The gift of a home
As demand surges, LASSN is opening a new house. Can you help?
LASSN’s Grace hosting project currently has one shared house, Grace House, that provides respite accommodation to four asylum seekers who are destitute. (A destitute asylum seeker is not entitled to any state accommodation or financial support and it is illegal for them to be in paid work.)
Grace House is supported by a team of volunteers who provide practical and emotional support to guests on a one to one basis and also plan group activities to help to build a feeling of community in the house.
As demand surges we are looking to open a second home, Eva House, in early Summer 2022 and we need your help.
Both Grace House and Eva’s House need £33,000 per year to stay open and we rely entirely on donations. Both houses are loaned to LASSN at zero cost by the owners and the money to pay for bills, food, toiletries, furnishings and staff costs are raised by generous supporters who pledge an amount each month. We are always grateful for gifts, whatever the size, that help us keep offering homes to destitute asylum seekers. If you would like to talk to us about volunteering at either house, giving for something specific or just want to find out more please get in touch with Jo at [email protected].
The difference it makes
Ahmed* (*name changed) shared how living in Grace House impacted on his wellbeing;
“When I moved in I had great anxiety. If you have not migrated before this anxiety is hard to explain. I left home years and years ago and I still haven’t settled and in this sense am still migrating. Your freedom is on the edge, you could be deported, you have nowhere to live and cannot work..for 9 months I have felt like I had a home and this helped to give me comfort and created change in me in many ways”
We opened Grace House in February 2020, a safe space for four asylum seekers in need. Despite many challenges we have been able to keep going – providing shelter, subsistence support, practical and emotional support – or in the words of one guest ‘a stable place to be [which] has helped me to heal…..’
Referrals in and out of Grace House and Eva’s House are made exclusively by destitution caseworkers at PAFRAS and British Red Cross, who continue to work with guests throughout their stay.
“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.”
Contact us about Grace House & Eva House
“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.”