PRESS RELEASE - ‘Local Hero’ Lamyaa Hanchaoui striving to improve lives for North West London's Syrian refugee families.

As part of Local Giving’s Local Hero 2018 Campaign, Lamyaa Hanchaoui has launched a special fundraising appeal for Sufra NW London, a local charity in Brent that is helping newly arrived families from Syria resettle in London.

Lamyaa, a British spoken word artist , experienced first-hand the plight of Syrian refugees when she first visited UNHCR camps in Jordan last year. After hearing about the Sufra NW London’s work in helping Syrian refugees domestically, she was determined to show her support. On 1 April 2018, she launched her appeal as part of the Local Hero 2018 competition, raising money to support newly-arriving refugee families as well as securing match funding of up to £1,000 from Local Giving’s scheme.

“I’ve previously volunteered in refugee camps bordering Syria and witnessed the trauma faced by many families as they flee war and conflict in their homeland. Some of these families are now being resettled in the UK, and need help on arrival with accessing housing, training and employment opportunities. I have been really impressed by the work of Sufra NW London in resettling Syrian refugee families in the local area, and I would like to extend my support by fundraising for this noble cause.”

Sufra NW London’s Refugee Resettlement Programme currently supports 33 families (112 individuals) in Brent by providing access to its weekly food bank, assisting with small grants and in-kind donations of household goods, organising ESOL classes, providing work placements and offering 1-2-1 assistance in accessing a variety of housing, welfare and medical services.

To support Lamyaa’s campaign and help refugee families across NW London, please visit https://localgiving.org/fundraising/lamyaa4refugees/

Notes to editors:

• Sufra NW London is a registered charity that helps nearly 4,000 people each year with emergency food aid, training opportunities and welfare support.
• The charity’s Refugee Resettlement Programme began in September 2017, to respond to the growing influx of Syrian refugees arriving in the London Borough of Brent and surrounding areas. Due to the cultural diversity of the borough, and the presence of an established Arab community, many Syrian refugees have chosen to resettle in North-West London. The numbers of new arrivals have continued to increase, following Brent Council’s pledge to resettle many families as part of the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (VPRS).
• Information on Local Giving’s Local Hero campaign can be found here: https://localgiving.org/what-we-do/campaigns/localhero