Bentham Area Refugee Support Group was formed in November 2015 when a number of local people from the wider Bentham Area came together in response to the global plight of refugees. The aims of the group are to make it clear that refugees are welcome, offer what support we can to refugees who are already here, those that are to come, and those struggling for survival elsewhere.  We are part of the Craven Refugee Support Network.

Fundraising and Support:

Since 2016, we have held various fundraising events, coffee mornings, jumble sales, stalls, and music and poetry evenings for local and overseas charities supporting refugees and asylum seekers. We continue to support the Red Cross Project for Destitute Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Bradford, and The Ripple Effect, a Morecambe based charity working in the Refugee Camps in Calais and Greece.  This has included collections of clothes and other items as well as financial support. We also support refugee projects in Lancaster.

Awareness Raising and Events:

We hold events to raise awareness about the plight of refugees and to correct misinformation and myths in the media, inviting speakers and speaking ourselves to other groups in our local communities. Our events in Refugee Week have included a simulated border control, suitcases that linked to a refugee story placed around our community, an exhibition of photographs, and library book display, along with film showings of refugee stories. 

Campaigning:

We are also active in writing to our MP and campaigning about various issues related to Refugees and Asylum Seekers in the UK and across the world.

Hosting Weekends:

We have now held 4 Hosting weekends, a time when refugees and asylum seekers from the Red Cross project in Bradford come to stay with local people in our communities where they receive a warm Yorkshire welcome to the Dales. We have been able to host between 24 – 27 guests, including families and single people. These weekends have not only brought respite from the asylum process to our visitors, but have enabled them to meet local people and local people to meet them. We share laughter and fun, stories and friendship together. The weekends are almost completely funded by voluntary and personal giving, not only financially, but also through time, skills, amenities, and resources, and the contribution of many helpers.

Links with other groups:

We are part of the Craven Refugee Support Network and support the City of Sanctuary Movement