What does Grace Hosting offer?
The Grace Hosting project links volunteers who have a spare room in their house, with asylum seekers and refugees who have nowhere to stay.
Grace Hosting volunteers provide a hot meal and a safe place to sleep for people who have nowhere else to go. Guests generally stay for a few weeks, or (in a few very particular circumstances) may go on to stay longer than this.
We opened Grace House in February 2020. This offers respite accommodation to 4 destitute asylum seeking men, who live as a single household. Grace House remained open throughout the pandemic – providing shelter, subsistence support, practical and emotional support to 8 people since that time.
We opened Eva House, another house for 4 asylum seeking men in June 2022.
Referrals in and out of Grace Hosting/Grace House are still exclusively via PAFRAS and British Red Cross.
If you know of a refugee or asylum seeker who is isolated or could benefit from other practical support, please look this list of other social and befriending activities across the city, at helpinleeds.com or the new and improved Learning English Leeds website.
“Grace Hosting has been fantastic for me. It has helped me in every way. It has helped me by giving me a room, a home, and a family. I have had the opportunity to travel, and in the end it helped me with my new claim for asylum. I now have 5 years leave to remain, and I am now self employed as a painter and decorator. My life has never been better than it is now. Grace hosting has been great for me, it 100% changed my life.”
The difference it makes
Just before the country went into lockdown, the wonderful news came that a Grace hosting guest had been granted status. Here are a few words from Rosie, his host, about their journey together
“We had been Grace hosting for a couple of years and had many guests come and go. They have, in some cases, been here for over ten years in a limbo where they can’t work or live independently and yet are not able to return home because of threat to their safety.
One guest initially came to us for a few days but his vulnerability was so alarming that we invited him to stay on. A year later he is a different person and we have gone through many challenging times together. For example, finding a dentist that would see him when he had terrible toothache, helping him when he was submitting paperwork for his asylum claim, encouraging him to start improving his English by attending college and doing what we could to support him through times when he was particularly anxious and depressed. We shared many good times too such as sport, a trip to London, a comedy night and a trip to the seaside.
We shared the interminable waiting for court dates, hearing outcomes, appeal dates, appointments with his solicitor and so on. It became unbearable for us after his final court appeal and we can only imagine what it was like for him.
When the positive outcome was confirmed we hosted a celebration for him. He invited several people that had helped him over the year and told us that the support from PAFRAS, Red Cross and LASSN gave him hope when he had felt despair.
We shared shock then disbelief and then elation with him as the good news sank in. After all the waiting and the many times before when hopes were dashed, it really took time to believe it was possible that he had reached a happy ending, or a new beginning in fact.
He loves England, he believes there is no better country in the world. He tells us he doesn’t have to fear the police and he has found them polite and pleasant; legal cases are decided fairly – without bribes; there is a brilliant health service and it is a free society where he has been astonished to hear us laugh at and insult our politicians. We now look forward to seeing how his life unfolds with him being free and safe from the worry of detainment or forcible return. He plans to work at anything he can get and his first ambition is to work towards a driving license so he can have his own car. We are delighted to have shared part of this guest’s journey and without doubt we can say that he has become a treasured friend.”
“LASSN provides an extremely important service to some of the most vulnerable people in Leeds.”
“We have learned more about people of other countries and their plight which has underlined just how fortunate we are.”
“I have learned a lot from my guests and been inspired by them.”
“Meeting people from different parts of the world and cultures is always interesting and rewarding, so we get back far more than we give.”
“I feel that there is an organisation behind me that knows what it is doing.”
“Meeting the people involved and knowing I am able to help guests as they cope with the system. I know it has made a difference to their lives.”
“Really great volunteer support and coordination.”
“I also like feeling confident that LASSN is genuinely driven by its values and that decisions are taken on this basis.”
“Meet interesting people from different countries and with different experiences to us enjoy welcoming people into our house and making use of the available space we have to share.”
“The opportunity to provide practical and immediate help to destitute asylum seekers who are being unjustly victimised by Government policies that I believe to be heinous.”
Achievements in 2022/23
- Thirty guests were accommodated over 4435 nights in Grace Hosting, Grace House and Eva’s House.
- 12 people stayed with 9 hosts, 18 at Grace or Eva House.
- Grace House completed its fourth year, and Eva House has nearly completed its second year of operation. Both houses remain resourced exclusively by the generosity of donors, volunteers, and supporters, and both provide accommodation to up to four asylum-seeking men in each house at a time.
- During the winter months, hosts and guests received increased financial support to help with the increase in the cost of living and utility bills.
- Mobile phones and sim cards were routinely offered to all guests to help them stay connected and laptops and wifi provided for guests in each of the houses.
- Bus passes and bicycles were available to all guests, helping them move around the City.
- Guests have been supported to participate in wider group activities, including gardening groups, trips to the theatre, and gym memberships, to ease their isolation and stress.
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