Beyond Borders Totnes & District is a network that enables local people to lend support to local asylum seekers and refugees at this daunting time.
Established in 2015 during the Syrian crisis, most of our volunteers are in Totnes and the surrounding areas. Since that time, there have been a number of crises in different countries that have led people to flee for their lives.
Initially the majority of the refugees and asylum seekers we served were in Plymouth. Towards the end of 2022, the government began sending asylum seekers to hotels in mostly coastal towns, to wait for their applications for asylum to be received by the Home Office. Asylum seekers housed in hotels in the Torbay area were a priority for our volunteering efforts in 2023.
Since then the Home office policy has changed again, and asylum-seekers are housed across the country in shared housing provided by the relevant local authority, or in converted barracks or the infamous Bibby Stockholm barge in Portland. We launched a petition in 2023 to put pressure on the government to end the use of this overcrowded and inhuman accommodation which was signed by 50000 people.
Families and individuals are currently housed more widely than just to the former ‘dispersal centres’ which were mainly in big towns and cities.
Our work continues in Plymouth and more locally. Plymouth is our nearest Home Office dispersal city, where asylum seekers and refugees are allocated temporary accommodation while their applications are processed – this can take years. BBT&D have been able to channel a range of local support through official Plymouth refugee and asylum seeker organisations and to some individuals. Through local events and initiatives, we build awareness about the realities asylum seekers and refugees face.
Please read carefully our GUIDELINES section to deepen understanding of asylum seekers’ and refugees’ needs.
This website provides a hub of links and information about local refugee support initiatives. We collaborate with initiatives that actively engaged with refugees such as the British Red Cross, Devon and Cornwall Refugee Support, Plymouth Hope, Mount Gould Hospital Refugee team in Plymouth, and local groups. Information about these organisations can be found on the CONTACT page of this website.
Contact: info@beyondborderstotnes.org.uk
Website imagery: Le Grand van Gough, bronze sculpture by Bruno Catalano
Beyond Borders Totnes & District 