news > news releases

Refugee project earns top award nomination

Tuesday November 25th 2008

An innovative project that brings refugees and British people together has been shortlisted for a national community cohesion award.

Refugee Action’s Refugee Awareness Project (RAP) is one of six schemes to be shortlisted by the Institute of Community Cohesion (iCoCo) for the Award for Bridging Cultures (ABC). The awards recognise grass roots, community and voluntary organisations that promote intercultural dialogue and understanding and build bridges between communities. The winner will be announced tomorrow (Wednesday).

RAP, which has been operating in Bristol, Nottingham and Liverpool, has seen both refugee and British volunteers visiting a huge range of organisations, schools and community groups to give the facts about asylum and allow people to get their questions answered. RAP sessions not only bring refugee and non-refugee volunteers together, they also gives British people the chance to hear refugees’ stories first-hand.

Over the past three years, RAP co-ordinators and volunteers have delivered more than 500 interactive talks nationwide, reaching 10,000 people. Many of those organisations are now taking part in dissemination sessions with RAP volunteers so that they can continue the work of the project.

RAP has strengthened its awareness work by becoming a parner of the network Actors for Human Rights, which has performed Asylum Dialogues and Asylum Monologues around the country, bringing the voices of asylum seekers and refugees to life. The project has also produced a website which gives visitors the chance to learn the facts about asylum and get tips on what they can do to welcome refugees.

Esme Peach, the Communications Officer for RAP, said: “We are delighted to have been shortlisted for this prestigious award. It is a credit to all of our staff and particularly the volunteers who have given up their time to help make their cities more welcoming places for refugees and asylum seekers. The refugee volunteers have also shown extraordinary bravery in talking to groups about their experiences in their home countries and their lives as asylum seekers and refugees in the UK.

“All of us who have worked on RAP have strived to make this project a success and we are proud of its legacy, both through the continuing impact of our RAP sessions and through the website and information resources we have produced.”

The organisation that wins the prize will receive a trophy and £10,000. The announcement will be made at a ceremony in Central London.

Editors: please include at the end of articles:

Refugee Awareness Project website:
www.refugee-action.org.uk/RAP/

For more information on the Refugee Awareness Project contact Esme Peach at Refugee Action 020 7654 0673

Ends

For press enquiries and to request interviews contact Julia Ravenscroft, press officer at Refugee Action, on 0161 233 1956 or 07771 748 159. Alternatively e-mail Juliar@refugee-action.org.uk.

The Refugee Awareness Project offers talks to groups by trained volunteer speakers from the local community, including people with first-hand experience of exile themselves. The project delivers interactive workshops to schools, business groups, faith groups, sports clubs and associations and many more, giving the facts and figures on asylum as well as real-life testimonies. Groups often go on to initiate practical measures to welcome refugees. This three-year national project started in July 2005 and is working in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, Bath and North-East Somerset, Liverpool, Merseyside and West Lancashire. It is supported by the Big Lottery Fund and co-financed by the European Refugee Fund.

Refugee Action is an independent, national charity working to enable refugees to build new lives in the UK. We provide practical advice and assistance for newly arrived asylum seekers and long-term commitment to their settlement, and deal with some 40,000 enquiries from refugees and asylum seekers each year. As one of the country's leading agencies in the field, Refugee Action has 27 years’ experience in pioneering innovative work in partnership with refugees.

The Institute of Community Cohesion was established in 2005 to provide a new approach to race, diversity and multiculturalism. Their work focuses on building positive and harmonious community relations, using applied research to constantly develop practice and to build capacity of all the agencies and individuals involved. iCoCo is a not for profit partnership, which aims to build capacity at all levels and in all local and national agencies to promote community cohesion.