Press

Birmingham has a strong history of welcoming people who have fled war and hardship to the city. As part of Refugee Week, which runs from June 16 to 22, we look at some of the people who have fled war and hardship to call Birmingham their home.

You’ll find our message in prominent locations like New Street, Bullring, Broad Street, Great Charles Street, and more, delivering a clear and timely statement: “Birmingham Thrives When We All Belong.”

More than a dozen billboards have popped up across Birmingham with striking messages to the public. The billboards, which can be found on major routes like Lee Bank Middleway and Bordesley Circus, have been set up in time for Refugee Week, which runs from June 16 to 22, to celebrate the contributions and resilience of newly-arrived communities.

While this represents a much-needed step to address the spiralling financial burden on taxpayers and the inappropriate nature of hotel accommodation, ACH calls for a robust and coherent strategy that prioritises genuinely affordable social housing and integrated community solutions.

A provider of supported housing for refugees has welcomed the government’s commitment to end the use of hotels to house asylum seekers by 2029, announced as part of this week’s spending review.

Kidanemariam escaped indefinite conscription in one of the world's most secretive countries - he shares his story with BirminghamLive ahead of Refugee Week

Our new pledge calls on employers to better tailor their recruitment strategies to refugees and migrants, writes Julia Dixon-Barrow, entrepreneurship and employer engagement manager at social housing provider ACH

We must rebuild existing processes and attitudes towards refugees and aspire to end the cycle of poverty and homelessness, writes Fuad Mahamed, founder and chief executive of refugee and migrant housing provider ACH.

Looking out onto one of Birmingham's busiest roads is a place helping refugees build a future.

The building looks like any other terrace house in the city, but in its doors, 19 residents are given round the clock support to rebuild their lives after fleeing trouble in their home countries.

The city property is run by ACH, an organisation that empowers refugees and migrants in the UK to lead self-sufficient lives. BirminghamLive spent time with the group last week, where we met Ahmad, who moved in after becoming homeless.