bird with no food in it. I wished I could fly..."

Navid, 7, spent 32 days in detention at Yarl's Wood Detention Centre.

To find out more, and join in the campaign to end the detention of children, visit the website www.noplaceforachild.org

The Team

: Sarah Reynolds:
Project manager
: Ben Smith:
Assistant manager
: Lynne Knight:
Trainer
: Tommy Evans
Play Co-ordinator

Spotlight on Johanna Freudenberg: Artist

I have worked at Salusbury WORLD for five years, making art projects with the children in the After-School Club. We enjoy combining the development of a multitude of creative skills with the celebration of the many festivals that are part of the lives of our families.

I'm an artist and landscape gardener, living and working locally, and have a long-standing relationship with Salusbury School, as my children went there over a period of seventeen years. For me, Salusbury WORLD represents the best a community can offer to its refugee friends.

© Salusbury WORLD 2006
No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior permission.
Editor: Lynne Knight
Photos:
Page 2 - Peter Turnley
Page 4 - Leila Miller
Illustration - Karin Littlewood

For more information, to make a donation or to volunteer, please contact:

Sarah Reynolds Salusbury WORLD
c/o Salusbury Primary School
Salusbury Road
London NW6 6RG

t: 020 7372 2244
email: sarahreynolds@ salusburyworld.org.uk

Visit our website at www.salusburyworld .org.uk

Registered charity number: 1071065

Did you know?

According to the UNHCR, the UK detains more people for longer periods with less judicial supervision than any comparable country in Europe. Amnesty International believes that in 2004 this figure was over 25,000, including women and children.