We hold regular meetings which are free and open to the general public as well as members. We invite experts by experience to share their knowledge and expertise with us. We also invite speakers on critical issues, such as government policy, climate change and migration.
For information on the next open meeting, please visit the Upcoming Events section on the Homepage.
Stalls and talks:
Each year, in June we mark Refugee Week with an information stall in Cliffe Precinct, Lewes. We have given talks to local organisations, including faith groups, community groups, Depot Cinema audiences and professionals working in the field.
We welcome enquiries and would be happy to provide your group with a speaker or an information stall.
Every autumn term we lead workshops with all of the Year 8 classes at Priory School, Lewes, about what it means to be a refugee or a person seeking asylum. The students consistently impress us with their empathy and understanding.
To mark Refugee Week, assemblies are held in local primary schools and colleges
We welcome invitations from other schools and colleges to run similar sessions.
There is a lot of misinformation in the media about refugees and asylum seekers. It is important to separate the facts from the rhetoric. Try our quiz!
Q1
How much money do people seeking asylum in the UK have to live on each day?
Correct
The right answer is (a) £7.02. This has to cover all food, clothes, travel costs, toiletries etc. The average time it takes the Home Office to make a decision on an asylum claim, is between one and three years. For all that time asylum seekers are forbidden from working, so they have no opportunity to earn money.
Asylum seekers who are placed in hotels or old army camps are given some basic food, but they only have £1.42 per day for all their other needs.
Incorrect
The right answer is (a) £7.02. This has to cover all food, clothes, travel costs, toiletries etc. The average time it takes the Home Office to make a decision on an asylum claim, is between one and three years. For all that time asylum seekers are forbidden from working, so they have no opportunity to earn money.
Asylum seekers who are placed in hotels or old army camps are given some basic food, but they only have £1.42 per day for all their other needs.
Incorrect
The right answer is (a) £7.02. This has to cover all food, clothes, travel costs, toiletries etc. The average time it takes the Home Office to make a decision on an asylum claim, is between one and three years. For all that time asylum seekers are forbidden from working, so they have no opportunity to earn money.
Asylum seekers who are placed in hotels or old army camps are given some basic food, but they only have £1.42 per day for all their other needs.
Incorrect
The right answer is (a) £7.02. This has to cover all food, clothes, travel costs, toiletries etc. The average time it takes the Home Office to make a decision on an asylum claim, is between one and three years. For all that time asylum seekers are forbidden from working, so they have no opportunity to earn money.
Asylum seekers who are placed in hotels or old army camps are given some basic food, but they only have £1.42 per day for all their other needs.
Q2
What percentage of the UK population have refugee backgrounds?
Incorrect
The right answer is (d) 0.6%. That is the equivalent of less than two children in an average sized primary school.
Incorrect
The right answer is (d) 0.6%. That is the equivalent of less than two children in an average sized primary school.
Incorrect
The right answer is (d) 0.6%. That is the equivalent of less than two children in an average sized primary school.
Correct
The right answer is (d) 0.6%. That is the equivalent of less than two children in an average sized primary school.
Q3
Which European country had the highest number of applications from asylum seekers last year?
Incorrect
The right answer is (c) Germany at 229,695 in 2024, followed by Spain (164,101); Italy (151,120) and France (130,860). The UK came fourth with about 50,000, but some countries, e.g. Cyprus, with a much smaller population, had proportionately more applications per head of population.
Incorrect
The right answer is (c) Germany at 229,695 in 2024, followed by Spain (164,101); Italy (151,120) and France (130,860). The UK came fourth with about 50,000, but some countries, e.g. Cyprus, with a much smaller population, had proportionately more applications per head of population.
Correct
The right answer is (c) Germany at 229,695 in 2024, followed by Spain (164,101); Italy (151,120) and France (130,860). The UK came fourth with about 50,000, but some countries, e.g. Cyprus, with a much smaller population, had proportionately more applications per head of population.
Incorrect
The right answer is (c) Germany at 229,695 in 2024, followed by Spain (164,101); Italy (151,120) and France (130,860). The UK came fourth with about 50,000, but some countries, e.g. Cyprus, with a much smaller population, had proportionately more applications per head of population.
Q4
What are the legal routes to claim asylum in the UK ?
Incorrect
The right answer is (d) none of the above. There is no such thing as a refugee visa or any visa that allows a person to claim asylum in the UK.
Sometimes the UK Government has worked with the UNHCR on limited special resettlement programmes, e.g. from Syria.
There are specific vulnerable groups, e.g. Ukrainians who have been given the right to get visas to come here legally, but they are only short-term visas.
The ONLY way people seeking safety from other dangerous/war-torn countries can claim asylum in the UK is if they can get themselves here without papers, which is why criminal trafficking by dangerous routes is flourishing.
Incorrect
The right answer is (d) none of the above. There is no such thing as a refugee visa or any visa that allows a person to claim asylum in the UK.
Sometimes the UK Government has worked with the UNHCR on limited special resettlement programmes, e.g. from Syria.
There are specific vulnerable groups, e.g. Ukrainians who have been given the right to get visas to come here legally, but they are only short-term visas.
The ONLY way people seeking safety from other dangerous/war-torn countries can claim asylum in the UK is if they can get themselves here without papers, which is why criminal trafficking by dangerous routes is flourishing.
Incorrect
The right answer is (d) none of the above. There is no such thing as a refugee visa or any visa that allows a person to claim asylum in the UK.
Sometimes the UK Government has worked with the UNHCR on limited special resettlement programmes, e.g. from Syria.
There are specific vulnerable groups, e.g. Ukrainians who have been given the right to get visas to come here legally, but they are only short-term visas.
The ONLY way people seeking safety from other dangerous/war-torn countries can claim asylum in the UK is if they can get themselves here without papers, which is why criminal trafficking by dangerous routes is flourishing.
Correct
The right answer is (d) none of the above. There is no such thing as a refugee visa or any visa that allows a person to claim asylum in the UK.
Sometimes the UK Government has worked with the UNHCR on limited special resettlement programmes, e.g. from Syria.
There are specific vulnerable groups, e.g. Ukrainians who have been given the right to get visas to come here legally, but they are only short-term visas.
The ONLY way people seeking safety from other dangerous/war-torn countries can claim asylum in the UK is if they can get themselves here without papers, which is why criminal trafficking by dangerous routes is flourishing.
HOW CAN I HELP?
Become a member
Lewes Refugee Support Group is a membership organisation. We welcome new members who share our aims.
