Soul food: Helen Ledger & Kate Mackrell on how Brighton Friends are welcoming asylum seekers
‘The cooks relax, and we all laugh together.’
In early 2022, when Brighton Quaker Sanctuary group realised that there were many asylum-seekers being housed in hotels in Brighton, with very little support, we wanted to get involved. After contacting local groups (Sanctuary on Sea, Care for Calais, Brighton Migrant Solidarity, and the Network of International Women), we decided that, as people were feeling unwell with the food that they were being given at the hotel, we would offer people the chance to come and cook food from their own cultures, working together, and getting to know each other and ourselves. We started in mid-March 2022, initially fortnightly, but then weekly as interest grew. We also ran English classes for about eight months until the council and colleges began to run regular classes in town.
You need to login to read subscriber-only content and/or comment on articles.