RAIS News
We did a mapping exercise of the people who currently come or used to come to RAIS for support to see what this looks like globally. We were amazed to see it in an image – so many countries, cultures, and people from across the world have arrived in Lancaster and Morecambe and walked through our doors at the Cornerstone. And we are so happy they arrived here to such a welcoming city. ![]()
![]()
Yet it is a sobering reminder of the state of human rights and peace globally. People have to flee for many forms of persecution and harm, including on the basis of race, political opinion, gender-based violence, sexual orientation, and of course, the devastation that war brings to people’s lives. That so much of this map is coloured in reminds us of the distance so many have to travel to reach sanctuary. Many traversing such a distance do not have the option of safe travel, and many have lost their lives on the journey to refuge. We work with individuals who have lost loved ones on the journey; separated and lost contact, killed in conflict as they pass through neighbouring countries, or drowned in the oceans they have to cross. The journey to safety should never be unsafe. #saferoutesforall.
A very warm congratulations to two of our clients who were successful in their appeals for Leave to Remain! Both have been granted Refugee Status after a long and difficult appeals process and the shock of the initial negative decisions. ![]()
![]()
RAIS Lancaster provided significant support for the two individuals during their journey in the asylum system, and were there until the end, sitting with them in court and liaising with their solicitors and barristers. We weren’t expecting both hearings to be scheduled for the same day in two different cities, but our staff and volunteers made sure they were there.![]()
![]()
We must celebrate these life-changing victories for those seeking sanctuary; the granting of a status that means a settled and certain future in the UK away from the destructive persecution they were facing for who they were or demanding their rights and freedoms. RAIS will continue to stand by the sides of refugees during their struggles and let them know that they aren’t alone. 🧡
We had a wonderful first theatre workshop session at The Dukes, Lancaster, led by Carly! The refugees and asylum seekers attending explored creating characters and using movements to tell a story with the use of handmade ‘puppets’ they created themselves. It was lovely to have a light-hearted afternoon full of creativity and play. ![]()
![]()
We are so happy to be partnering with The Dukes, which is such a well-loved part of Lancaster and beyond! What an honour. Until next week!
The wait is over – RAIS has a new look! ![]()
![]()
We’re excited to unveil our new banner, now featured on our website 👉 rais.org.uk/ and right here on our Facebook page.![]()
![]()
This stunning design was the unanimous favourite among several entries — chosen by our volunteers, staff, and Trustees.![]()
![]()
A heartfelt thank you to Morecambe-based artist Molly Bland for her creativity, dedication, and thoughtful approach in bringing this vision to life. Her artwork perfectly captures the spirit of RAIS, and we couldn’t be more grateful.![]()
![]()
To see more of Molly’s incredible work, visit her Instagram: www.instagram.com/molly.bland/ — and if you’re looking for a talented artist for your own project, don’t hesitate to get in touch with her!![]()
![]()
We truly hope you love our new banner as much as we do!!
Always a joy to be at The Olive Branch, work together to ensure asylum seekers in Lancaster and Morecambe are accessing the food they need and introducing them to RAIS for casework support. Welcome to all of the new arrivals, we look forward to helping you make Lancaster and Morecambe your home 🏡 ![]()
![]()
And a big ‘happy birthday’ to Jaimie for Sunday! Thank you for everything you do and for everyone at OB 🧡
Happy Volunteers Week to our incredible team of volunteers at RAIS. This charity began as a grassroots, volunteer-run organisation, there to help asylum seekers and refugees arriving Lancaster. ![]()
![]()
While RAIS has changed and grown, taking on staff, we remain volunteer-led, and are so lucky to have such committed, passionate, and talented individuals who keep this essential service running. They staff four drop-ins a week, translate in-person in many languages, accompany clients to the GP, hospital, appeals court, council, bank, do casework in office appointments, do admin and process registrations, manage the charity as trustees, do IT support, and direct the charity to respond to developing needs for our clients. Many of our volunteers have been here for years, and we give our special thanks to the asylum seekers and refugees who give their time, lived expertise, and linguistic and cultural knowledge to this organisation. 🧡![]()
![]()
Our volunteers come from all over the world, from different cultures, professional backgrounds, and histories of migration. They build a culture that is welcoming and caring, and are always striving to learn and give more. Life for refugees in Lancaster and Morecambe would not be the same without their generosity, care, and incredible advocacy.![]()
![]()
From the staff team to the volunteers, and on behalf of the refugees who you help – THANK YOU!
The 3R Foundation recently awarded £1000 to RAIS Lancaster for 3x Dell PC laptops.![]()
![]()
Refugee Advocacy, Information, and Support (RAIS) Lancaster is a friendly, volunteer-led charity that’s been supporting asylum seekers and refugees since 2017. RAIS became a registered Charitable Incorporated Organisation in 2021.![]()
![]()
RAIS is passionate about helping people feel safe, welcome, and supported as they adjust to life in the UK. They guide asylum seekers through the complex asylum process and offer a helping hand to refugees as they settle into their new communities.![]()
![]()
Each week, RAIS runs four welcoming drop-in sessions, offering advice, practical support, and a chance to connect. For those needing extra help, one-to-one appointments are available at the Cornerstone in Lancaster. Whether it’s understanding paperwork, finding housing, or simply having someone to talk to, RAIS is there to help people overcome barriers, grow in confidence, and feel part of the local community.![]()
![]()
The grant was used to purchase three refurbished laptops for use at weekly drop-ins. Reliable laptops are essential, as volunteers need easy access to client records to update and manage support notes. These replaced several older devices that had become unreliable. Following expert advice, RAIS chose to invest in higher-spec refurbished Dell laptops rather than lower-spec new ones, aiming to standardise equipment and chargers for easier use.![]()
![]()
Please follow us and share this post so we can reach as many other small charities, clubs and community groups as we can. ![]()
![]()
If the 3R foundation could help with funds for a vital piece of equipment, then clubs and groups can apply for a grant using our simple form here: www.3rc.org.uk/grant-application.html![]()
![]()
And please call into our modern, bright and friendly charity shop in Carnforth (next to Tesco) which is where we raise the funds we give out as grants in the Lancaster, Morecambe, North Lancs and South Lakes area!!
A busy drop-in today at St Thomas’ Church Centre full of support work for family reunion, asylum claim appeals, travel documents, university applications, and supporting a homeless refugee to find housing. A big thank you to our Kurdish barber for the free haircuts for the asylum seekers and refugees 💇🧡
RAIS went hiking!![]()
![]()
On Monday, a group of refugees and asylum seekers went to Malham, a trip that was generously provided by Yorkshire Dales National Park‘s Three Counties project to help get underrepresented demographics out into the Dales. ![]()
![]()
We had folks from Palestine, Syria, Iran, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Afghanistan, Uganda, and Kurdistan join us, along with our two new Senior Support Workers, Julie and Omar, to lead the trip.![]()
![]()
Having a change of scenery, getting out into nature, and experiencing the beautiful area around us is so helpful to refugees and asylum seekers – we couldn’t thank the YDNP enough for their generosity in organising this. ![]()
![]()
We will be back out again in the Dales this coming Monday. Pictures will of course follow!
RAIS has a new logo! We are over the moon (or sun? ☀️) with the design made by the incredible Molly Bland. After several rounds of designs, our volunteers, staff, and trustees voted on the new design as the winner. ![]()
![]()
We want to say a big thank you to Molly and we look forward to continuing to work with you on our RAIS redesign 👀 Molly is a local independent artist who has made art for many local organisations and events, as well as for Freedom From Torture and British Red Cross. Please do check out her work and if you have a project to commission, get in touch with her! We can’t recommend her enough: www.mollybland.co.uk/
Listen to us tonight at 8pm on Beyond Radio speaking with Ahmed, a Palestinian man from Gaza who is a refugee in our area, who had to flee due to persecution by Hamas. We’re discussing life under Hamas before 2023, the confusing journey through European asylum systems, and the killing of over 50,000 Gazans by Israel since October 2023.![]()
![]()
www.beyond.radio/player/
You can find all of our Beyond Sanctuary podcasts on Spotify! ![]()
![]()
Our March episode has been downloaded as a podcast over 7000 times so far. We are so glad to have refugees’ and asylum seekers’ voices and stories being heard. Please give it a listen and share it.![]()
![]()
"Having the right to show up and speak are basic to survival, to dignity, and to liberty." – Rebecca Solnit
Beyond Sanctuary – The Podcast
open.spotify.com
Podcast · Proper Community Media (Lancaster) Ltd · This series is a companion to the Beyond Sanctuary radio programme. It highlights the often harrowing stories of refugees and asylum seekers who ha…
We caught up again with our partners, The Olive Branch food bank, offering casework support to asylum seekers and refugees as they collect their food parcels. ![]()
![]()
Olive Branch give essential food support for asylum seekers and refugees in Lancaster and Morecambe; week in, week out. They are an incredible organisation helping so many people in this district – thank you for everything you do! ![]()
![]()
We also had a good giggle about Caitlin and Jaimie’s matching outfits and had to capture it on camera, along with the rest of the awesome OB team 💚🧡
Two weeks ago, RAIS took 10 refugees to Glenthorne Guest House & Quaker Centre, who offered us a two-night residential trip in Grasmere as part of their amazing Welcome Project. We want to give a huge thanks to Terry who planned and led the trip, for all of the staff at Glenthorne for being so welcoming, and to the Quakers for funding the project.![]()
![]()
Our group included people from Palestine, Uganda, the DRC, Egypt, Kurdistan, Sudan, and Afghanistan enjoyed rest, adventure, and connecting with the beautiful Lake District. ![]()
![]()
We explored Grasmere, took a ferry from Ambleside to Bowness-on-Windermere, walked up Brant Fell in the rain, received a tour at Wordsworth Grasmere and visited Dove Cottage (a huge thank you to the wonderful team at the Wordsworth museum for fitting us in), wrote Wordsworth’s poems with a quill (in Arabic, Pashto, and Kurdish), ate great food, joined morning Quaker worship, learned about the Lakes, laughed (a lot), bonded, rested, and had a much-needed break from all of the worries that they face every day. ![]()
![]()
Before Glenthorne, the group faced exhaustion from the asylum process and the re-living of trauma it entails, being apart from family, war and genocide in their countries, and trying to make sense of a new life here when they never expected to become refugees. Two nights away did not change these things, but it gave the break, distance, and respite that they needed to face their challenges upon return, with some friends to stand alongside them now.![]()
![]()
On the last night, those who came on the trip gave feedback. Some of the things they said were that: "it was life-changing", "the best days" they’d had in the UK, that they felt stronger, that "everyone should have the opportunity to come here", that it gave them peace, that they finally managed to sleep after months of insomnia, and that they had made deep friendships with others on the trip after a long time of being isolated and struggling to leave the house. Many had fallen in love with the Lakes by the end of the trip, and said they can’t wait to return and explore further.![]()
![]()
Thank you to all of those who came on the trip – it was an honour to see your joy, laughter, and connection. To see you link arms with those struggling to walk up the fell in the pouring rain and make sure everyone made it to the top says everything about the resilience and care in this community. Helping each other even when you’re struggling yourself is an amazing thing.![]()
![]()
The value of nature, community, and rest in healing cannot be understated!
Thank you all to those who have been actively involved in supporting our cause at RAIS Lancaster. Donations are always welcomed and JustGiving for RAIS has now been added as a digital fundraiser option to our website to make the process even easier!
Donate to an amazing cause today.
checkout.justgiving.com
Anything you can give will make a huge difference!
RAIS Lancaster website has had a makeover! We now have new features such as Get Involved, Donate and Social Media buttons. ![]()
![]()
Our GTranslate button allows our website to be translated into 24 different languages. Not only that, we now have an automatic news feed from our Facebook page! ![]()
![]()
Why not drop by at www.rais.org.uk/ and spread the word.
www.rais.org.uk
RAIS is a local charity which provides advocacy, information and support services to asylum seekers and refugees living in Lancaster, Morecambe, and Heysham. All of our staff and volunteers have exper…
Our next episode of Beyond Sanctuary is on at 8pm tonight! We are in conversation with Omar, a long-time volunteer and interpreter at RAIS, who is a professor and refugee from Syria. We hope you enjoy!![]()
![]()
You can listen live on Beyond Radio or on their website: ![]()
www.beyondradio.co.uk/on-air/ ![]()
If you don’t have the chance to listen live, you can listen afterwards on the Beyond Radio website: www.beyondradio.co.uk/on-air/listen-again/![]()
It will also be uploaded as a podcast episode on their website (and you can find previous episodes there too!): www.beyondradio.co.uk/…/beyond-sanctuary-the…/
Hi there! Here is an update for easyfundraising. ![]()
![]()
RAIS Lancaster is now registered with easyfundraising, and so far we have raised around £35.00 with 5 supporters. Thank you so much for joining our cause!![]()
![]()
This means that over 8,000 retailers will now donate to us for FREE every time you use easyfundraising to shop with them. These donations will help SO MUCH, so please sign up to support us – it’s completely FREE and doesn’t take long.![]()
www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/rais-lancaster/?utm_source=whatsapp&utm_medium=social&utm_campa…![]()
![]()
You can also refer a friend and earn a £5 bonus donation for your cause every time someone successfully joins and raises £5 as a supporter through your personal link.
You spend, brands donate to RAIS Lancaster.
www.easyfundraising.org.uk
Help us when you shop with 7,000+ brands. Join now.
We’ve registered RAIS Lancaster with #easyfundraising, which means over 8,000 retailers will now donate to us for FREE every time you use #easyfundraising to shop with them.![]()
These donations will help SO MUCH, so please sign up to support us – it’s completely FREE and doesn’t take long.![]()
You spend, brands donate to RAIS Lancaster.
www.easyfundraising.org.uk
Help us when you shop with 7,000+ brands. Join now.