We’re a group of neighbours and friends living in Chesterton, Cambridge. We’ve decided to come together to welcome a displaced family to our neighbourhood, through a community sponsorship scheme supported by the charity Citizens UK. Community Sponsorship is a government-approved scheme, launched in response to the Syrian crisis in 2016, which enables communities to be directly responsible for resettling a refugee family in their area. Since the scheme was set up, more than 300 community sponsorship groups have been established around the UK – but we are the first one in Cambridge. 

A shared belief that communities can come together in powerful ways to make the world a better place unites us – and we are pleased to be able to sponsor a family to start a new life in our lovely city.

Why are we doing it?

Every day we see news reports of people forced to leave their homes due to war and persecution. Every week there seem to be stories of desperate people making dangerous journeys across the Channel, or living in terrible conditions in refugee camps in the middle east and northern Europe. We are horrified by the hostility expressed by a minority to those in desperate need, and frustrated at the level of our government’s response. All of us would hope for compassion and support if we faced such awful circumstances ourselves, and are therefore coming together to make a real difference to one family.

Can you help us?

In order to be accepted onto the scheme, we were required to raise a minimum of £10,500. After meeting the initial target, we've decided to aim higher and set a 'stretch' target of £20,000 which seems a more realistic sum to support a family for longer than the minimum 1 year which the Home Office requires. 

This money does NOT replace state support or flights to this country, and it does not pay the family’s rent, which will be covered by a combination of benefits and a very generous landlord. Although we hope to secure donations in kind, there will be lots of expenses that we need to cover; every penny raised will be used to help the family settle in and integrate into our community. For example, we may need to:

• pay for ESOL (English language) support
  
• pay for an interpreter’s services, especially at the start
  
• provide bicycles or driving lessons
  
• equip and furnish the house
• provide computers or smart phones where necessary
• buy toys and books for the children

Could you volunteer with us?

We’re forming a group of volunteers who are able to support the family in other ways too – and we’d love you to join us! Other community sponsorship groups have told us that supporting a family in this way is incredibly rewarding for everyone concerned, and we are confident that people in Chesterton will come forward to help the family become independent over the first couple of years after their arrival. Whether you can offer a couple of hours occasionally, or can make a regular commitment, we'd love to hear from you. 

There are lots of different ways to help, including helping to decorate and furnish the house, tidy the garden, offering help with language lessons or family admin, showing them around Cambridge, or simply befriending them. Please let us know if you'd like to join us by emailing us at resettle.chesterton@gmail.com.

Want to find out more? 

Here are some links to discover a little bit about what it means to sponsor a family via the UK community resettlement scheme, and understand about the positive impact your donation can have:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85DRSAcKFn4

or read about it: 

https://resetuk.org/

or learn about Citizens UK here: 

https://www.citizensuk.org/

Unfortunately you have to copy and paste these links into your browser!