The theme of Refugee Week 2026 is COURAGE, with special artwork created by Quentin Blake to promote simple acts of solidarity. Events are being held across Cambridge, including film nights, conferences and art exhibitions. For a diary of events, see www.humanmovement.cam.ac.uk/events.

This year's Woolf Annual Lecture on 7 May is being given by former Labour Minister, Professor John Denham, on the theme 'The Struggle to Belong'. Venue: Woolf Institute, 5-7pm. For more, please go to www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-woolf-...

Join Pembroke College & the charity Healing Venezuela for a film screening & talk by the charity's founder, Cinzia de Santis. Tickets are £12 (general admission), £6 for students. For more, please go to www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/beyond-the...

This isn’t a solution. It’s a dangerous escalation. Funding riot squads and violent policing against people fleeing war and persecution is shameful and inhumane. We know it will only push them into even more dangerous routes — and cost more lives. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/a...

In case you missed it: Applications for costs in immigration cases: what practitioners need to know | Leanna Burnard

A new deal with France will see the UK fund "a 50-strong riot squad trained in crowd-control tactics" to stop asylum seekers traveling across the channel. This deeply alarming deal will result in further brutalisation of those who have fled war and torture. Survivors need safety, not hostility.

Spoke to LBC News about Shabana Mahmood's supposed "landmark deal" with France to prevent people seeking asylum in the UK and how it is just a continuation of the same failed hostile policies of the last government.

I rarely share crowdfunders, because I know how hard everything is for so many people, and cannot possibly share all of the ones I am asked to. @imixuk.bsky.social is so important for so many, and the team so superb. Helping ensure they can continue is crucial. www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/speakingou...

A reminder for this government: Returning people to active war zones or where they face persecution, in countries like Afghanistan, Sudan and Iran, is both inhumane, and unlawful. This escalation of brutality against refugees must end now. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

The Taliban’s new penal code legalizes #domesticviolence and forbids women from leaving home. Our latest report. www.humanrightsresearch.org/post/nowhere... #HRRC #HumanRights #Afghanistan #WomensRights  #GBV #GenderApartheid

tag your MP today in this to ask them to join us calling for proposals to end refugee status to be put to parliament so we can do our job and scrutinise the impact this could have on those already here in our country. This motion if debated could stop these proposals.

"There is nothing fair or compassionate about keeping families divided." Well done to faith leaders for speaking out against this attack on family life. Family reunion must be restored, so children aren't left trapped in danger and separated from their families. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

Children are children first. Our new briefing sets out reforms designed to centre and protect children in the wake of the government's new asylum and settlement changes: stable status, safe family reunion, fair age assessment and independent guardianship. www.refugeecouncil.org.uk/stay-informe...

Meloni, migration and the EU Parliament's vote on 'return hubs' #Refugees

"It will be very hard for us to integrate and to try to be part of a community when there is a lot of uncertainty and anxiety around our status, our existence and our livelihood" Brilliant campaigners Omot & Myranda tell the BBC why 'earned settlement' is so dangerous: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

As many refugee charities have said from the start, this cruel policy: · does real additional harm to people seeking safety · fails to deter crossings · is performative and headline-grabbing Time to scrap it and create safe routes. https://bit.ly/4bw0Gam

UK immigration rule changes 2026: What you need to know #Refugees

Home is not something people walk away from lightly. When people become refugees, it’s because they had no other choice. Because staying is no longer safe. Show your solidarity with those forced to leave everything behind. 💙

It's no surprise. Here's one example of why: the grant rate for initial claims from Afghanistan is 34%. The Foreign Office advises against all travel to "volatile" Afghanistan - it's a country we know is unsafe. So why would only 34% of people fleeing it need sanctuary?

This week, the Home Office launched a consultation on its Use of Force Policy - indicating its intent to use force on families and children during enforced removals. Let's be clear: using force on children is utterly unacceptable. Period.

🚨 New: Not a Stranger Campaign Report Migrant-led insights on the harms of new immigration proposals that would expand “earned settlement” and deepen precarity for migrants. ✊ Read the report, engage your MP (template letter in the report), and support migrant-led advocacy. buff.ly/lzNg62C

From last week: Student and work visa bans imposed on some countries to prevent asylum claims | Colin Yeo

We’re proud to be attending a mass lobby in Parliament today. ✊📣 Hundreds of people will be meeting with their MPs to discuss the harmful and cruel Earned Settlement proposals. We’re attending to share our grave concerns. 1/🧵

Last week, it was announced that some people seeking asylum will lose support and accommodation. Forcing people into destitution or sleeping rough won't fix the system. Instead, it will shift costs to local authorities and the NHS, making cases harder to resolve www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

Packed mass lobby of parliament today to challenge the government’s earned settlement proposals that will mean some people waiting decades to properly rebuild their lives

🚨A prolonged war between the U.S./Israel and Iran risks displacement and humanitarian crises on a massive scale. We call for a rapid halt to this senseless conflict, and for all sides to adhere to their obligations to protect civilians from harm. www.refugeesinternational.org/statements-a...

U.S./Israel–Iran War on Course for Cataclysmic Civilian Harm, Displacement, and Humanitarian Need #Refugees

Read more: camcrag.org.uk/event/hart-t...

Read more on: camcrag.org.uk/event/spring...

Join CamCRAG Saturday 7 March, at St Giles’ Church for our spring fair! Afterwards, our sponsored volunteers will sleep in the church grounds to raise money for refugees in Europe and the hungry in Cambridge. Would you like to be a sponsored sleeper? For more, see camcrag.org.uk/event/spring...

A week of music from around the world – free entry to all events !

Join us tomorrow for an in-person public seminar with Dr Aristel Skrbic The price of Fortress Europe: Critical reflections on the EU’s migration policies and constitutional horizons 📍Oxford Department for International Development 📅 5pm, 4 Feb Registration not required www.rsc.ox.ac.uk/events

NEW: Nearly 23 million additional deaths are expected by 2030 as a result of aid cuts, a new report estimates. This analysis confirms what we’re already seeing- cuts to aid are not just budget decisions, they are death sentences for children. 1/2

We already see the harm current settlement routes can cause individuals, including mental and physical health issues, destitution and separation from families. All issues liable to increase under the current proposals. Please complete the consultation if you are able. 2/2 www.gov.uk/government/c...

Defending Refugees in Trump’s First Year #Refugees

Well worth watching.

It's hard to see how the Government expects to attract highly skilled workers while rewriting the rules to push out doctors, care workers, engineers - workers from ANY industry - already building lives here. If promises don’t hold, why would anyone trust them? www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

New year, same hostility. Today, new powers come into force subjecting men, women & children to invasive searches - including inside their mouths - to seize their phones. This comes despite a 2022 court ruling that found a similar policy unlawful. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

📷The first group of migrants crossing the English Channel in the new year arrived in Dover, UK, on Monday, January 5. Temperatures were reported to be bitterly cold at 1 °C, feeling like -3 °C. Pictures show what appear to be officials taking a stretcher on and off the boat.

New from Free Movement: Refugees at risk of street homelessness have until 16 January to extend their asylum accommodation | Ralitsa Peykova

Agdad Hilmi was 8 years old. She was one of at least 36 people who lost their lives in the Channel in 2025, searching for safety & family. Behind this number are real people, with names, stories, and loved ones. People who were loved and are deeply missed. www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...

Coffee & Chat at Cambridge Central Library - a relaxed gathering with refreshments, games & activities for adults and children. Free event supported by Cambridge Ethnic Community Forum. No English needed. Do book a date to come along via: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/coffee-cha...

#Ukraine/#Russia peace efforts should put people first: Free Ukrainian civilians held by Russia, prisoners of war on both sides, Russian political prisoners, and Ukrainian children deported or forcibly transferred by Russian authorities. Read more: www.hrw.org/news/2025/11...

Migrant women already face barriers to safety - proposed migration reforms threaten to heighten risk and make them even more vulnerable. Rights of Women stands in solidarity with women and the organisations supporting them. Full response: www.rightsofwomen.org.uk/government-m...

We’re taking part in the @refugeestogether.bsky.social winter poster action to show our communities stand with refugees. Order your free posters and display them in your windows from 5–7 December. Don’t forget to share photos of your posters with #HopeInEveryWindow Order now: lnkd.in/eupss5Kv

A reminder about the CHRISTMAS 2025 POTTERY EXHIBITION & SALE tomorrow and Sunday at 57 Ditton Walk, Cambridge CB5 8QD. Beautiful handmade ceramics for Christmas gifts! More details at: www.kilncambridge.com/events

Do come along to this Cambridge Ukrainian Studies event on UKRAINIAN RECONSTRUCTION. It will take the form of a conversation focusing on Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts amid the ongoing war. For more details, please go to: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rebuilding...

CHRISTMAS 2025 POTTERY EXHIBITION & SALE, 22-23 November Discover beautiful handmade ceramics at Kiln Cambridge, 57 Ditton Walk, Cambridge CB5 8QD. Over 35 potters will be showcasing their work. Perfect for Christmas gifts! More details at: www.kilncambridge.com/events

Show you stand together with refugees. From the 5-7 Dec we’re asking you to put up a poster to show you stand for hope not hostility. Let's fill our communities with this message of unity. Order your posters now actionnetwork.org/forms/order-...

History teaches us clearly: rights can be lost quickly if we don't defend them. Act now: amn.st/633227EWl4