Helping refugees: 'Sanctuary' awards for Calderdale cinema and schools recognising how they support those forced to flee their homes through no fault of their own
One of Calderdale’s cinemas and two schools have been recognised for the support they offer to asylum seekers and refugees.
Hebden Bridge Picture House has received the Cinema of Sanctuary Award for the second time, while Halifax Academy and Lightcliffe Primary School have been given School of Sanctuary awards.
The Picture House is the only cinema to have received the award, which recognises the relationship it has developed with the refugee and asylum seeker community since 2017.
Hebden Royd Town Council started by welcoming asylum seekers with a complimentary ticket and hot drink at all film screenings, without the need to book in advance.
In 2018, Making Friends – organised by the volunteer group the Friends of the Picture House – was formed, raising funds to transport asylum seekers to a monthly family film screening.
Thanks to funding from the Community Foundation for Calderdale and other supporters, screenings are regularly attended by up to 180 people including from Syria, Lebanon, Ghana, Yemen, Sudan, Nigeria, Iran and Afghanistan.
In 2023, Making Friends Kitchen began – a regular opportunity for those members of the asylum seeker group who are placed in hotels to meet, cook together and share food in a safe space.
Making Friends Kitchen events have welcomed members of the public at various venues around Hebden Bridge and attendance figures have been significant.
The cinema also provides for the community with monthly ‘Warm Space’ screenings, showing classic films with free entry for all.
Friends of the Picture House chair Kate Higham said: “The Picture House is at the very centre of community life in Hebden Bridge and Making Friends provides asylum seekers and refugees the chance to meet local people without those labels getting in the way because everyone is treated the same and everyone is welcome.”
Meantime, the School of Sanctuary award recognises schools that excel in creating a culture of welcome, belonging and solidarity for people seeking safety.
Halifax Academy and Lightcliffe Primary now join Beech Hill School and St Augustine’s School to have achieved the award.
Blake Doe, membership engagement lead for Calderdale Valley of Sanctuary, said: “These two schools are very different but what they have in common is that they care about making welcome and inclusion not just a buzzword but a reality.”