Refugee Week

Refugee Week 2025 will take place from 16-22 June, with the theme Community as a Superpower.

As the UK’s first Borough of Sanctuary, we welcome those fleeing violence and persecution in their own countries and protect the rights of all migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.

Refugee Week is a UK-wide festival celebrating the contributions and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary.

We offered small grants of up to £750 to support people living or working in Lewisham as well as local organisations to develop their own activities and events in their local community to celebrate Refugee Week.

We received over 20 applications and were really impressed by the breadth and quality of submissions. We are delighted to have been able to fund 11 projects across a range of activities.

The winning projects were selected by a Small Grants Panel consisting of three Council officers.

Projects selected for grant funding

Sanctuary seeker-led projects – projects organised by individuals, supported by a local organisation

"Tastes of Home: Heritage on a Spoon – Superfood Stories from Pakistan, Afghanistan & Ukraine" culinary and storytelling project across three community workshops (supported by Facework)
PictoricBox: Ukrainian Art Associations game event sessions (supported by Facework)
Family Sports Day and Food Celebration (supported by Facework)
"Roots & Growth: Planting New Beginnings" therapeutic gardening event (supported by Facework)
Bags of Hope: Sharing culture and art through painting eco-bags (supported by Facework)
Stories in Our Hands clay modelling workshop (supported by Facework)

Projects led by local organisations

Collaborative creative celebration – Lewisham Ukrainian Youth and Community Project (New Arrivals Support CIC)
Power of Community – one day event highlighting the stories, skills and contributions of sanctuary seekers (Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network)
Community Celebration Evening (Lewisham Donation Hub)
Seeds of Sanctuary series of creative workshops (Sounds like Chaos)
Refugee Week Community Meal (Action for Refugees in Lewisham)

Exciting events are planned for Refugee Week. This page will be updated with event details.

For other ways to get involved, visit our Borough of Sanctuary page.

Published on: 02/05/2025