The Romanian and Eastern European Hub

19/06/2026

🌸 Sărbătorim împreună Ziua Iei! 🌸

Dragi doamne și dragi copii, vă invităm cu drag să ni vă alăturați la un eveniment special dedicat tradițiilor românești și bucuriei de a fi împreună 🇷🇴✨

Acest eveniment este dedicat femeilor și copiilor din comunitate și vă oferă ocazia să petreceți câteva ore într-o atmosferă prietenoasă și primitoare, unde să socializăm, să ne conectăm și să celebrăm cultura noastră.

🌟 Ce am pregătit pentru dumneavoastră:
💆🏻‍♀️ Momente de răsfăț dedicate doamnelor
🍕 Gustări și prânz pentru dumneavoastră și cei mici
🎤 Un invitat special care va împărtăși informații utile pentru părinți
🎨 Ateliere creative cu inspirație tradițională pentru copii
📅 Sâmbătă, 27 iunie | ora 15:00
📍 Victoria Hall, Main entrance next to St John Baptist Church, Sheepcote Rd, Harrow HA1 2JE

👚 Dacă aveți o ie, vă încurajăm să o purtați cu mândrie și să sărbătorim împreună!

🎟️ Participarea este gratuită – vă așteptăm cu drag!

18/06/2026

☀️ Heatwave alert for London (18–23 June)

An Amber Heat-Health Alert is in place from today until Tuesday evening. The hot weather can affect all of us — especially young children, older people, and those with health conditions.

💛 Please take a few simple steps to stay safe and support those around you:
❤️ Check in on family, neighbours, or friends who may need support
🗺️ Find a nearby cool space to rest: Cool Spaces map
💧 Drink plenty of water throughout the day
😎 Try to stay out of the sun between 11am–3pm

👉 More advice on staying safe in hot weather:
Coping with hot weather
• https://www.london.gov.uk/programmes-strategies/environment-and-climate-change/coping-hot-weather
Beat the Heat advice
• https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/beat-the-heat-hot-weather

Let’s look out for each other and stay safe during the heat 🌿

12/06/2026

We are still smiling after such an amazing International Children’s Day Celebration we had on 6th of June! 🎉

​A huge thank you to all the families who came out to Victoria Hall to celebrate with us. We had a blast with the face painting, arts & crafts, photo corner and kids' entertainment! 🎨✨

​❤️ Our deepest gratitude goes out to our wonderful team, trustees, and funders. Your dedication and support made this beautiful day a reality for so many children in our community.

​📸 Want the photos from the day? If you’d like copies of the pictures of your little ones, please send us a direct message and we’ll gladly share them with you! 📥

10/06/2026

Do you know your rights as a patient?

Many people are not aware that they have clear rights when accessing healthcare in the UK—and that support is available beyond medical treatment.

The Patients Association has developed a helpful factsheet:
👉 “Knowing your rights and accessing support as a patient”
This resource highlights that:
✔️ You have the right to be treated with dignity, respect and fairness, regardless of your background
✔️ Your care should meet your needs and take into account your preferences and circumstances
✔️ You can access support beyond healthcare, including financial help, advocacy services and community organisations
✔️ Social and economic challenges (such as housing or cost of living) can affect your health—and support is available

💡 The factsheet is designed to help patients better understand their rights, navigate services, and access the support they need.
🌍 Good news: This information is available in multiple languages, including Romanian:
👉 View the translated factsheets
https://www.patients-association.org.uk/patient-information-resources-arabic-bengali-portuguese-punjabi-romanian-urdu

We encourage our community to explore these resources and feel empowered when accessing healthcare services.

With funding from GSK and Novartis, we’ve translated two of our factsheets: Knowing your rights and accessing support as a patient and Getting the most out of your appointments into Arabic, Bengali, Portuguese, Romanian and Urdu.

05/06/2026

📢 Reminder: Join us this Saturday for International Children’s Day

We’re looking forward to welcoming families this Sunday for a fun-filled International Children’s Day Celebration!
This is a vibrant community event for children of all ages and all nationalities to come together, play, and make new friends 🌍✨
🎉 What to expect:

Kids entertainer
Face painting
Arts & crafts
Traditional Eastern European food

🗓 When: Sunday, 6 June
🕐 Time: 2:30 PM – 5:30 PM
📍 Where: Victoria Hall (main entrance next to St John Baptist Church), Sheepcote Rd, Harrow, HA1 2JE
✅ Free and open to all
We encourage families from our diverse communities in Harrow to join us and celebrate together.

Feel free to share with friends or family who may be interested.

01/06/2026

🍎 Need help to buy healthy food for your family?
The Healthy Start scheme could support you 💚

If you are:
✔️ More than 10 weeks pregnant
✔️ Or have a child under 4
You may be eligible for help to buy healthy food and access free vitamins.

👉 What you can get:
A Healthy Start card with money added every 4 weeks
Use it to buy essentials such as:
• Milk
• Fruit and vegetables
• Pulses (e.g. beans, lentils)
• Infant formula [healthystart.nhs.uk]
Free Healthy Start vitamins for you and your children

👉 Who can apply:
Families on certain benefits (such as Universal Credit with low income)
Pregnant under 18s (even if not on benefits)

This support is here to help families access healthy food during pregnancy and early childhood. 💛
🔗 Check if you’re eligible and apply here:
https://www.gov.uk/healthy-start

26/05/2026

📣 Have your voice heard – Gambling Harms Workshop (Barnet residents)

Have you, or someone close to you, been affected by gambling in a way that caused stress, worry, or harm?
A local workshop is taking place on Monday 22 June (11:30am–1:00pm) at Hendon Town Hall, offering a safe and supportive space to share experiences and help shape better support services in Barnet.

💬 This session will:
Listen to lived experiences of gambling-related harm
Explore barriers to accessing support
Help improve future services for the community

🍴 Participants will receive a £22 voucher and lunch as a thank you for their time.
👉 The workshop is open to Barnet residents aged 18+ who feel comfortable sharing and listening in a respectful environment.

If this may be relevant to you or someone you know, we encourage you to learn more and sign up via the below Eventbrite link

Have you or someone close to you been affected by gambling in a way that caused stress, worry, or harm? Share your experience and insight.

23/05/2026

🎉​International Children’s Day Celebration! 🎉

​Looking for a fun-filled afternoon for the whole family? We invite you to a vibrant celebration of International Children’s Day!

​Whether you’re a toddler or a teen, and no matter where in the world you call home, we want you there.

This is a community event for children of all ages and all nationalities to come together, play, and make new friends! 🌍✨

​🗓 When & Where
​Date: 6 June
​Time: 2:30 PM – 5:30 PM
​Location: Victoria Hall, main entrance next to St John Baptist Church, Sheepcote Rd, Harrow, HA1 2JE

13/05/2026

📢 Sharing an opportunity to take part in research

We’re helping spread the word about a research study led by the University of Oxford, looking to hear from people from Eastern European communities living in the UK who have experienced a respiratory infection.

The study involves a 45–60 minute interview (online or in person), and participants receive £25 in high street vouchers as a thank you for their time.
👉 Please see the poster for full details about who’s eligible and how to get in touch with the research team.

If you think this might be relevant to you — or someone you know — please feel free to take a look or share.

06/05/2026

🗳️ Did you know?
Local elections are taking place tomorrow, and voting is one of the ways people can have a say in how local decisions are made and how community needs are represented.
If you’re voting in person, you’ll need to bring accepted photo ID with you.
Before heading out, you can:
✅ Check where your polling station is
👉 https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/your-election-information
✅ Check which photo ID is accepted for voting in England
👉 https://www.gov.uk/how-to-vote/photo-id-youll-need
This post is for information only and links to official guidance. 💙