Sevenoaks marks Refugee Week with Town of Sanctuary flag raising and Desperate Journeys experience

Published: 16 June 2025

To mark the beginning of Refugee Week 2025, Mayor of Sevenoaks Cllr Tony Clayton raised the Sevenoaks Town of Sanctuary Flag at the Vine on Monday 16 June.

At the event, the Mayor of Sevenoaks said, “We raise the Town of Sanctuary Flag to signal we are playing our part in World Refugee Day. We are proud that this is the third year we have marked our work as a Town of Sanctuary, working with local residents and a wide array of partners to ensure that refugees coming to our town are truly welcomed.

There are about 40 million refugees worldwide. Sevenoaks has supported refugees who have come here in the last few years, about 20 families in total – and probably more under the Ukraine scheme. Refugees in our Town are making a real contribution mastering the language, working and playing their part in our community, increasingly becoming socially and economically independent contributors to Sevenoaks Town.”

As a Town of Sanctuary, Sevenoaks is guided by a steering committee, chaired by the Mayor of Sevenoaks. The group has four members from the local refugee community who ensure that activities are focused on things that matter to their communities. One of these members, Umair Mehmood, helped raise the flag in Sevenoaks this week. Tim Williams, Chair of Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees, also attended the flag raising alongside local councillors.

Refugee Week is an arts and cultural festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. This year, Sevenoaks is once again showing strong support.

This week’s headline event in Sevenoaks is the Desperate Journeys immersive experience, aimed at helping young people understand what it is like to be displaced by war and conflict. Two local charities, Empathy Action and Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees, are joining together to present this experience.

Over the coming week, over 300 school children, members of the public, local councillors, Guides and Scouts groups will benefit from this immersive experience. It is delivered in a maze-like set and includes theatre techniques, striking visual installations and a powerful soundtrack. The experience was run successfully for many schools last year.

Speaking about the Desperate Journeys experience, the Mayor of Sevenoaks said, “We would like to thank Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees and their partners Empathy Action, for putting on Desperate Journeys. I took part last year; it’s a chilling way to understand the impossible choices which face people in war zones.”

The week’s events will culminate on World Refugee Day, Friday 20 June, with a special Refugee Day Tea hosted by Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees and Empathy Action. The gathering will bring together beneficiaries, volunteers, and supporters to celebrate Sevenoaks as a Town of Sanctuary.

If you would like to help refugees settle into the Sevenoaks area, improve their English, find meaningful employment, or help raise funds or support the working group, get in touch with Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees at volunters@sevenoakswelcomesrefugees.org.