LATEST NEWS
HELP 2nd Year Anniversary
We celebrated the second year since opening our premises in Peterborough city centre. Our trustees and staff team came together to share an Iftari meal towards the end of Ramadan, on the 4th April our day of first opening.
HELP for Easter Holiday Fun
Thanks to funding from PCVS & ICS, we have been able to offer several day trips for people on low incomes. This was our 3rd trip this year. We went to Laser Force in Peterborough, with a group of 23 kids and their carers for 2 hours of fun and exercise!
HELP for Half-Term Holidays
We have been providing free sessions for the school Half-Term holidays this February, with two arts & crafts sessions for young people and a special Occupational Therapy session providing advice for parents of children with sensory struggles.
HELP from local businesses
Thank you to Buster & Punch, whose staff collected together lots of gifts for children and toiletries for those who are struggling. Also thanks to volunteers from Sodexo and Pure Table Top who came to wrap gifts for children.
HELP with visiting London
A group of our service users enjoyed a trip to London with us, thanks to funding from PCVS & CPICS. We travelled by train, to see Big Ben, the London Eye, Natural History Museum, Science Museum and had a picnic in Hyde Park. Some of the group had their first experience of travelling by train.
HELP at Football sessions
Our team are running weekly football sessions for refugees and asylum seekers in Peterborough through-out April. Kindly funded by Living Sport and assisted by Netherton Football Club.
HELP at refugee accommodation
Our Outreach manager and volunteers visited a local hotel housing refugee families and delivered a fun Easter holiday session with the kids. We made bracelets, painted, played parachute games, tennis and pavement chalks.
HELP for Refugee Employment
On 20th February, we joined together with the Red Cross to put on a jobs fair at the Quaker house in Peterborough. Lots of people came along to speak with the employers present and it was a successful day, thanks to all who attended!
Click to read article by EELGA
HELP from local businesses
A big thanks to Institute of Export & International Trade who donated us 7 bikes for those in need, from their end of year conference. Also thanks to A&I group who organised the logistics and The Bikes College who checked the bikes and delivered to us.
HELP with visiting beach
A group of our service users enjoyed a trip to Hunstanton with us, thanks to funding from PCVS & CPICS. We borrowed a minibus to go to the seaside for the day, swimming, building sandcastles, eating fish & chips, and even a fairground ride. None of the service users had been to the beach in England before.
HELP with Coronation parade
Our lovely sewing tutor Fatima and the ladies in the sewing group at HELP, joined together to create a 25m long flag for the King's Coronation, at the request of the City Council.
HELP at Eid-Al-Fitr
Our team went along to Eid in the Park, at Central park in Peterborough. We had a lovely time celebrating with the Muslim community and sharing picnics.
HELP celebrate our 1st Birthday
Our team and service users celebrated our 1st Anniversary of opening the charity at the beginning of April. We received lovely cakes, flowers, balloons and artwork from our Ukrainian friends and had Peterborough Citizens and MP Paul Bristow with us to share the cakes.
HELP visit from Health Minister
We had a lovely visit from the Shadow Health Minister, the local Labour candidate and the Mayoress of Peterborough. We discussed our mental health support programme and how it has been helping people heal.
HELP with Ramadan
Our team delivered dates to asylum/sanctuary seekers housed in temporary accommodation in Peterborough, to help them to observe ramadan if they wished.
HELP with Empowering Women
Our team hosted a successful event for International Women's Day on the 8th March at the Peterborough Town Hall. We had speakers, a dancer, stalls, henna, face painting, photo booth, goodie bags, cakes and hot food.
HELP with fundraising at LUSH
Our founders spent the weekend with the team at LUSH Peterborough, raising awareness of our charity and vital funds to support our work. We handed out sweets and stickers to kids and had some great conversations with customers.
HELP with Ukraine Vigil
Our team helped organise, marshall and run the vigil for the one year anniversary of war in Ukraine. We brought along a 25m flag produced by our sewing group and handed out LED candles. We worked alongside Peterborough Council, Peterborough Cathedral and St. Olga's Church for the vigil, which saw hundreds of people come together in solidarity.
HELP Half-Term Sports
We had lots of kids come along and enjoy our sports session at the Focus Centre. We had parachute games, tug-of-war, musical chairs, archery, football, boxing, tennis, frisbee, space hoppers, a scooter board, crafts and refreshments.
HELP Campaigning for Citizens
Several of our team went to Peterborough Citizens Member's Assembly, to report on the listening done at H.E.L.P. We listened to the issues people are facing in the city and voted on the priorities for this year's campaigns.
HELP for student trip to UK
A group of German college students who were visiting the UK on an educational trip, asked if they could come to see us and learn about the issues refugees face in integration and belonging within the UK. Our founders were happy to welcome them to our offices and deliver an educational discussion.
HELP from U.S Forces
We had lots of help from volunteers working for the US Air forces in Cambridgeshire. They have helped to assemble furniture for Ukrainians, wrap christmas gifts for children and also brought donated toys for the Christmas gift giving. Anna helped us at the Christmas party and also brought along some lovely cards and pictures from the children on the base, for refugee children.
HELP from Santa for our Party
It was great to have Santa come to our Christmas party and give out gifts, we also had help from a talented face painting volunteer and DJ Stef. There was lots of food and bouncy castle fun. Thanks also to the beauty queens, snowman and the Mayor. Anna ran a great badge making activity too!
HELP from local businesses for Xmas
Lots of local businesses donated to our Christmas party. We had a whopping 120 mince pies donated by Tesco, lots of lovely cakes and cookies baked for us by 'Cakes for Kids' and lots of gifts donated by Dunelm customers. We also had another generous company who sponsored the other costs of the party but wished to stay anonymous.
HELP for Christmas treats
During December we handed out christmas treats and gifts to families and individuals who are struggling and need a little help with Christmas joy. Thanks to Kingsgate who donated these treats.
HELP for Homes4Ukraine Hosts
We have held a series of support and information events for sponsors/hosts on the Homes for Ukraine scheme. We provide time for sharing experiences, Q&As, information on moving on after hosting and any other advice needed.
HELP for Christmas wrapping
It was a pleasure to have these young lads from the
Princes Trust, come to wrap Christmas gifts for children in
need this festive season. They also decorated our tree for us!
HELP for empowering citizens
We joined Peterborough Citizens in their founding assembly, to celebrate joining the movement and working together with all the members to help the citizens of Peterborough see changes they want to see in the city.
HELP for half-term fun
We held a Halloween party for kids, with face painting, costumes to dress up in, party food, craft activities and party bags to take home. Lots of kids came and enjoyed themselves.
HELP for Homeless refugee
We had a request for help, from a man who fallen on difficult times. He needed support with a sleeping bag and tent to make him more comfortable as he was not eligible for council help.
HELP for men without shoes
One of our staff noticed that there were lots of refugee men housed in temporary accommodation who were walking around in flip flops and without coats. We ran an appeal and collected together over 90 pairs of trainers & boots, as well as coats, socks, scarves and jumpers.
HELP for ladies learning sewing
Due to popular demand, we started running sewing group twice a week, for ladies to come and socialise, learn new skills and enjoy a new hobby. We have 8 ladies regularly attend.
HELP at Salaam Radio Station
Three H.E.L.P co-founders were asked to join Ansar Ali on his Friday Radio programme with Salaam Radio. We enjoyed speaking with Ansar and letting the listeners know about our work in the city and wider county.
HELP with Uniform for refugee
We were asked for help with school uniform. She had asked the school for help, but was told to buy all new as there was no assistance for second-hand items. With only 1 supplier of the uniform, she had no alternative for more affordable options. We stepped in to help with the required school logo jumper, tie & P.E uniform to ease the cost.
HELP at Millfield Festival (August 2022)
We attended Millfield community festival, to join the fun with our community running an activity decorating wooden musical instruments. Lots of people enjoyed painting whistles, bells and xylaphones. We also joined in a game of
tug-of-war and enjoyed the music and carnival. It was great to see lots of familiar faces and meet new people too.
HELP recent work (July 2022)
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We provided a laptop for school work, to a family with 4 kids, who lost all their belongings in a house fire, with the help of Huntingdon District Council.
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We have provided many food parcels to individuals and families struggling to afford living costs.
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A bike helmet given to a young Ukrainian man who had a bike already but needed safety gear.
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Sunglasses given to an asylum seeking man who had eye problems after being hit by a car.
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We provided a pushchair with rain-cover to a refugee family in Cambridge, through our friends CRRC (Cambridge Refugee Resettlement Campaign).
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A duvet was given to a recently housed homeless lady.
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A child's bike given to a 5 year old and 8 year old refugee girls.
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A sleeping bag and hiking rucksack to a Ukrainian school boy going on school activity camp.
HELP requested for men in hotel
We were asked for assistance for some men housed in a dispersal hotel. We provided t-shirts, trousers, jumpers and some shoes which we had in the correct sizes.
HELP with a bike (July 2022)
We were asked by one of our Ukrainian friends for help sourcing a bike to get around the city. We were able to help her to get from A to B more easily.
HELP celebrating Refugee Week
As part of Refugee Week 2022, we handed out wellness themed goody bags to refugees and their families. We also have a range of healing and wellness themed books and refugee related books for people to access at our centre.
HELP learning English (June 2022)
We have two groups of Ukrainian students who are attending beginners' English classes with us twice a week. Classes started the first week of June and will run for 6 weeks.
HELP with new baby (June 2022)
We were made aware of a refugee family who needed help to afford a double buggy for their new family member. We were able to source them this system to help them get around.
HELP with settling in (May 2022)
These bikes went out to a newly arrived Ukrainian family, to help them be able to get out and enjoy seeing their new home city Cambridge. Thanks to a donation of a boys bike and the kind volunteer who repaired the adult bike.
HELP with mobility (May 2022)
This mobility scooter, which was kindly donated to us, was given to a lady who was struggling with getting to the shops for weekly essentials. This should mean she can now have increased independence and make life less of a struggle.
HELP at local events (May 2022)
We have recently attended Eid in the Park & Peterborough Celebrates festival, to spread the word about our free help services. Lots of children enjoyed the balloons and teddies!
HELP for Ukraine (March 2022)
We recently delivered lots of warm coats, jumpers, winter shoes, scarves, hats, nappies, bandages and some baby food, to a collection by 'Stand with Ukraine Against War' a local organisation sending aid to the Polish border and into Ukraine.
HELP with equipment (Jan 2022)
We were contacted by an asylum seeking family with a young boy in need of a wheelchair. We were able to source him this one, to help him get out and about with his family.
HELP by our trustees
Our Trustees play an active part in helping the charity. Ahmed and his son helped us this week by servicing one of our donated bikes. We also have a couple of other bike repairing/ servicing volunteers.
HELP with transport (June 2022)
This man was referred to us by Care4Calais, who asked if we could help an asylum seeker with a bicycle to get around. Our volunteer serviced this bike and we gave it out with a lock too.
HELP with hobbies (May 2022)
We were referred a teenage refugee who dreamed of learning to play the guitar properly but couldn't afford one and has no family around. We were able to source him this guitar with a case and a beginners book to help him with his learning.
HELP handing out free food
We collect surplus food from supermarkets and Greggs etc, to distribute to people who can use it. It is usually given out to a mixture of families, homeless individuals and those struggling to afford food.
HELP with clothing and more
We have many people who come in needing clothes, coats, toiletries, shoes or toys for their children. We also hold some school uniform, dry foods and nappies. We cannot store furniture due to limited storage.
HELP with food parcels
We delivered a food parcel to a lady who is struggling financially and with her mobility. We have been giving out around 5 food parcels a week, with demand increasing.
HELP for teen refugee (April 2022)
We had a request for a bike for an unaccompanied asylum seeking teenager, so that he could get to college 40 minutes away. We were able to pass on this bike which was kindly donated to us. We also gave him a lock and lights to help with safety.
HELP with small projects
We provided some bicycle safety kit to a small local refugee bike project based at 'The Green Backyard' in Peterborough, which aims to teach bicycle maintenance and safety to young refugees. We have some helmets, lights, bike locks and other bits to support this grass roots project.