Refugee Week is the world’s largest arts & culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. The festival is a partnership project coordinated by Counterpoints Arts.
This year’s theme is ‘Our Home’. There are many things that contribute to us feeling at home in a place, such as safety, belonging, and connection. These are things that everyone deserves and are all important to our mental health.
As an asylum seeker or refugee, it’s not always easy to feel at home in a new country. Even if we feel safe and secure, we also need to feel welcome, connected, and a sense of belonging.
In line with the Refugee Week theme, we’ve asked the refugees and asylum seekers we work with about what home means to them. Here’s what they said:
“Home means security, Home means love, Home means affection, Home means my spouse, Home means children and energy, Home means the exchange of love and kindness, Home means family and its beauty.”
"Home means a lot to me. It’s about being with family and sharing our culture and traditions. It’s attending events, enjoying our own food, and spending time with friends. Home is about missing the familiar climate, the flavors, and the places we long for. It's the nostalgia that takes us back to the past, reminding us of all our relationships with friends and family."
"Home for me means security and peace, being with family, being with those I love. Home is a place you can back from the everyday tiredness, it means relaxing with a cup of tea on the comfortable sofa, listening to the stories of loved ones. It means being together."
“Home is the place where we live our life, make memories, have a cup of tea when we need to start difficult conversation, Home is place where you can plan what we do next...”
“For me, home is a space where my safety, peace and acceptance are guaranteed as a protective entity that shields against both good and bad days, bridging the inner and outside worlds.”
“For me home means comfort and somewhere that I feel safe and love”
Everyone deserves to feel at home in the place they live. Thank you to our MHF volunteers for sharing what home means to them.
Supporting asylum seekers and refugees' mental health
Many refugees and asylum seekers are facing exceptionally difficult circumstances in the UK: poverty, financial insecurity, unemployment, lack of adequate housing, social isolation, loneliness, prejudice, stigma, and discrimination. These all put people at higher risk of poor mental health and prevent them from feeling at home in the UK.
But there is hope. We can change our systems and processes to better protect the mental health of refugees and asylum seekers. We know we can do better. Find out more about what we’re calling for.
The mental health of asylum seekers and refugees in the UK
This report presents evidence on the circumstances which asylum seekers and refugees in the UK can face, and how these experiences can harm their mental health and even lead to suicidal feelings and actions. Published February 2024.
Read more