Napier Friends

22/10/2026

Hello everyone! ☀️

A few weeks ago we were all doing a happy dance because our local council of Folkestone and Hythe voted to move towards becoming a ‘District of Sanctuary’.

It feels like a bit of a no brainer, it just means that the area will be more welcoming and easier to navigate for those in the unfortunate position of having to seek sanctuary.

Unfortunately, this simple idea has become muddied by misinformation and inevitably become divisive, so much so that a petition against the Sanctuary Status has been launched 🙁.

Thankfully there is a counter petition, where you can show your support. Please give it a sign:

https://folkestone-hythe.moderngov.co.uk/mgEPetitionDisplay.aspx?id=56

Thank you as ever to Folkestone Action Network for these informative pictures.

09/10/2026

This week Folkestone and Hythe Council have voted overwhelmingly to pass the motion for the area to become a ‘District of Sanctuary’.

This means that the council will seek official ‘City of Sanctuary’ status and will be committed to making this a fair and welcoming area for everyone in the community.

They plan to make a practical plan for integration and work with local organisations, to create a supportive community.

Thank you to everyone who voted and put forward this motion. What can we say? We are ready, bring it on! We look forward to becoming part of ‘The Folkestone and Hythe District of Sanctuary’
🎉🎉🎉🎉🥳🥳🥳🥳🎉🎉🎉🎉🙌🙌🙌🙌

29/09/2026

Last weekend, some of our Napier Friends community took part in this epic fundraising hike with Steps For Sudan. They have almost reached their fundraising target too 🙌 just a tiny smidgen to go.

here’s the link to donate if you’d like to support and help them to reach their goal

https://goodwillcaravan.donorsupport.co/page/FUNMJCVMPMQ?element=XLWZHFLA&fundraiser=NEJRBHMF&member=SFUZRFWQ

15/09/2026

A very happy and productive morning at our joint community garden. We harvested, curly kale, chard, tomatoes and apples. Some of which have been donated to the local community pantry. The rest of the produce will go home with our participants and is destined to make ‘dolma’, yummy!

We also had our volunteer bike mechanic with us today mending a bike, they are heading off to uni any day, we wish them all the best and can’t thank them enough 🙏

02/09/2026

It’s really satisfying to follow the journey of the secondhand bikes donated to us, from being serviced by our brilliant volunteer bike mechanic, to reaching a new happy owner!

Bikes are one of our most requested items, dispersal housing is often in remote areas and a bike can really make the difference in helping someone feel more connected to the community and attend English lessons or support sessions.

We always supply a lock and helmet and guidance on road safety.

21/08/2026

Games are just so great for connecting people aren’t they?!

Things are getting super competitive at our Thursdays Together sessions 👀

Current favs are: Ok Play, Blockus, Dobble and Jenga. These games are all very accessible and require little English, although in the case of Dobble, vocabulary may be extended to include some interesting and obscure words 😅🦓🌵⚓️🔒🎼🫟☯️

What do you think would be a fun new game for us to try next

04/07/2026

Fleeing civil war and growing up in a refugee camp to then captaining a World Cup sqaud.

Germany and Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger, whose family fled Sierra Leone's civil war, is among those campaigning for a change in global attitudes around refugees.

22/06/2026

Refugee Week is now over for another year and our local community has been brought together by conferences, festivals, picnics, lunches, music and sport.

We contemplated the theme of courage, how it is sometimes huge and extraordinary but more often found in the everyday, in finding the strength to keep going, facing the unknown or in the small but crucial act of reaching out to offer a welcome.

Big thanks to all involved!

15/06/2026

Refugee week is here..

The theme this year is courage and we meet and work with people with buckets of it!

It also takes courage to stand up for minorities and to challenge lazy assumptions that are casually said to us as we go about our daily lives.

So thank you to all of our community for being an ally and for your continued solidarity.

05/06/2026

Come and join us on Friday 19th June at Docker Brewery for a feast of Ethiopian flavours in celebration of Refugee Week. Tickets are free to reserve and pay what you can on the day. We hope to see you there!! 🙏🙏🙏

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/refugee-week-ethiopian-pop-up-tickets-1990518809342