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asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Asylum Welcome
@asylumwelcome.bsky.social
400 followers 370 following 43 posts
Supporting asylum seekers, refugees, and vulnerable migrants in Oxfordshire.
🤝 We provide information, advice, practical support, and solidarity.
❤️ Powered by your compassion: https://www.asylum-welcome.org/donate
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asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Asylum Welcome @asylumwelcome.bsky.social · 2d
Our Winter Appeal launches today. Every donation is DOUBLED through match funding, helping people at risk of homelessness in Oxford find a place to stay.

Please give what you can to help refugees in Oxfordshire find safety. Kindness really does open doors. Thank you.
www.asylum-welcome.org/winter/
A person’s hand on the handle of a green front door as it is opened. Two people sit smiling at a table, sharing a relaxed moment, with plates of muffins and doughnuts in the foreground.
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Our Winter Appeal launches today. Every donation is DOUBLED through match funding, helping people at risk of homelessness in Oxford find a place to stay.

Please give what you can to help refugees in Oxfordshire find safety. Kindness really does open doors. Thank you.
www.asylum-welcome.org/winter/
A person’s hand on the handle of a green front door as it is opened. Two people sit smiling at a table, sharing a relaxed moment, with plates of muffins and doughnuts in the foreground.
November 28, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
aviddetention.bsky.social
📣At the protest this weekend:
"The people of Oxfordshire have made their voices clear, and will continue to do so, that refugees are welcome here. This is meant to be a city of sanctuary. Campsfield is the opposite of sanctuary." @asylumwelcome.bsky.social

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Protesters oppose immigration removal centre reopening
Campsfield House Immigration Removal Centre is due to reopen later this year, after closing in 2018
www.bbc.co.uk
November 24, 2025 at 10:06 AM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Looking for some good vibes?

Join us **tonight** (Thursday 20th Nov, 6–8 pm) for the Art Auction at 74 Magdalen Road (OX4 1RE).

Fabulous artwork, soft drinks and wine, and a warm community atmosphere — all in support of people seeking sanctuary. 🎨 🧡

www.magdalenroadstudios.com/calendar/art...
Art Auction for Asylum Welcome — Magdalen Road Studios
Art Auction for Asylum Welcome Magdalen Road Studios 6-8PM Bid for an original art work and help support Asylum Welcome. Wine kindly donated by Art of Wine
www.magdalenroadstudios.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:05 PM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
praxisprojects.bsky.social
🚨Making it harder for migrants to settle in the UK is yet another act of economic vandalism🚨

www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
Up to 50,000 nurses could quit UK over immigration plans, survey suggests
Exclusive: union leaders say proposed changes are immoral and could threaten patient safety if there is staff exodus
www.theguardian.com
November 20, 2025 at 9:16 AM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
markja.bsky.social
It’s a kind of orange….
@asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Place an orange light in your window during the Oxford Christmas Light Festival (14–16 November) — a simple symbol of welcome, sanctuary, and hope for people seeking safety.
Orange heart
November 14, 2025 at 6:05 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Huge thanks to @adobe.com & Revivn for donating 50 laptops to Asylum Welcome’s Digital Inclusion project! 💻

These lightweight devices will help refugees and asylum seekers access education, jobs and connection.

You’ve given technology a second life — and helped people rebuild theirs.

#ThankYou 💛
Two smiling Asylum Welcome team members stand beside a long table covered in laptops, each holding one up to the camera to celebrate a donation from Adobe and Revivn. An Asylum Welcome staff member sits at a round table with rows of donated laptops laid out in front of her, ready to be set up for people new to Oxfordshire as part of the Digital Inclusion project.
November 6, 2025 at 4:32 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Everyone deserves warmth & dignity.

This winter, refugees in Oxfordshire face hunger & homelessness as they attempt to rebuild their lives.

Your kindness can help:
£20 = welcome pack
£50 = school essentials
£100 = safe sleep
£250 = food & support

💜 tinyurl.com/hardship-appeal

Thank you so much!
Asylum Welcome's Emergency Hardship Fund appeal
Please stand with us today by donating to our Hardship Fund. Your contribution ensures that vulnerable refugees have access to vital essentials, and helps prevent people from sleeping rough over the u...
tinyurl.com
October 23, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
right-to-remain.bsky.social
To support the National Day of Solidarity to End Immigration Detention 18 Oct, Coalition to Keep Campsfield Closed are running an event with a panel discussion & more. #Oxford #MigrationIsLife #NoOneIsIllegal #TheseWallsMustFall @asylumwelcome.bsky.social righttoremain.org.uk/local-action...
October 15, 2025 at 10:55 AM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Best of luck to everyone taking part in the #OxfordHalf today — especially #TeamAsylumWelcome 🎽 — running in memory of our much-missed volunteer James Throup.

Every penny raised helps refugees and asylum seekers rebuild their lives in Oxfordshire. 🏃‍♀️🧡🏃‍♂️

Donate here 👇
tinyurl.com/oxford-half-marathon
Asylum Welcome is running the Oxford Half Marathon in memory of James Throup
This October, Asylum Welcome is putting forward our own team to run the Oxford Half Marathon. Our team is as diverse as our organisation – comprising a Sanctuary Hosting guest, a service coordinator...
tinyurl.com
October 12, 2025 at 5:47 AM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
One week to go until the Oxford Half Marathon! 🏃 🧡

Our Asylum Welcome runners are over halfway to their target — every mile they run helps fund help, advice and hope for people starting again in safety.

Please support them if you can:
justgiving.com/campaign/asy...

Thank you!
October 5, 2025 at 9:10 AM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Last week, our AGM & Supporters’ Meeting brought together voices from across Asylum Welcome — and marked 10 years of Sanctuary Hosting.

More than 40,000 nights of shelter, 300 guests supported, and a new exhibition unveiled to celebrate this milestone.

Read more: www.asylum-welcome.org/agm-2025/
he Sanctuary Hosting panel at Asylum Welcome’s AGM. Six panellists sit at the front of the room, including Tania Baldwin-Pask speaking into a microphone on the far right. An Asylum Welcome banner is displayed on the left, while the audience listens attentively. Display panels from the Sanctuary Hosting exhibition, unveiled at Asylum Welcome’s AGM. The boards include information about the service since 2015, testimonies from hosts and guests under the heading “Voices of Sanctuary,” and a section on challenges and hopes for the next 10 years. Hari, Joint CEO of Asylum Welcome, stands on the left speaking into a microphone and gesturing with her hand. Sarah, Joint CEO, stands on the right smiling and holding notes. Both are addressing the AGM audience, with heads of attendees visible in the foreground. At Asylum Welcome’s AGM, compere Ghani stands on the left holding a microphone for Michael, a former client, who is reading from his notes. An Asylum Welcome banner and a projected presentation slide are visible behind them, while the audience watches from the foreground.
September 19, 2025 at 4:27 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
👪 We're live at the Old Schoolhouse Community Day (Hertford Street, off Magdalen Road).

👋 Drop by our stall to say hello, pick up a copy of our latest Annual Review, and see if you can beat our fiendishly metaphorical Hostile Environment Challenge...
September 13, 2025 at 11:37 AM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
alisonrbaxter.bsky.social
To mark ten years of Sanctuary Hosting, I wrote about migration. With thanks to @asylumwelcome.bsky.social for the fact checker.
open.substack.com/pub/writingf...
'Don’t think your boys, far away as they are, ever forget'
A story of migration
open.substack.com
September 13, 2025 at 7:31 AM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
This Sept, we're celebrating 10 years of Sanctuary Hosting!
www.asylum-welcome.org/services/san...

300 guests helped, 40,000 nights of safe sleep & countless acts of kindness - thanks to our wonderful hosts 💙

🎧 Listen to the story on our podcast #Welcomecast:
creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/...
The logo for Sanctuary Hosting at Asylum Welcome. It shows a tree growing from a blue doorway shape. Inside the doorway is a white key design that forms the shape of a heart. The text reads “Sanctuary Hosting” in blue and pink, with “at Asylum Welcome” underneath in smaller light blue letters. Three women sit at a table with food and drinks, talking during a community event with bunting in the background. An older woman and a younger woman wearing a headscarf sit together at a kitchen table, with books and papers spread out in front of them. Four women smiling at a Sanctuary Hosting event, with musicians performing in the background.
September 7, 2025 at 4:51 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
🏃‍♂️ Every step counts. Every gift helps.

Sultan and the @asylumwelcome.bsky.social team are running 13.1 miles at the #OxfordHalf to support refugees in Oxfordshire as they rebuild their lives.

If you can, please back them today with a donation:
tinyurl.com/oxford-half-marathon

Thank you. 🧡
September 5, 2025 at 7:01 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Thank you #ThisisOxfordshire for highlighting our open letter calling for Compassion and Unity in Oxford - www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/news/2542642...
More than 2,000 sign open letter for 'compassion' after Nigel Farage visit
More than 2,000 people signed a letter calling for 'unity and compassion' in Oxfordshire after an increase of hostility towards migrants and asylum…
www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk
September 3, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
refugeestudies.bsky.social
'...my concerns with these are the safety of separated children if they can't make applications to join family members'.

@catbriddick.bsky.social was quoted in @thetimes.com on the UK government's decision this week to halt the family reunion route for refugees:

www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...
Mandatory digital IDs considered to crack down on illegal immigration
Sir Keir Starmer has accelerated a range of views of technology that could prove whether job applicants are in the country legally
www.thetimes.com
September 3, 2025 at 12:43 PM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
adambienkov.bsky.social
As Yvette Cooper pushes forward new laws to make it harder for child refugees to get safe passage to join their parents in the UK, here's a picture of her from 2020 campaigning for the complete opposite.
September 2, 2025 at 12:11 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
"We sat in stunned silence… wondering: what will this mean for the people we support now & those who will need us in future?" — Dr Hari Reed, our Co-CEO.

For many refugees, reunion is the only hope they have left. Suspending that right puts women & children at risk, @yvettecooper-mp.bsky.social.
September 2, 2025 at 11:45 AM
Reposted by Asylum Welcome
apowelllaw.bsky.social
Oxfordshire is a County of Sanctuary and we are rightly proud to support and stand up for refugees, people seeking asylum and anyone in the UK in need of support. Amazing work by @asylumwelcome.bsky.social to put together this letter!
oxfordclarion.bsky.social Oxford Clarion @oxfordclarion.bsky.social · Aug 29
Over 2,000 people - including three Oxfordshire MPs, have called for "Unity and Compassion” in Oxfordshire after Reform announced plans for mass deportations at their conference in Kidlington this week. Oxfordshire residents have signed an open letter, organised by Asylum Welcome.
Over 2,000 People Sign Open Letter for Unity and Compassion in Oxfordshire - Asylum Welcome
Please help us support more refugees, like Hira, who built a community in her asylum centre, when we helped fund her an art class.
www.asylum-welcome.org
August 29, 2025 at 9:14 AM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
Today, Nigel Farage used Oxfordshire to launch plans for “mass deportations” of people seeking asylum if he becomes Prime Minister.

We believe in a different vision: one rooted in dignity, safety, and welcome. Please add your name to our open letter: tinyurl.com/aw-letter
A call for Unity and Compassion in Oxfordshire (and beyond)
forms.gle
August 26, 2025 at 10:16 AM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
🧡 Asylum Welcome's Oxford Half Marathon team is running in memory of our brilliant volunteer, James Throup.

Here, Tania — our Sanctuary Hosting Manager — shares a tribute to James, remembered for his kindness, gentleness & commitment to others.

Support in his honour: justgiving.com/campaign/asy...
August 22, 2025 at 4:37 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
A year ago, you chose welcome - and showed up for Oxford’s asylum seekers. 🧡

Today, the challenges are greater than ever.

Read our latest newsletter to learn the facts, and stand with us again.

www.asylum-welcome.org/one-year-on/
Handwritten message in black ink on white paper reading, "Please believe that people do care." Hand-drawn message on white paper with colourful crayoned bubble letters outlined in black, reading "You are welcome here," placed on a yellow background. Heart-shaped sign with an orange border and white centre, hanging on a brick wall. The handwritten green text reads, "We love our community and everyone who is part of it xxx" with small heart doodles. A chalk heart drawn on a tarmac pavement next to a parked bicycle, with a red brick wall and a bright blue door in the background.
August 8, 2025 at 4:44 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
🎓 Last month, five of our clients completed a Core Maths course at Oxford Lifelong Learning — the third in a series designed especially for displaced learners.

Huge thanks to Dr Ben Grant, Dr Tom Crawford and Behrad Ahmadpour at the University of Oxford.

lifelong-learning.ox.ac.uk/news/this-cl...
‘This class gives me hope for the future’: Course for refugee and asylum seeker students
Last month, the third course designed especially for the needs of refugee and asylum seeker students concluded at Oxford Lifelong Learning.
lifelong-learning.ox.ac.uk
July 30, 2025 at 12:40 PM
asylumwelcome.bsky.social
After years of fear and separation, Muhammad’s family is safe and reunited.

📖 Read their story: asylum-welcome.org/a-family-reu...

This is what welcome looks like - and what community can do. 🧡

Thank you for standing with refugees in Oxfordshire.
July 5, 2025 at 2:10 PM