Communities not Camps

Everyone needs somewhere safe to call home. But for people seeking safety, Government policy means “home” could be a bare bed in an ex-military camp surrounded by fences and barbed wire, living in shared accommodation with no privacy, and surrounded by strangers.

That would be difficult for anyone: but for those who have suffered persecution at the hands of the authorities in the place they have fled, or who have escaped from war and violence, the harm it can do is immense.

People seeking asylum are banned from work, which means they are forced to rely entirely on the Government for a place to live. People are accommodated on a no-choice basis, and can be sent to live anywhere in the country.

Those forced to live in camps get just £9.95 a week for clothing, transport, communications and anything else they need. People in camps often struggle to access essential services like legal support and healthcare.

Despite evidence of harm caused, and rocketing financial cost, the Government has failed to close these harmful sites. Instead it has opened a new camp in East Sussex; and is now planning to open even more harmful camps.

But all over the country, those who want to welcome people seeking safety as neighbours, rather than seeing people shut away behind barbed wire, are speaking out against these cruel camps.

Here, you’ll find resources to help you oppose the opening of new camps, and call for the closure of those already operating, in a way that stays rooted in welcome, justice and dignity for all people seeking sanctuary.

“You’re surrounded with fences around you. And security guards are always watching you. And there are several blocks… And well, it’s an army camp. So people are sharing the area with each other. I mean, several people in the dining room and blocks, and you always feel that you are in a place like prison.”

Matin – housed in Napier Camp