Afghan refugees - how you can help
Donna Yay, Centre Director
At Fitzrovia Community Centre we have been appalled by the news of what’s been happening in Afghanistan and are working with partners in Camden to support refugees who are staying in the borough until they are permanently rehoused elsewhere in the country. We have received many offers of donations and volunteer time, which show the generosity of our community, as always. I’d like to thank you, personally, for the compassion you have shown and I have a brief update for you on how you can get involved in the community response.
Donate new items
Camden Council has set up an Amazon Wish List of essential items of what the refugees need and have requested. Your purchases will be delivered straight to the donations hub in Finchley to be sorted and distributed by volunteers.
Volunteer your time
Registering with Time to Spare and telling them what skills and time you can offer. The community response is currently utilising existing volunteers who are known to organisations, due to the sensitive nature of supporting people who have escaped conflict. Please sign up if you can help with these roles:
Translation/interpreting - speakers of Dari, Farsi, and Pashto to provide language support and interpreting for people as they access local activities and amenities. Also possibly volunteers to translate written material. They are particularly looking for people with experience of working with refugees and people who have experienced trauma.
Education, teaching, ESOL – people with skills and experience of teaching, delivering educational activities or programmes and with ESOL skills to provide alternate education to children and language lessons to adults.
Welcome and orientation – this is currently being provided by a small number of trusted organisations, however in future there may be a need for volunteers to accompany refugees to local activities and services, such as stay and play activities for children or to local libraries.
Sorting donations at the donations hub in Finchley.
Please note: all volunteers for the roles involving direct contact with refugees will need to undergo a DBS check and training in cultural awareness and trauma-informed approach.
At FCC we are also preparing to increase our activities and services to support refugees and we will announce any requests for volunteers, donations, etc. on this page. Please keep an eye on our newsletter and social media for updates.
Donate to an appeal
There are a number of appeals where you can donate much needed funds to organisations providing direct support, a few are listed below. This is the best way to offer support. If you have found another appeal that you would like to donate to, please ensure that it is from a legitimate charitable organisation and that the funds will go towards supporting Afghan refugees, rather than into their general funds. You can check if a charity is registered by searching on the Charity Commission website.
Afghan arrivals emergency fund - Refugee Action (refugee-action.org.uk)
Afghanistan Crisis Appeal | British Red Cross
Afghan and Central Asian Association
Refugee Crisis Appeal | Refugee Council
The London Community Foundation, Mayor of London and London Councils - London Refugee Response