The Welcoming staff and participants enjoyed a sunny morning meeting with Jeremy Balfour, Conservative MSP. Jeremy, his colleague Rhona and Esther, an S4 pupil on work experience, came to hear about how The Welcoming supports migrants and refugees to settle into their new communities.
“We got to know Jeremy when he bumped into, and tagged along with, a group of Welcoming participants enjoying a tour of the Scottish Parliament building in 2018. Jeremy later raised a motion in Parliament in March 2019 to celebrate our recent funding success with The National Lottery Community Fund. The new funding will allow us to continue our befriending project, initially set up in August 2016, for a further three years. We are delighted to be able to continue this provision which we know is making a big difference to the lives of migrants and refugees. The programme offers one-to-one and group befriending opportunities and supports some of the most vulnerable and isolated newcomers to the city. We appreciate Jeremy’s support and recognition of our work” explains Befriending Coordinator, Caitlin Rodgers.
The Welcoming is not affiliated with any political party. The charity is proud to host monthly surgeries with Joanna Cherry, MP for Edinburgh South West. Her surgeries are open to anyone living within the constituency. The organisation was also delighted to host the Scottish Green Party’s EU election campaign launch in April 2019.
If you are interested in arranging a visit to The Welcoming please contact [email protected].
