MORE than 80 people went along to the latest Bromsgrove Welcomes Syrian Refugees meeting to show their support for the project.
Those gathered were from a variety of local churches, schools and Muslim and Arabic communities from across Bromsgrove district, Northfield and Rednal gathered at last week’s meeting.
Several members from the Equality and Diversity Forum were also present.
The meeting began with a brief history of Syria, delivered by parish councillor Janet King.
The meeting focused on promoting cultural integration and understanding as siblings, Razan, 18, and Hassan Adi, 26, spoke about their Syrian parents who fled the war in the 1980s.
Razan is studying for A-levels and plans to become an English teacher.
She said: “The meeting was friendly and welcoming.
“I felt the whole community wanted to support this cause.
“Considering it’s only their second meeting, the turn-out was amazing.
“It’s nice to see people from other religions and backgrounds that want to help.”
There was also a presentation from Joseph, a young Christian Eritrean refugee who travelled through Calais now studying for A Levels.
The group aims to provide solutions to storage space for donations and are calling out to members of the Bromsgrove community to contact them with offers of help.
Bromsgrove MP, Sajid Javid has also praised the work of Bromsgrove Welcomes Refugees.
“I have asked the specially-appointed Minister for Refugees how soon we can expect these families to arrive and to confirm exactly what financial support will be available.”
The meeting welcomed a diverse group of residents from local churches, schools and from Muslim and Arabic communities from across Bromsgrove district, Northfield and Rednal gathered at last week’s meeting.
Group committee member, Dr John Cochrane, said: “The big question now is how soon can we welcome some of these very vulnerable people from the refugee camps and how many will the council agree to take?”
A spokesperson for Worcestershire County Council said discussions were continuing to see what resources were available, adding the authority was continuing to lobby Government to ensure an appropriate support package would be in place.
The next meeting will take place at at St Peter’s Church Hall at 8pm on January 20.
E-mail [email protected] for more information or to support the cause.
