Dover Together

Dover Together

Dover Together: Multicultural festival aims to bring the diverse communities of Dover together to celebrate and explore diversity. Showcasing the rich variety of cultures which make up Dover, the festival gives people the chance to hear new music, try new foods, dance and art, and to learn about other cultures as well as to celebrate traditional British culture, and to see the positive impact that diversity can have on the town.

In May 2017, Samphire brought together over 700 residents of Dover, to celebrate and join together in its first multicultural festival after many years. The day included cultural performances from local school children, music from local migrant groups, workshops such as African drumming, and Maypole dancing – all from Dover and its environs. Visitors could sample, and buy refreshments from a range of international food stalls, and find out about what local charities and organisations are doing in the area by visiting their stalls.

The event received fantastic feedback from visitors and participants. The aim to revive community spirit in the town of Dover was achieved. The event was attended by members of the Roma community, Nepalese community, African community, not only  to see performances of their cultural heritage, but also interacting with neighbours from different cultural backgrounds.

We are happy to announce that we will again be holding the Dover Together Multicultural festival Saturday 30th June 2018. See our event calendar for details

As the festival gains momentum each year, we hope it will become embedded as one of Dover’s annual events.

Dover Welcomes All

Dover Welcomes All

Dover Welcomes All brings together the diverse communities of Dover to celebrate and embrace a welcoming culture for all. The project reaches out to the wider Dover community to involve them in conversations and activities that encourage social inclusion and cohesion.

Dover Welcomes All has been developed in partnership with the city of sanctuary who hold the vision that the UK will be a welcoming place of safety for all and proud to offer sanctuary to people fleeing violence and persecution.

Samphire is keen for members of the Dover community to take the lead and for ideas to come from local residents.

Dover Welcomes All event ideas:

  • Community Events- Dover Multi Cultural Festival
  • International Coffee mornings
  • Training – English lessons
  • School trips with migrants youths and local youths
  • Football tournaments with locals youths and migrant youths
  • Mentoring for integration within the community
  • Small local meetups

If you would like to get involved, check out our volunteer page 

To join the local Dover Welcomes All Mailing list contact stacey@samphireproject.org.uk to hear about all the wonderful welcoming things that are going on in the Dover area.

 

The new Community Champion Programme

The new Community Champion Programme

The new Community Champion Programme is a peer support group for ex-detainees, run by ex-detainees who are trained to become community champions and support each other within their communities.

The programme is designed to hold fortnightly meetings in four different regions of the UK, Plymouth, Rochdale, Middlesbrough and Uxbridge. The programme is designed to raise awareness and support each other through establishing stronger local links with the communities.

The ex-detainee project closely supports the community champions by delivering training, helps integrate the community champions into their area through developing links with support organisations and actively supporting them throughout their delivery of the project.

Ultimately, this new people-led initiative will become self-sustaining and may be rolled out across the country.

The Community Champion Programmes start in:

February 2018            Plymouth

June 2018                   Rochdale

September 2018          Middlesbrough

January 2019              Uxbridge

If you are an ex-detainee, live in one of these areas and wish to be part of the new programme , or you are part of an organisation who would like to know more and become involved, please contact the Ex-Detainee project by email to ex-detainee@samphireproject.org.uk

Community Hub

Community Hub

The Folkestone Road Hub, a weekly community group, takes place in Priory Ward to support families and young people. It is attended by a variety of local residents but its primary users are of Roma origin. It provides a meeting place for local residents and allows local service providers to build strong relationships with hard to reach community members.

It provides a varied package of community activities which help develop community members’ health and well-being, safety and security and sense of community belonging. Regular attendees at the hub include local PCSOs, Health Trainers, the Kent Fire Service, Early Years Provision and Youth Services as well as local community and voluntary groups. Kent Fire and Rescue and Kent Police value the
access provided to safety messages and youth activities for migrant communities.

The Community Hub runs every Thursday  between 5.30pm-7.30pm (excluding school holidays) at Clarendon and Westbury Hall, Belgrave Road, Dover, CT17PRA

For more information about coming along email stacey@samphireproject.org.uk

 

Ex-detainee Project

Ex-detainee Project

The Ex-Detainee Project supports some of  the most vulnerable people in our society, many of whom are seeking asylum, have fled human rights abuses, or whose removal from the UK would violate their human rights.

The four aims of Samphire’s Ex-Detainee Project are to-

Advise – ex-detainees can call our freephone helpline, open 5 days a week between 10AM and 1PM. We respond to the needs they express and work to provide solutions in the order of most pressing. Over time, having developed relationships, we work through on-going casework to address the obstacles to social inclusion – from street homelessness through to volunteering and educational opportunities.

Enable – we link people to existing services in local communities to enable them to participate in their local communities, through referrals and signposting to support groups, counselling, GP’s, volunteering and befriending organisations. We ensure that as well as the information about these invaluable services, ex-detainees have the means to access them.

Empower – we encourage ex-detainees to overcome isolation and regain their confidence and self-esteem through involvement in volunteering, befriending and educational projects within their local communities as well as through their active involvement in the running of the Ex-Detainee Project. We support them in telling their stories to media and the public and ensure that their voices are heard through facilitating the annual ex-detainee conference.

Influence – we work closely with our partner organisations to influence policy and promote best practice in respect of ex-detainees from before they are released, to the grant of status in the UK, or removal to their home country.

Please contact the Ex-Detainee Project helpline if you are in need of support on:

Mon/Tues/Weds/Thurs/Fri between 10.00am and 1.00pm.

Tel: 01304 201535

Text: 07714 490981

Freephone (landlines): 0800 9179397