2024 in review
2024 has been a really positive year for the Resettlement service. We are now hosting 390 Ukrainians and 18 Afghan families in Cornwall. Altogether we have helped over 1000 people by providing:
- initial welcomes
- accommodation
- ongoing assistance
We have many families now securing work. Some are also volunteering to enhance employability skills and give back to communities. This year we’ve also helped over 100 people to increase their independence by moving into private sector accommodation.
We’ve been overwhelmed by the positivity of our communities in 2024. The team have heard about and witnessed some heart-warming stories of compassion and welcome. This includes neighbours providing:
- home baked cakes
- school uniforms
- clothes
- toys
These acts of kindness have been so important to families who have fled their own country because they are at risk.
Government visit
In August we hosted a visit by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to Nansledan. The following is an excerpt from the letter we received following this visit:
"As an area with significant rurality, which poses significant challenges to successful resettlement outcomes, the success you’ve had in integrating the families. In particular:
- How the arrivals of the Ukrainian cohort helped to catalyse resettlement activity and change perceptions in the area.
- That the local scarcity of institutions and services such as mosques and halal foodstores doesn’t necessarily preclude successful resettlement outcomes, and therefore vice versa, the existence of such places in an area isn’t in themselves a guarantee of successful outcomes.
- Experience of an area by arrivals, and contact with arrivals by local residents, is key to overcoming pre-conceptions
- The large geographic area of Cornwall provides both challenges and opportunities, for us it was useful to see this in person and to help us consider how we can adopt a more nuanced approach to resettlement policy in the future.
"On a more general point, we were struck by the enthusiasm of everyone we met and the clear collaborative work being done across different teams in the council. There was clearly join up within Cornwall council which isn’t always in the case, particularly in some very large institutions where teams might be much closer geographically but inversely there’s a more siloed approach to work."
Community grants
We have used our funding from central government to contribute more than £57,000 to voluntary groups and local organisations. This is for refugee-related projects across the county, including:
- Cornish culture learning sessions including trips to culturally important local places such as:
- Carn Brea
- Cape Cornwall
- Kresen Kernow
- A wellbeing pilot project
- Social drop ins and conversations clubs at different locations across Cornwall Council
- A programme of community creative arts for refugee children and their classmates to work on together, sharing cultures
- Free team sports sessions in Truro bringing together local and refugee children to play and have fun together.
- £5000 was given to Outreach Paramedics in Cornwall. This was to help fund their storage facility for vital medical supplies sent on aid runs to Ukraine.
- A variety of Diversity and community events to encourage Welcome and support community integration.
- Community workshops and information events during global Refugee Week.
- Volunteer training and community group activities,
- Surf therapy activity sessions for Separated Children Seeking Asylum through joint working with Together for Families.
- Funding for Ukrainian community choir group activity.
- Welcome packs for gardens and window boxes from Kehelland Trust.
More grants are available for 2025. So please, if you know of a local group that focus on Welcome to all in their community and who want to be part of a growing movement of belonging to an area please get in touch:
Into 2025
The UK government’s focus changes to a more global approach to displacement in 2025. We expect to see more people coming to Cornwall from different parts of the world experiencing fear and persecution. The numbers are still very low in our population.