What is a ‘City of Sanctuary’?
Bristol City of Sanctuary Launch
A ‘City of Sanctuary’ is a place where a broad range of local people, organisations, community groups, schools and faith communities, as well as local government, are publicly committed to welcoming and including people seeking sanctuary.
About Bristol City of Sanctuary
Bristol City of Sanctuary is part of a network of Cities of Sanctuary across the UK. We all hold the vision that our nations will be welcoming places of safety for all and proud to offer sanctuary to all who need it.
We recognise the incredible contribution that sanctuary seekers make to Bristol. We celebrate and welcome the diversity that makes up our city, believing that it is something to be proud of.
Our members are Bristol City of Sanctuary: individuals and organisations from across the city, working together to create a culture of welcome and safety for all.
Our Mission
We support local organisations and individuals in Bristol and its surrounding areas to uphold Bristol’s long standing tradition of welcoming and providing safety for all, including people seeking sanctuary fleeing from war, violence and persecution.
Our Constitution
Bristol City of Sanctuary is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), registered Charity no: 1177122. You can read our constitution here – BCoS Constitution.
As a charity, Bristol City of Sanctuary has trustees who are elected at the AGM. A third of the trustees retire each year.
What we do?
Bristol was officially recognised as a city of sanctuary in 2010, and since then, with our supporters we have continued to work hard to ensure that Bristol is a City of Sanctuary for all, an inclusive and welcoming place, building upon the amazing work that is being done across the city.
- We support local organisations to deliver services for refugees and asylum seekers.
- We work with local schools and colleges to help them become places of welcome for those seeking sanctuary.
- We organise events and conferences, celebrating sanctuary within the city whilst also looking at ways to tackle the injustice that can be faced by refugees and asylum seekers.
- We raise funds for our Bristol City of Sanctuary Transport Fund, which provides bus tickets for destitute asylum seekers and vulnerable refugees.
- We work with local businesses, helping them to explore ways that they can harness the gifts and talents of sanctuary seekers.
What can you do?
We invite you, whether you are a business, a local organisation or an individual to pledge your support and get involved in any way that would suit you. You can also sign up to our newsletter below, and receive monthly updates on news and events happening in our City of Sanctuary.
You can sign our Dignity not Destitution statement, pledging to end homelessness, poverty and asylum destitution in the city.
You can volunteer your time, either with us or with other local organisations within the city.
You can donate to our Bristol City of Sanctuary Transport Fund.
For more ways to contribute to the movement, visit our Ideas for Change page.