Hull City of Sanctuary holding a "Springboard" event

On Tuesday 15th March the Hull Group is holding an event hosted by the Lord Mayor of Kingston-upon-Hull, in the city’s magnificent Guildhall. After a welcome from the Lord Mayor, and a light buffet, guests will hear short updates from the National Coordinator Tiffy Allen, from the City Councillor with cabinet responsibility for Diversity and Adult Social Care, Stephen Baker, and from members of the Working Group, followed by a Q & A session. The evening will conclude with a showing of a video from one of the new Cities of Sanctuary. There is still some room for more to attend – please email hull@cityofsanctuary.org if you would like an invitation.
Fundraising "Swimathon" wins new friends for the Red Cross in East Yorkshire

Red Cross staff and volunteers joined refugees and asylum seekers from across Hull and the East Riding on 11th September to raise much needed funds for those destitute in the city and to commemorate the Day of the Disappeared. The challenge was to swim over 500 lengths in under 2 hours, and this target was achieved with just a few minutes to spare! ITMS Co-ordinator Simon Foster, who came up with the idea to support needy young adults in Hull with gifts of second-hand bicycles, said: The event was a truly great effort from staff and volunteers, who were privileged to swim alongside our friends who have sought sanctuary in the city, most having fled from countries around the world for fear of persecution. Many have left loved ones behind and may never see them again. The Swimathon raised over £500, and it is hoped to repeat the challenge next year, including the post-swin picnic where swimmers shared food prepared by refugees from Africa and Iraq. Simon added Asylum seekers receiving Section 4 support are given accommodation and vouchers for food, but receive no help with transport, and are not permitted to do paid work. We will be giving bikes to people who would otherwise have to walk over an hour to an appointment, and who can now visit friends, and attend sports events. East Yorkshire is fairly flat, so is ideal for cycling!
Hull City of Sanctuary Launch Event 18th June 2010

After some six months of behind-the-scenes activity, the working group responsible for Hull’s City of Sanctuary initiative went public on 18th June 2010, when some 120 people attended an evening of celebration, music and food, to mark the official launch. The Rev Barbara Routley, minister of Princes Avenue Methodist church (which runs the weekly Open Doors drop-in) welcomed one of Hull’s three MPs, Ms Diana Johnson, among several high profile guests from the various organisations working in Hull for refugees and asylum seekers. The Rev Inderjit Bhogal, former President of the Methodist Conference and national Chair of the City of Sanctuary movement, spoke about the movement’s origins, and about the powerful resonances in Hull with William Wilberforce, once Hull’s MP. The Chair of the working group, Emeritus Professor Peter Campion, called on two primary school girls, one from North Africa and one from the Middle East, to welcome the 120 guests, “We welcome you all to our party – thank you for coming”. There was spontaneous applause and the many guests warmed to the occasion, which included interviews with asylum seekers now settled in Hull, a talk from Inderjit about the roots of the notion of places of sanctuary, as illustrated by the creation in the Old Testament of cities of sanctuary. Then sanctuary was provided for centuries by the churches and cathedrals of England, as in the adjacent town of Beverley, with its Minster and a one mile radius area set out by sanctuary crosses, where those in danger of life and limb could find sanctuary.