We awarded a grant of £2,000 to Big Leaf Foundation to support their Refugee Week activities; through a series of workshops and events, this UK-wide festival celebrated the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary.
At one of the workshops 15 young people were invited to work with Iraqi artist, photojournalist and filmmaker, Ali Arkady, to create an exhibition that explored the theme of ‘Our Home’. After choosing images, they were then taught how to transfer them onto stone. The artworks were displayed at St Mary’s Church in Guildford during Refugee Week which attracted over 200 visitors.
At other events, over 85 young people came together through seven-a-side football tournament and basketball sessions which provided a chance for displaced young people to play sport together and build connections.
Vicki Felgate, Chair of Big Leaf Foundation, said: “We are incredibly grateful to Guildford Philanthropy. Refugee Week is the perfect opportunity to bring people together across language and cultural divides and celebrate what it means to be a community, but we can only do this with the support of our funders. Thank you for making such an incredible week possible.”
