Where do you go if you move to Leeds from another country, and need support with housing, money, finding work or your health? If you’ve fled your home country, who can support your first steps as a refugee?
Two new websites have been launched in Leeds to help answer these questions, and more, for people making a new life here:
- The Transition Guide is designed to be a simple guide to the first six months of being a refugee in Leeds (from the first steps you must take when you receive your Leave to Remain onwards).
- New to Leeds is a guide for anyone who is new to Leeds, including migrants from across the world.
The websites feature a wide range of topics to help people settle into life in Leeds including health, money, housing, employment, staying safe and more, and offer translation options for over 20 community languages.
Both websites have been developed by Leeds charities Leeds Asylum Seekers’ Support Network (LASSN) and Touchstone, and are commissioned by Leeds City Council.
The experiences of refugees and migrants in Leeds have been key to the development of the two websites, from inputting into the content, right through to some of the photography which was provided by the Tales of a City Photography Club, a Leeds photography group for refugees.
The websites are part of MAP+ (Migrant Access Project Plus), which is commissioned by Leeds City Council, led by Touchstone, and runs until July 2019. MAP+ aims to bring new migrant and settled communities to work together in a way that benefits people in their local area. The project forms part of Leeds City Council’s Migration Strategy to ensure a strategic, co-ordinated and inclusive approach to migration in the city.
Transition Guide, for refugees in Leeds: www.transitionguide.org.uk
New to Leeds, a simple guide to life in Leeds: www.newtoleeds.org
If you would like to request promotional cards and posters please contact mapp@touchstonesupport.org.uk
