Learning English Leeds is a website that lists of all the places to learn English in Leeds. They've just got a new web address www.lel.help and made a film to celebrate.
An amazing poem by one of our friends, Margaret The 'Brown' Envelope. Hopelessly and anxiously Waiting for the brown envelope To be delivered through the mail box Dug open in the belly of the front room Like an open mouth of the lion lurking to attack and slit Waiting uncertainty Waiting without any indication, When it will drop nor what it will contain I have waited over seven years Checking the front door each morning For the delivery of brown envelope I know it carries the verdict The decision that will change my life For better for worse The silent battle of waiting, Full of anxiety and fear Each individual affected differently Defenceless like sheep, being led to a slaughter house, Waiting for the delivery, of the brown envelope Arrived young and agile With dreams of a better safer life, It was life of no choice basis, Where it was a crime to touch money Never able to work No documents to do so No choice of supermarket The voucher and swipe card came with conditionalities Clothes from PAFRAS and volunteers Belongings remained packed, ready for next move Anytime, anywhere, anyhow As the law commands or dictates, fear sleepless nights, confusion, depression, Characterised in all the veterans in struggle And when it arrives Body tremors and hand shaking Picking the envelope born from the front door With nowhere to hold on to Just like a drowning man grabbing a piece of grass Cannot find courage and strength To open the contents, of the infamous brown envelope. Alone and consumed with confusion, Fidgeting to understand the contents Reading the words upside down, like a hanging bat trying to swallow He rushes straight to church. The pastor too had sleepless nights Praying for the contents, His the only solace of his predicaments Of the contents of the brown envelope Holding onto the envelope, dropping it and picking it up, The news was too good to bear The young man suffocates and collapses, No amount of resuscitation could bring him back Drops dead out of excitement He is now another statistic of the verdict in the brown envelope As a mate waits for the brown envelope The young college administrator turns down the application to pursue her Teaching dream Cynical and in the a voice of inherent despise she explains "You asylum seekers" use such opportunities To claim your status I'm sorry, the class is full Try next year. The irretrievable time in the trash! The uncalculated energy in the garbage! Unavoidable In the position of asylum seeker. We are human with feelings. In the name of Jesus Margaret East
Thanks to everyone who joined us at the Gala Screening of Pride at last night's themed social on Advocacy. Aside from the fabulous pizzas and excellent film, Derek from Advocacy Support led a short discussion on what advocacy, or "supporting someone to get stuff done" meant to some of the LASSN volunteers who came along. Along the way we discussed things like the importance of seeking guidance and reassurance with things you might not be familiar with the excellent resources to be found on the new website the Advocacy Charter - a set of principles used by professional advocacy organisations; the different cultural expectations people have when they ask for help - and that perhaps "Empowerment" was a curiously Western concept whether or not advocacy necessarily led to "dependency" and tactics we might use to avoid this What we might learn from models of collaboration in medical contexts We also discussed the forthcoming Q&A Board for LASSN Volunteers. We're still testing out the space at the moment but it should be going live in a couple of weeks. We hope the Q&A Board will be a place where volunteers can ask questions, and have them answered by other volunteers with experience of similar things. Thanks to everyone who came, andwe hope to see you at our next Themed Social in May - when Andrew from Solace will be helping us think about how we respond to mental health Emergencies
On 9th January 2015, LASSN held its Annual General Meeting, and said goodbye to Christine Brett, who had been on the board of Trustees for 6 years, and 5 as Chair. Here is a copy of her notes, for those who were unable to attend in person - which we post with thanks, appreciation and best wishes for the future LASSN Annual General Meeting, 9th January 2015 Chair’s Report This will be the last time I stand here to present the Trustees report and accounts up to 31 March last year to our members and supporters and also when we talk about what has happened since our last AGM. All members should have received a copy of the Report and Accounts and all of you can I trust see a copy and take it away. This is our public record and is sent to both Companies House and the Charity Commissioners. Kentigern, our treasurer will speak in more detail about the financial statements and answer questions! As Chair I will take any questions you may have on the report of the Trustees. In fact the Annual Review with the owl on the front gives the highlights of the crucial work that is done by LASSN and the achievements for the year. Inevitably the Annual Report is an historic document so the AGM is also an opportunity to include a review of the year so far. Leaving is an opportunity for reflection and I’ve looked back over my notes for previous AGMs. There have been common threads. Our Mission to meet the needs of asylum seekers and refugees in Leeds and raise awareness of issues facing them is unchanged and has been the driving force for everything Trustees, staff and volunteers have done. So positive reflections: LASSN’s achievements and the difference made to the lives of those asylum seekers and refugees we have supported. This cannot be over-estimated and the sadness is that we have not been able to do more. The overwhelming enthusiasm of volunteers. Without them, LASSN would not exist. The dedication of Trustees and staff The resilience of LASSN in facing year in year out financial difficulties The courage and fortitude of asylum seekers and the determination of refugees Milestones including 10 years as a Charity and our 1,000th volunteer Sadly however an equally common thread of my 6 years as a Trustee has been that of challenges faced. A hostile environment in which we work A reduction in funding streams with more charities applying for shrinking pots A reliance on grant aid Shrinking reserves – built up largely through the generosity of individual donors and supporters. We were able to use them to maintain services and help ensure LASSN survived where many others had to close or reduce services) The necessity to issue notice of redundancy to staff with regularity that showed we were increasingly in an unsustainable position. Last year we were able, as in previous years, to rescind the notices of redundancy but Trustees and [...]
Our next Themed Social is scheduled for Wednesday 11th February from 6.30 - 9.30pm in the Social Area on 2nd floor of Ebor Court. Our theme is Advocacy - or helping people to speak up, or to get their voice heard There will be Pizza and popcorn (bring your own drinks, please) A short talk from Derek Sankar, Director of Advocacy Support A screening of the film Pride (Cert 15) - a story of lesbian and gay activists who raised money to help families affected by the British miners' strike in 1984. A discussion of what Advocacy means as a volunteer at LASSN, and how we can best help people find their voice. The film might not be an obvious choice, but a) it's brilliant and b) it explores themes of what it means to stand alongside other people who are experiencing tough times. We hope it will make for some interesting discussions afterwards. Please let us know if you'd like to join us by clicking here
Early in 2014, we were approached to create a piece of artwork for Leeds University's School of Medicine. The brief was to create a piece of collaborative art that would help explain to students the health priorities of refugees and asylum seekers. LASSN approached the Women's Health Befriending Project - which is run on the principles of mutual aid and self-help - where women support and advocate for one another by attending health appointments, helping to interpret for one another and understand the treatments they are offered as well as providing practical and emotional support. The resulting collaboration between LASSN, Women's Health Befriending Project and artist Carol Sohaindo produced this amazing tree of health, a banner weaving together the different words and perspectives of women from many backgrounds to produce a single arresting image. At its heart lies a personalised notion of health, although we are reminded that "[you]...can't put down roots until you know what's going to happen next" Seeking refuge and asylum is a difficult and complex process, with high levels of uncertainty. In this image the women captured the importance of care, compassion and kindness in the way healthcare is delivered, especially to people struggling to make a new home in a strange place. "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." The Banner created by the Women's Health Befriending Project and Carol Sohaindo
We are holding our AGM on Friday 9th January 2015 between 6.30 - 7.30pm. Download your copy of this year's agenda and the Draft AGM Minutes from October 17th 2013 Please use the form below to let us know if you are coming, if you wish to eat, and if you wish to stand for election as a Trustee
The Winter 2014 Edition of One World Leeds is out - our first one since the launch of the www.oneworldleeds.org website - featuring prize winning entries to the "Bringing the World to Leeds" Photo competition. It collects the very best articles from the website, including Are politicians scared to debate immigration? No Laughing Matter – LASSN and the Daily Mail Speaking Out in a Kingdom of Silence: Syria Missing my Friend From Leeds to Syria Reaching out to LGBTi Asylum seekers Taking Refugees to the Opera Is love a Human Right? Cross examined and intimidated As usual, copies of the magazine will be distributed across the City . Let us know if you would like copies of your school, church, work or shop
Have a look at our Annual Review for 2013/14 or download a copy from here