Help Refugees is not simply another aid organisation. We work where governmental and other non-governmental bodies can (or will) not, filling the gaps and providing emergency aid and vital services to those affected by the global refugee crisis.
We act fast to get aid and services directly and immediately to the people who need it most by identifying the most effective grassroots groups, local people, individual volunteers and refugees themselves active in the crisis and providing them with funding and support, enabling them to focus their time and energy on the vital work they do every day. Help Refugees are also operational where needed across Europe providing our experienced teams to maintain quality services and uphold dignity for refugees.
We strive to ensure that everyone has access to the basic necessities such as food, water, warm clothing and shelter. We also prioritise the provision of sufficient adapted services for the most vulnerable people affected by the the crisis, funding safe spaces for women, sexual health clinics, medical units and equipment nurseries, schools and youth centres. As the crisis develops we are also focussing our efforts on empowering refugees to be masters of their own destinies and restore their independence, funding education programmes, sustainable housing projects, and job training programmes. We keep our own core costs at an absolute minimum (currently less that 2%)
We report the reality of crisis firsthand and present it honestly, a unique trusted voice in the public arena. Our advocacy concentrates on both the big picture and the cases of the individual refugees who urgently need help, with a particular focus on the rights of unaccompanied minors.
We only began in summer 2015, a group of ordinary friends determined to make a small difference. Having grown exponentially and developed in the face of today’s global refugee crisis (constantly adapting to the ever-changing needs of those affected by it) we believe that together with our ever growing giant network of grassroots groups, implementing partners, volunteers, fundraisers, and supporters we have enabled a new movement in humanitarian response - acting quickly and flexibly, enabling ordinary people to help other ordinary people in need in the most direct of ways. We hope you will join us.
Read about our story and how we began here: 'Accidental activists: the British women on the front line of the refugee crisis’
Help Refugees is a registered charity under the auspices of Prism Gift Fund (charity number:1099682).