Another tragic incident on the UK border
As the weekend ended, somewhere on the coast of northern France, three Somalian refugees climbed into a small dinghy and set off to cross the English Channel. Their boat was notably smaller than dinghies often seen being used to cross the channel, and was certainly not suitable for one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. The men will most likely have been aiming for the Kent coast, but the tides bore their tiny vessel far off course, out beyond the eastern tip of Kent. Around midday they would have been drifting on past the mouth of the Thames and on …
Watch: Fear in the camps – a refugee speaks
Refugees are living with constant fear about their health, food and water as COVID-19 takes away the little support they had. Hamid in Calais talked to us about how he felt. You can help by donating here. …
Meet Qusay, a student with a bright future
Qusay is a student of Mechanical Engineering at Brunel University in London. He is due to hand in his dissertation this week and hopes to get a First and go on to study for a PHD. The 26-year-old arrived in the UK just over four years ago after a journey from his home in Ahwaz, Iran, which included being shot at, rowing for nine hours across the Aegean, and living in a makeshift tent in Dunkirk for three months. Qusay left Iran at the age of 22 after campaigning for rights for the minority Arab group he belongs to drew …
‘This has changed me’: Outgoing volunteer shares her story
Heidi has been with us in Calais for just over two weeks. The theatre-maker from Liverpool was among the first group of workers in the UK to have their work closed last month and she decided to go to Calais immediately. Before she left, she told us about her experience. “I work in the Everyman and the Philharmonic theatres in Liverpool, and they had to close because of the rule about mass gatherings. “I was planning to come out anyway. I’d booked a week, and then all this stuff kicked off, and my job closed, and I thought I can …
Man badly burnt by French police CS gas attack
I’ve seen a lot in in Calais over the last four and a half years, but yesterday something happened that took me back to the worst of 2015/16. As many services have shut down, we often get asked to take people to hospital. It’s hard as we are a small team and busy, but had to help a young man who had been sprayed in the face with CS gas by the police. This has become common in Calais, but as I got closer I could see, rather than the red eyes and puffy face I expected, serious burns covering …
WATCH: What do refugees think of the food packs?
On food distribution yesterday, we asked the refugees what they think of the food packs we give out. This is what they told us. Refugees and migrants in Dunkirk and Calais are under threat from Coronavirus (COVID-19) and also from lack of food. Please support our emergency appeal here. …
Emergency appeal for Calais – please share
This is today’s shopping list. Each week, to feed every site in Calais and Dunkirk, we need to make 330 food parcels at a cost of approximately €4,450. This is incredibly hard to sustain, but right now we have no choice. We can no longer buy in bulk from the UK and we are clearing shelves at three Lidls in Calais every other day. Our volunteers are working long hours to make up hundreds of nutritious packs each morning. Refugees and migrants in Dunkirk and Calais are under threat from coronavirus (COVID-19) and also from lack of food. Please support …
Volunteer Charlotte finds hope and humanity in Calais crisis
Charlotte is one of the amazing team of volunteers still working hard at the forefront of Care4Calais’ work in northern France and Belgium. The 22-year-old from Barnsley brings huge passion and dynamism to the work. She said: “One of the biggest benefits of Care4Calais staying here is providing a sense of hope. If I was in the refugees’ situation, with no help, I would have completely lost hope. These are times when we’re supposed to rely on humanity. If you are going through a crisis and there is no-one there to help at that point – when can you rely …
WATCH: How we keep people safe in Calais
We have established thorough procedures for hygiene and PPE in Calais, as this demonstration by our volunteer team shows. Our priority, at all times, is how to keep people safe. Refugees and migrants in Dunkirk and Calais are under threat from coronavirus (COVID-19) and also from lack of food. Please support our emergency appeal here. …