Highlights & Impact Report

Transcription

1 REFUGEE FESTIVAL SCOTLAND June 2016 Celebrating solidarity with refugees Highlights & Impact Report

2 Children from St Albert s Primary School take part in this year s festival photo shoot. Image: Iman Tajik 2

3

4 Thank you to everyone who supported and contributed to this year s festival We want to extend huge thanks to everyone who participated in this year s festival, either by organising or attending an event,volunteering, sharing materials online, offering donations or spreading the word to your friends and family. Your support is appreciated and needed now more than ever. For information on how to get involved in Refugee Festival Scotland 2017 please visit: W: E: festival@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk T:

5 Thank you to all this year s funders and supporters The festival would not be possible without the fi nancial support of all of our funders. We want to acknowledge and express our gratitude for their invaluable support: To fi nd out more about how you can support Scottish Refugee Council and Refugee Festival Scotland please contact our funding team on funding@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk or

6 Contents 01 INTRODUCTION...07 What is Refugee Festival Scotland?...07 Why is Refugee Festival Scotland important?...07 Refugee Festival Scotland 2016 Celebrating Solidarity with refugees PROGRAMME OVERVIEW...09 Refugee Festival Scotland 2016 a Scotland-wide Programme...09 Greater attendance at events than ever before OPEN PROGRAMME...12 Refugee Festival Scotland s Open Programme anyone can get involved!...12 Making connections COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS PROGRAMME...14 Enabling participation from local community groups...14 Community celebrations fund...15 Engaging community groups across Scotland...18 Solidarity events...18 How do Community Celebrations event benefit refugees and their host communities? SIGNATURE EVENTS...22 Celebrating Solidarity Refugee Festival Scotland Launch...22 Refugee Festival Scotland Media Awards...26 Launch of Scottish Refugee Council s flagship arts and heritage project Lest We Forget: First World War Refugees Then & Now...27 Parliamentary engagement MEDIA ENGAGEMENT FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES & EVENTS...31 Engaging supporters and donors MARKETING...34 Printed materials...34 Online designed materials...35 Digital media VOLUNTEERING MAKING IT HAPPEN LOOKING AHEAD

7 01 Introduction WHAT IS REFUGEE FESTIVAL SCOTLAND? Refugee Festival Scotland is an annual celebration of the contribution refugees make to the richness and vibrancy of life in Scotland and the welcome offered by local people. It is coordinated by Scottish Refugee Council. The festival is centred on World Refugee Day, 20 June, established by the UN in Over the years, the festival has grown, from being a 1 day Glasgow based music and food event in 2000, to a programme of more than 100 events that take place across Scotland every year. WHY IS REFUGEE FESTIVAL SCOTLAND IMPORTANT? Refugee Festival Scotland is about celebrating and having fun but it also has a serious purpose. By raising refugee voices through the festival, and building bridges across communities, we help increase understanding about the need for a more fair and humane asylum system and for a more tolerant and welcoming reception in Scotland. REFUGEE FESTIVAL SCOTLAND 2016 CELEBRATING SOLIDARITY WITH REFUGEES Scottish Refugee Council set a central theme for Refugee Festival Scotland 2016 of Celebrating Solidarity with refugees. In recent years, we ve seen record numbers of men, women and children forced to fl ee their homes in countries such as Syria, Eritrea, Afghanistan and others, and risk their lives in a desperate search for safety as part of a humanitarian and refugee crisis that is defi ning our generation. Scotland continues to respond compassionately to the crisis with many Scots opening their hearts to those in need and grassroots voluntary group s springing up across the country, as the seeds of a modern refugee welcome movement. With this year s theme, we were able to acknowledge this difficult present and encourage wider public to stand in solidarity, visibly and proudly, with the people who ve had to flee everything precious to them to survive and build new lives here. The theme of solidarity allowed us to focus the event on bringing people together from different backgrounds and cultures. (Organiser, Parkhead Youth Project s The Forest Party, Community Celebration Event) 7

8 Families enjoying Scottish Refugee Council s Celebrating Solidarity Refugee Festival Launch at The Hidden Gardens & Tramway. Photo Iman Tajik 8

9 02 Programme Overview LOCAL AUTHORITY AREAS REFUGEE FESTIVAL SCOTLAND 2016 A SCOTLAND-WIDE PROGRAMME Refugee Festival Scotland 2016 was celebrated in many new local authority areas where Syrian families were being re-settled for the first time as part of the UK Government s Syrian re-settlement programme. Scottish Refugee Council offered support to local councils looking to engage with the festival through community development, arts and cultural development, marketing, media and digital media. As a result this was our most geographically widespread festival to date, with more than 140 events taking place in 18 local authorities across Scotland (compared to 110 events in 10 local authority areas in 2015). Source: GROS, 1998 Scottish Executive Geographic Information Service

10 The 18 local authority areas where activities took place in 2016, included Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Angus, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries & Galloway, Dundee City, Edinburgh City, Falkirk, Fife, Glasgow City, Highland, Moray, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross, Renfrewshire, Shetland Islands, Stirling and West Dunbartonshire. Feedback from event organisers included praise for SRC s Refugee Festival Scotland team: You did an amazing job! Bringing together so many different events and creating a real sense of momentum and shared celebration. Well done. (Organiser, The Welcoming s Community Celebration) GREATER ATTENDANCE AT EVENTS THAN EVER BEFORE Physical attendance at the festival rose signifi cantly, with approximately 13,300 people attending and participating in Refugee Festival Scotland 2016 (increased from approximately 8,700 people in 2015). This increase is in part due to the signifi cantly higher number of events in this year s festival programme. However, attendance at key events was higher than normal; for example, this year s festival Launch event attracted 1208 people, up from 120 in In addition our Community Celebrations programme attracted more than 3300 people (compared to approximately 2,500 in 2015). In particular, the community events that were held in new refugee receiving local authority areas attracted high numbers of people. For example, Falkirk Eid in the Park, Angus Refugee Festival, The Welcoming s ceilidh event in Edinburgh. 10

11 Relaxing at this year s Solas Festival in Perthshire, part of Refugee Festival Scotland Photo by Scottish Refugee Council Volunteer Photographer: Farshid Abulhassani 11

12 03 Open Programme REFUGEE FESTIVAL SCOTLAND S OPEN PROGRAMME ANYONE CAN GET INVOLVED! The festival s Open Programme encourages and provides an opportunity for artists, cultural and voluntary sector organisations to collaborate with refugees, as well as respond to refugee experiences and issues and communicate these to a wider public, offering fresh perspectives on age old stories. Anyone can get involved by organising an activity or event and registering it as part of the Open Programme. Scottish Refugee Council had an incredible response from artists, organisations and community groups all across Scotland looking to be part of this year s festival. 105 visual art, film, discussion, family, music, schools, literature events and activities were registered as part of the festival s Open Programme. This is a 31% increase in Open Programme registrations from Scottish Refugee Council supported a number of refugee artists to participate in the Open Programme, including Iranian photographer Iman Tajik s Transit Zone at Glasgow s Gallery of Modern Art, Iranian textile artist Paria Goodarzi Iranian Ancient at Paisley Museum and Syrian painter Nihad Al Turk to unveil a moving mural at St John s Church in Edinburgh. We enabled more refugees and asylum seekers than ever to participate in the arts programme through partnerships and tailored initiatives. For example Glasgow Museums Open Museum refugee-led tours enabled refugees to engage with the collections and increase their skills. Glasgow Refugee Asylum Migration Network (GRAMNet) hosted an programme of discussions, workshops, fi lms and talks, engaging academics and public highlighting latest research in refugee issues. Glasgow Film delivered schools screenings at Platform; The Pipe Factory hosted SIGHOA s series of exhibitions and workshops. Performances, fi lm screenings and exhibitions where hosted by a range of key cultural venues across Scotland, including Tron Theatre, Citizens Theatre, Dundee Contemporary Arts Centre, Solas Festival, Tall Ship, Kirkaldy Galleries, Govanhill Baths, Streetlevel Photoworks, Riverside Museum. 12

13 ENABLING PARTNERS TO MAKE CONNECTIONS Participating in the Open Programme has many benefi ts for cultural partners. Scottish Refugee Council enable the cultural partners who get involved to use the festival as a platform to showcase their work and build momentum and support by being part of something bigger. Scottish Refugee Council supports partners in a variety of ways, for example through inclusion in our marketing and media work, supporting the development of arts projects and linking artists to refugee communities. This year we held a very successful pre festival partners networking event, which allowed partners to connect with others involved in the festival, fi nd out more about key events and messages, collect marketing materials and share details of their work. At this event partners were also able to collect a specially prepared toolkit of resources, including everything from how to engage with media, write a press release, to how to access and use the festival marketing materials and even lists of refugee related books and fi lms that they could use to enhance their events. Being part of Refugee Festival Scotland has benefi ted our organisation by making new contacts, distribution of marketing material, profi le of the work and the organisation. The production came into being due to the support and opportunities offered by Refugee Festival Scotland A Thousand Kindnesses would not have happened otherwise. (Organiser, A Thousand Kindnesses theatre production, RFS 2016) Loved meeting the people There was a sense of unity and women power! So so Fun! What an amazing mix of women and different activities (Attendee, Interfaith Scotland & Interfaith Glasgow s Interfaith Women s Fair, Open Programme, RFS 2016) We are always looking for new partners to join our Open Programme. Keep an eye out for registration details in the new year! 13

14 04 Community Celebrations Programme Maryhill Integration Network s Community Celebration event. Image John Lanigan. Scottish Refugee Council s Community Celebrations programme is an exciting strand of the festival that comprises events and activities that are delivered by refugee focused and/or led community groups. These events can take the form of anything from music nights, dance or theatre performances, storytelling sessions, fashion displays, visual art exhibitions, crafts activities, discussions, fi lm screenings, book readings, creative workshops, themed walks, multi-cultural food events sports events and quizzes. 14

15 The Community Celebrations events provide a platform for sharing culture and heritage, refl ecting the cultural diversity of Scotland, with arts and food from countries such as Eritrea, Sudan, Syria, Congo, Afghanistan, Iran, Palestine, Iraq and many more. COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS FUND Refugee focused or led community groups can apply to Scottish Refugee Council s Community Celebrations Fund for up to 500 to support the delivery of an event or activity that will strengthen their connections, partnerships and networks with receiving communities. Details of how groups can apply to the Community Celebrations Fund are available from the new year, visit This year Scottish Refugee Council received more than 50 applications to the Community Celebrations Fund and from using a well-established assessment criteria were able to offer grant awards to 33 community groups. Scottish Refugee Council secured funding from Scottish Government, Wheatley Group, The Craignish Trust, Glasgow Connected Arts Network and the Educational Institute of Scotland. These events shine a spotlight on successful integration practices in our communities and offer local people insight into refugee experiences and issues from those who ve experienced them fi rst hand. There was a magical moment where the daughter of an Eritrean Refugee did a self-taught Highland dance through the entire performance of the St Francis Pipe Band to end our event a lovely demonstration of integration. (Organiser, Bridging the Gap s Gorbals One Nation Street Community Celebration, RFS 2016) We managed to invite people who had never attended such an event- work colleagues, acquaintances as well as family. At the event we discussed the issues encountered by the Congolese community and how we can improve them. (Organiser, Congolese Community unit in Scotland Live Music Event Community Celebration, RFS 2016) There was a great atmosphere, lots of food, music and dancing, everyone felt welcome and were encouraged to join in! (Attendee, International Women s Group Open Hearts, Open Doors, Community Celebration, RFS 2016) More than 3300 people attended our Community Celebrations events this year people compared to approximately 2,500 in More than 400 people were involved in organising the events. 15

16 REFUGEE LED OR FOCUSED COMMUNITY GROUPS FUNDED BY SCOTTISH REFUGEE COUNCIL AS PART OF THIS YEAR S COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS PROGRAMME Angus Solidarity with Refugees, Angus Refugee Care and Angus Council Best Way Community Group Bridging the Gap CAMASS Community Infosource Congolese Community Group Falkirk Muslim Forum led by Al Masaar in Falkirk Glasgow Afghan United Glasgow Alevi Community Glasgow ESOL Forum Glasgow North West Framework for Dialoge Govan and Craigton Integration Network International Women s Group Isaro Social Integration Network Kuche / Syrian Supper Club Lambhill Stables Massive Outpouring of Love (MOOL), Dumfries & Galloway The Welcoming, Edinburgh North East Framework for Dialogue North Glasgow Integration Network Parent Network Scotland Parkhead Nazarene Parkhead Youth Project Refugee Women s Strategy Group Refuweegee Scottish Africa United Scottish Refugee Policy Forum Scottish Unity Football League Scottland Zambia Association Suit and Pace, Kirkaldy The Glendale Womens Café The Highlands Support Refugees, Inverness SUPPORT FOR SOLIDARITY EVENTS: West of Scotland Regional Equality Council & Stirling Citizens for Sanctuary Moray Supports Refugees & Moray Council Aberdeen Solidarity with Refugees & Aberdeen Council Angus Solidarity with Refugees & Angus Council 16

17 The Glendale Women s Café, part of Scottish Refugee Council s Community Celebrations programme. Image: Iman Tajik 17

18 COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS PROGRAMME ENGAGING COMMUNITY GROUPS ACROSS SCOTLAND A key achievement was our engagement with community groups out with Scotland s central belt. Through community development approaches and additional fi nancial support from Scottish Government, we worked to support a number of new welcoming groups to deliver events, including Angus Solidarity with Refugees, Falkirk Muslim Forum led by Al Masaar in Falkirk and Moray Supports Refugees. Evaluation from the Angus Refugee Festival event showed a desire from the Syrian community there to collaborate more on events such as this, through which they can further share their culture and meet local people. Many new community partners expressed that they would like to be involved in the festival again in future years. Eid in the Park was an entirely new experience for everyone in Falkirk, the first large scale public event ever mounted by the local Muslim community. The response has been overwhelming with everyone agreeing the event should become an annual celebration, perhaps even being held at the Kelpies next year! SOLIDARITY EVENTS IN GRAMPIAN AND FORTH VALLEY Scottish Refugee Council worked with a broad range of partners, including the Stirling, Clackmannanshire, Falkirk, Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray Councils, Central Scotland and Grampian Equality Councils, Aberdeen Solidarity with Refugees, Stirling Citizens for Sanctuary and other key local voluntary groups across Grampian and Forth Valley to plan and organise two Solidarity events, which enabled connections between new Syrian refugee families across regions and between new refugees and support groups, volunteers and agencies. Each event involved ceilidh and dancing, general exchange of culture and a positive message of integration. The events were called We are all Adam s Children an apt homage to the traditional Scots adage celebrating cultural diversity: We re a Jock Tamson s Bairns. Good event, good integration of Scottish and Syrian cultures. Meeting new people excellent (Syrian family at Forth Valley Solidarity event, July 2016) (Organiser, Falkirk Muslim Forum led by Al Masaar s Eid in the Park Falkirk, Community Celebration, RFS 2016) 18

19 HOW DO COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS EVENTS BENEFIT REFUGEES AND THEIR HOST COMMUNITIES? Community Celebration events play a vital role in providing information for refugees and asylum seekers in the community and encourage friendships and connections to develop: An Iranian woman with little English came along as a friend of one of our volunteers. She was introduced to people and was given information about ESOL classes that she could attend. (Organiser, Community InfoSource s 10th Anniversary Celebration: Working in Solidarity with Refugees & Asylum Seekers Community Celebration, RFS 2016) Groups describe benefi ts of being part of the festival, for example making new connections and raising awareness of what they do and of refugee experiences. Being part of the festival allowed us to engage with a widerange of people from different backgrounds. We now have children from BME groups attending our service, which was a result of the forest party. (Organiser, Parkhead Youth Project s The Forest Party, Community Celebration, RFS 2016) We were exposed to a new audience and more people know about our existence now and this will be invaluable in the future when we organise something else. Some people got to experience Syrian culture through talking to the Syrians who were at the event and experience something new through tasting Syrian cuisine for the fi rst time. (Organiser, Kuche s Syrian Supper Club, Community Celebration, RFS 2016) Many of the events are organised in collaboration with refugees and showcase refugee talents and skills: ESOL learners could really bring to life their experience for people coming along to the event. Having our ESOL learners organise the event was a fantastic experience and they brought a wealth of skills and ideas. (Organiser, Glasgow ESOL Forum s Other Languages for Speakers of English, Community Celebration, RFS 2016) For some refugee-led community groups, participation in the programme enables them to access a small amount of funding to help develop the capacity and skills of their members: We have learnt how to set up the meeting and contributing the ideas from different people. All the staff members came together to share the ideas of how make everything to be organised for the event. (Organiser, Scottish Africa United s Community Celebration, RFS 2016) (Organiser, Congolese Community unit in Scotland Live Music Event Community Celebration, RFS 2016) 19

20 SCOTLAND S FIRST MINISTER S MESSAGE OF WELCOME One Community Celebration, led by The Welcoming in Edinburgh, garnered the attention of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who contributed her own message of welcome for refugees. Scotland has a long history of welcoming asylum seekers and refugees from all over the world. We welcome and value the contribution that they have made to our country socially, culturally and economically, and are pleased that they have chosen to rebuild their lives here and make Scotland their home. THANK YOU TO FUNDERS OF OUR COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS PROGRAMME Scottish Refugee Council fundraises throughout the year to enable these grants. We would like to extend our thanks and gratitude to the funders who supported this year s Community Celebrations programme, including The Craignish Trust, The Educational Institute of Scotland, Glasgow Connected Arts Network, Wheatley Group and The Scottish Government. (First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in a letter to The Welcoming, 15 July 2016) 20

21 Scottish Refugee Council s Community Celebrations programme enabled community groups to deliver events of all kinds. Pictured: Glasgow Afghan United. Photo: Iman Tajik 21

22 05 Signature Events Scottish Refugee Council signature events provide opportunities for local and refugee communities to come together along with our stakeholders and supporters to make connections and celebrate integration. Celebrating Solidarity Refugee Festival Scotland Launch Coordinated by Scottish Refugee Council and delivered in partnership with Tramway and The Hidden Gardens, this year s festival Launch provided an opportunity for refugee and local communities and,in particular, families to come together, make connections and have fun. The Launch has been described by a number of attendees and volunteers as our best ever. Entitled Celebrating Solidarity, the event took place at Tramway and The Hidden Gardens on Saturday 18 June from 12pm 4pm. The event targeted a family audience, with free food, live music, dance, arts and crafts, games and face painting. This enhanced programme was made possible with additional support provided by Scottish Government and Glasgow Life. The programme included: Live music from Sacred Paws, E Karika Djal Moving Wheel, Wee Govan Pipers, Maryhill Integration Network s Joyous Choir, Big Noise Govanhill Orchestra and Djs; Arts & Crafts stalls with Icelandic Jewellery maker Selma Hreggviosdottir, Parkhead Youth Project and Refuweegee; Free Syrian dishes provided by The Cultural Cookery Group; Fruit & chocolate kebabs; Face-painting; Family fun activities led by Park Lives: Giant Jenga, Swing Ball, Hula Hoops & Giant Dominoes; Live interactive dance performance led by Dance Your Socks Off. Speeches from John Wilkes, CEO, Scottish Refugee Council and Chris Stephens MP. It coincided with the launch of Tramway s exhibition Pehchaan Art from Another India with workshops for all ages. The event attracted 1208 people throughout the course of the day. 22

23 Scottish Refugee Council s Refugee Festival Scotland Launch Celebrating Solidarity at The Hidden Gardens. Photo: Iman Tajik 23

24 The event was held outside and benefi tted from beautiful sunny weather. However, the high attendance fi gures can also be attributed to effective promotion and partnership working and attractive, inclusive programming suitable for the target audience. It was promoted via a range of online and offl ine channels, including: A3 posters, distributed through Glasgow Life and SRC networks and to RFS partners. Facebook event Twitter, including collaborating with the artists involved to promote. Spread in the RFS brochure (15,000) copies distributed across Scotland. This year s Launch event required a higher fi nancial investment than previous years, to cover logistical elements, such as the outdoor staging, free food and artist s nominal fees. However, the return on this investment can be seen in the number of people who attended and stayed to engage with the messages we were promoting on the day. WE ARE GRATEFUL FOR FUNDING FROM SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT, TRAMWAY, GLASGOW LIFE AND IN KIND SUPPORT FROM THE HIDDEN GARDENS TO DELIVER THIS EVENT. The partnership with Tramway and The Hidden Gardens at this event, gave a strong foundation for working together on Scottish Refugee Council s new Creative Scotland funded arts project Share My Table 2016/17. Inclusion in Tramway s what s on guide. 24

25 Kids making welcome fl ags for refugees at Scottish Refugee Council s Welcome Stall at the festival Launch. Photo: Iman Tajik 25

26 REFUGEE FESTIVAL SCOTLAND MEDIA AWARDS Fair and accurate reporting of refugee issues was recognised at a successful Media Awards ceremony at St Luke s, Glasgow on Thursday 16 June, coordinated by Scottish Refugee Council in partnership with British Red Cross and the National Union of Journalists. Attended by approximately 100 people from the media sector, these awards are unique in the UK and are now in their 8th year. The Daily Record was named Record Champion, received by the editor, Murray Foote, who committed the paper to doing even more to support the cause of refugees in the coming year. The paper carried a page lead about the award. Craig Borland, former editor of The Buteman, talked movingly about the role of local papers in welcoming refugees into communities. Scottish Refugee Council s public attitudes campaign, A Cup of Tea with a Refugee, was trialled at the media awards with an animated fi lm and teapots with tea cosies in different fl ag designs, and was enthusiastically received by guests. 26

27 Lest We Forget Scottish Refugee Council s fl agship arts project launched during Refugee Festival Scotland Photo: Iman Tajik LAUNCH OF SCOTTISH REFUGEE COUNCIL S FLAGSHIP PROJECT LEST WE FORGET: FIRST WORLD WAR REFUGEES THEN & NOW Scottish Refugee Council s fl agship arts and heritage project for RFS, Lest We Forget: First World War Refugees Then & Now brought together a group of more than 20 refugees and local Scots as Heritage Researchers to explore the heritage of 19,000 Belgian refugees who came to Scotland during the First World War. Over the course of a 9-month engagement process involving visual art, fi lmmaking and heritage learning workshops, the group were enabled uncover these stories and make parallels with their own experiences of re-building their lives in Scotland today. The group planted a commemorative tree in Queen s Park, Glasgow, to replace one planted by the Belgian refugees back in 1917, that had since been lost. The tree was unveiled by the group to public as a prelude event for this year s festival on 4 June. The project culminated in the launch of a visual art exhibition of photographs, objects, fi lm and original art work, and screening of a short documentary at the Mitchell Library, Glasgow on Tuesday 14 June as part of the festival. 27

28 The project was funded by Heritage Lottery Fund and we are grateful to them and all of the project partners, including Glasgow Museums, Universities of Stirling, Strathclyde and Glasgow, North Lanarkshire Heritage Centre, The Mitchell Library and Glasgow City Council s Heritage and EAL departments, for their support. The launch event was attended by approximately 200 people, with many people commenting on how much they enjoyed it. Amazing, thought provoking, informative. I learned very much about differences and similarities of refugees now and 100 years ago. (Attendee, LWF WW1 Refugees Then & Now Film Screening event, RFS 2016) The project had a strong legacy for our arts and cultural development work and partners. Having been involved in this project whose running period coincided with Syrian refugees arriving in North Lanarkshire has encouraged me and my team to think about how our services can be made visible and accessible to refugees in our area. (Archivist, North Lanarkshire Heritage Centre) I wish other organisations and groups worked in the same way as SRC it understands and links with its communities (community and institutional) so well. Our involvement with Lest We Forget sparked off another project too the museum guides project that was part of Lest We Forget SRC s flagship arts project fi lm and exhibition launch attracted 200 people. Photo: Iman Tajik Refugee Festival Lest We Forget had, within 6 months, an organisational impact in terms of the service that museum provide. (Curator, Glasgow Museums) Lest We Forget had a positive impact on those who participated, with the strongest outcomes relating to increased confi dence, increased social connections, skills and learning about other cultures. The best part of the project was to be given the opportunity to meet Scottish people and for me it was the fi rst time I spoke English. (Heritage Researcher Volunteer from Syria) 28

29 PARLIAMENTARY ENGAGEMENT Three motions were tabled during Refugee Festival Scotland and garnered a total of 74 signatures from MSPs. Parliamentary motion - support for Scotland s history of solidarity and welcome Scottish Refugee Council worked with Christina McKelvie MSP (Scottish National Party) to draft a motion on how Lest We Forget: WW1 Refugees Then & Now highlights Scotland s History of Solidarity and Welcome, which attracted 28 signatures. considers the humanitarianism of the people of Scotland through the years in welcoming people seeking a better life or fl eeing poverty or persecution to be inspiring; believes, however, that such humanitarianism cannot survive on history alone but requires visible, proud and active solidarity, which is the theme of Refugee Festival Scotland 2016, and believes that maintaining this solidarity will allow Scotland to continue to welcome refugees. Two further motions were tabled, independently of Scottish Refugee Council, for Refugee Festival Scotland: Lewis Macdonald MSP (Scottish Labour) that welcomed the start of the Festival and was signed by 27 MSPs in total and Tavish Scott MSP (Scottish Liberal Democrats) that welcomed the Festival especially in some of the events in the Shetlands Islands, and that was signed by 19 MSPs: That the Parliament recognises Refugee Festival Scotland; understands that the festival is being coordinated by the Scottish Refugee Council; notes that a variety of arts, cultural and sporting events will run from 14 to 26 June 2016; further notes that a special performance event will be held at Lerwick Baptist Church on 17 June to highlight the struggle faced by many refugees escaping war, and wishes all participants involved in the festival both in Shetland and across Scotland the best of luck. It is very encouraging not only that so many MSPs signed these three motions but also that they were raised and supported across the main parties represented in the Parliament and that two of these were initiated independently of Scottish Refugee Council. This refl ects that the festival is moving into the mainstream of Scotland s arts and cultural life as well as within Scotland s body politic itself. 29

30 06 Media Engagement Refugee Festival provides a key platform for Scottish Refugee Council s media engagement. This year, our media team worked to: Place multiple stories that detail a wide ran]ge of refugee experiences. Use celebrities / household names to endorse the refugees welcome message and make a signifi cant contribution to cultural life here. Reach a wide and varied demographic through targeted media work in different outlets. Increase our geographic reach through securing coverage across most of Scotland. Key pieces of media generated included: Festival highlights in The List magazine 2 features in the Daily Record on communities welcoming refugees and St Albert s primary School. Media Awards highlighted in the Daily Record. A picture and caption on the festival Launch in The Herald. A feature in the Evening Times on Glasgow Afghan United and Scottish Unity League s football tournament. Generating broadcast media Scottish Refugee Council s fl agship arts project Lest We Forget: First World War Refugees Then & Now attracted broadcast media interest, with STV news creating a package with excerpts from the film and interviews with the group and organisers for their Glasgow and Edinburgh news channels. Generating local media With support from Scottish Refugee Council s media team, many of refugee community groups are able to generate media interest at a local level. For example, Angus Solidarity with Refugees and Angus Refugee Care drew attention to their community event Angus Refugee Festival, which involved theatre, fi lm, football and circus, with two articles in the Courier: Angus has always had a strong international community and with the groundswell of goodwill for this cluster of refugees and the festival to celebrate our growing bonds, we hope to build more long term resources and traditions in celebrating the variety of Scots in Angus. (Islam Mohammden, speaking to the Angus & the Mearns Courier, 28 July 2016) The family friendly festival was an opportunity to show solidarity and change the stereotype surrounding Muslims (The Falkirk Herald on Falkirk Muslim Forum led by Al Masaar s Eid in the Park Falkirk, Community Celebration, RFS 2016) 30

31 07 Fundraising Activities & Events Signifi cant Scottish Refugee Council events included: Solidarietà - a dedicated classical music fundraising event in partnership with the Italian Cultural Institute; Celebrating Solidarity Refugee Festival 2016 Launch at Tramway and Hidden Gardens and Lest we Forget arts/heritage project, fi lm screening, at the Mitchell Library. Supporter led fundraising events included sports, cultural and community events/activities. All supporter fundraisers are assisted with fundraising materials and information on Scottish Refugee Council and our work. Scottish Refugee Council staff and/or volunteer presence ensured further engagement with participants on the day of the event. The festival provides a great opportunity for donors to engage with Scottish Refugee Council s life changing work and encourage supporters to hold their own fundraising events. Promoting the festival s theme Solidarity, supporters were encouraged to participate in the festival by fundraising in solidarity with refugees. In total, 10 of the festival events included a fundraising element for Scottish Refugee Council. If you would like to run a fundraiser for Scottish Refugee Council, please contact our Funding team funding@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk One of these events was organised by St Johns Church in Edinburgh city centre, unveiling a mural by newly arrived Syrian Artist Nihad al Turk. ENGAGING SUPPORTERS AND DONORS Refugee Festival Scotland provides a great opportunity to engage with existing and new donors, members, supporters and Organisation Ambassadors. Members, donors and fundraisers were sent several communications in the lead-up to the festival, highlighting key events. We also sent invitations to major and regular donors for special events. Overall 20% of invitees attended at least one event. 31

32 Scottish Refugee Council s Fundraising team with Syrian artist Nihad Al Turk as he unveils his mural at a fundraising event in Edinburgh during Refugee Festival Scotland 32

33 Climbing Together fundraiser for Scottish Refugee Council during Refugee Festival Scotland

34 08 Marketing PRINT MATERIAL A5 Refugee Festival Scotland Brochure NO. OF COPIES 15,000 OFFLINE DISTRIBUTION CHANNEL Distributed across Scotland by Direct Distribution to cafes, cultural venues, and bars Festival partners at networking meeting General public at events CREATING AND DISTRIBUTING MARKETING MATERIALS Printed materials A3 Refugee Festival Scotland Poster Distributed to Glasgow, Paisley, Edinburgh, Stirling, Dundee, Perth, and Aberdeen by Direct Distribution to cafes, cultural venues, and bars Festival partners at networking meeting Creating and distributing marketing materials for the festival is a signifi cant part of Scottish Refugee Council s work in the lead up to the festival. Street Posters 52 Glasgow Underground via Primesight Street poster sights across Glasgow and Edinburgh (By The Poster Association and City Centre Posters) This year, we produced a reduced, 10 page version of the festival brochure, which included case studies with images that highlighted exceptional stories of cultural integration and welcome, from The Glendale Women s Café, Glasgow Afghan United, St. Albert s Primary School, and Lest We Forget. ¼ page advert Partner posters 1 Unknown Printed in the List Magazine April summer festival s edition. Printed by community groups running events Each case study was linked to a particular section of the festival programme and highlighted our key messages of welcome, solidarity and commonality. More detail versions of the case study interviews were published on the blog section of the Scottish Refugee Council website and shared widely on social media. The brochure supported the full festival listings, which were moved online to a webpage hosted on Scottish Refugee Council s main website. A key achievement was the development of a festival colour palette and logo, that can be used in future years, to build brand recognition and consistency 34

35 ONLINE DESIGNED MATERIALS The List carried 30,000 online sponsor strips on their website, which is accessed by people across Scotland to fi nd out about local events. Information about our festival launch, Celebrating Solidarity at Tramway and The Hidden Gardens was in The List s Something for the Weekend newsletter on 16 June. A suite of graphics for us online was created, including a Facebook and Twitter cover photo and a poster template for community groups and partners to use if needed. Our Digital Media Offi cer developed a content calendar to plan and manage our social media content, including sourcing and creating content in advance. Scottish Refugee Council produced new types of posts, including animated graphics (gifs) and used newer social media functions, such as the ability to live video stream on Facebook and Twitter, which increased access to the festival to wider audiences. Case studies and strong images were featured to highlight this year s theme of solidarity. DIGITAL MEDIA Website Scottish Refugee Council developed a new festival webpage which included a fi lter facility with the ability to search for events by location, date and event type. A new section on the site was created for community event organisers to access an online toolkit, which included ready-touse and blank templates for social media graphics and posters. Social Media The festival s offi cial hashtag #RefugeeFestScot was promoted online as well as on all printed marketing materials to enable sharing and monitoring of content. marketing: More than 650 people read our festival edition of Scottish Refugee Council s monthly newsletter which was distributed in May. Website Unique Users Overall, website traffi c increased on the previous year. Website users increased by around 9% during, equating to 21,246 unique users in 2016, compared to 19,565 in More than a quarter of these visits were to the festival s main landing page. Our users in Scotland increased by 13% on the previous year, from 14,156 to 18,

36 Facebook During the festival promotion period: Scottish Refugee Council s Facebook Likes increased by a further 532 people from 7, 094 to 7, 626. Refugee Festival Scotland Facebook Likes increased by a further 408 people from 1, 691 to 2, 099. This equates to a combined increase of 940 new Likes across our Facebook pages. In the same period in 2015 it was 789. More than 2,000 unique viewers watched our Facebook live video streams of the launch of Refugee Festival Scotland at The Hidden Gardens and of our Lest We Forget documentary launch. The streams reached audiences of more than 10k. But more importantly, engagement with content signifi cantly increased on last year. Engagement covers people reacting, sharing and commenting on posts. Twitter Analytics for Twitter have been undertaken using Twitter s own analytics tools. This analysis covers the number of tweets retweeted, the number of link clicks, the number of likes, the location of our audiences, and the top tweets for engagement specifi cally related to the festival. During the festival promotion period 1 April to 30 June, tweet engagement consisted of: 1.6k retweets (1.5k times in 2015) 1.2k links clicked (1k in 2015) 1.3k likes (801 in 2015) The festival hashtag #RefugeeFestScot was used more than 1,000 times on Twitter More than 300 people watched the live stream of our annual media awards on Twitter 36

37 09 Volunteering VOLUNTEERING Enabling people to gain skills, confidence and participate in the festival Refugee Festival Scotland provides a great opportunity for short term volunteering with Scottish Refugee Council, where most volunteering placements require a six month commitment. Volunteering as part of the festival can help people develop their skills, confi dence, employability and provides a great introduction to refugee issues and the work of Scottish Refugee Council. This year, volunteer roles included Refugee Festival Scotland Ambassadors, Volunteer Photographers and Public Collections Volunteers. This year, we were particularly keen to improve refugee participation in all aspects of the festival by removing any barriers. Our volunteer coordinators targeted their recruitment towards attracting applications from the refugee and asylum seeker community. We received 47 applications, 20 of those were from refugee and asylum seekers. From these applications we recruited: 13 RFS Ambassadors, whose role involved attending festival events as representatives of SRC and carrying out evaluation at events. 4 Public Collections volunteers. 6 Volunteer Photographers who documented festival events. 6 out of our 23 volunteers were refugees or asylum seekers. Successful volunteers are offered training on Scottish Refugee Council s Introduction to Working with New Scots course as well as regular festival briefi ngs and induction. 6 festival volunteers expressed an interest in continuing volunteering with Scottish Refugee Council after the festival. Many event organisers comment on the value that the volunteers bring to the festival and their events. The [Scottish Refugee Council volunteer] photographer was fantastic and it has been invaluable to receive her photographs from the event. (Organiser, Interfaith Scotland & Interfaith Glasgow s Women s Interfaith Fair, Open Programme, RFS 2016) This year s volunteers have commented on the positive experience they have had. Really rewarding, I learned a lot, I had fun and met a lot of very interesting people. I enjoyed every single event I went to, met a lot of lovely and open minded people, and I m really happy I met the incredibly lovely staff of Scottish Refugee Council. 37

38 10 Making it Happen This year s Scottish Refugee Council staff team included: Suzi Maciver, Arts & Cultural Development Offi cer Mirella Arcidiacono, Refugee Festival Scotland Assistant (Apr Jun 2016) Gary Christie, Head of Policy & Communications Maggie Ritchie, Acting Communications Manager (Jan Jun 2016) Laura Delaney, Digital Media and Information Offi cer Rachel Hamada & Pauline Diamond, Media & Communications Offi cers Alison Gilchrist, Media Assistant (Apr Jul 2016) Kirsty White, Trusts & Supporters Offi cer Louise McGovern, Funding Development Assistant MAKING IT HAPPEN Scottish Refugee Council produces Refugee Festival Scotland, the coordination of which is led by the Arts and Cultural Development Offi cer. The festival s delivery requires the involvement of colleagues from across the organisation, including communications, policy, corporate services, community engagement, integration services, funding development, and from the Festival Advisory Group, including external partner representatives. Mary Kate Dickie, Fiona Ballantyne & Petrit Shala, Community Development Offi cers Graham O Neill, Policy Officer Nina Murray, Women s Policy Development Offi cer Gun Organ & Rosanne Alexander, Volunteer Coordinators Martha Harding, Training Offi cer 38

39 Festival Advisory Group Members in 2016 Alison Phipps, Professor of Languages and Intercultural Studies & Co-convenor, Glasgow Refugee, Asylum and Migration Network Ashley Johnson, Equality & Diversity Strategic Planning Team, Wheatley Group Jenny Kemp, National Offi cer (Education and Equality), Educational Institute of Scotland Catrin Evans, Artistic Director, A Moments Peace Theatre Company Elly Goodman & Neil Packham, Citizens Theatre Learning Directors Cassandra Baron, Development Offi cer, Voluntary Arts Scotland Maria Walker, Head of English as an Additional Language Service, Glasgow City Council Education Services. The advisory group meets 4 times per calendar year, with the role of the members being to: Contribute to the development and implementation of the festival ideas, activities, events and seminars. Attend regular meetings. Offer guidance to the Scottish Refugee Council s Arts & Cultural Development Offi cer on the direction of the festival. Identify areas of the festival s work that their agencies can support. Ensure promotional materials are distributed through their own networks and distribution channels. Act as a public advocate for the festival as required. Advise upon challenges or identify any opportunities for the festival. Phil Arnold, Refugee Services Manager, British Red Cross Rema Sherifi, Coordinator, Maryhill Integration Network Wendy Niblock (Freelance arts and media worker) 39

40 11 Looking Ahead 16 years since it began, every year Refugee Festival Scotland goes from strength to strength. The festival continues to evolve and develop, in response to ever changing political, social and cultural factors. In the context of the worst global refugee crisis ever, it is inspiring to see the compassionate and warm response from Scots, especially over the last year, as new families arrive and settle in our communities all across Scotland. Refugee Festival Scotland refl ects a distillation of this welcome and compassion. The increase in cultural events, engagement, attendance and positive response from politicians shows a strong desire to support the festival as a celebration of Scotland s cultural diversity that enables refugee integration and offers a platform for these important stories and issues to be highlighted. As communities across Scotland continue to receive refugees, the festival and its central messages of welcome and celebration of refugee contributions is more vital and urgent than ever and we need your support. We are always looking for new partners and supporters to get involved so get in touch! For information on how to get involved in Refugee Festival Scotland 2017 please visit: W: E: festival@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk T: To find out more about how you can support Scottish Refugee Council and Refugee Festival Scotland please contact funding@scottishrefugeecouncil.org.uk 40

41 Scottish Refugee Council is an independent charity dedicated to providing advice and information to people who have fl ed horrifi c situations around the world. In 2015 Scottish Refugee Council celebrated 30 years of working to ensure that all refugees in Scotland are treated fairly, with dignity and that their human rights are respected. To fi nd out more, please visit our website: Scottish Refugee Council 5 Cadogan Square (170 Blythswood Court) Glasgow G2 7PH T F Scottish Charity Number: SC