Green Party members and supporters from Enfield and Epping Forest have teamed up to collect urgent supplies for refugees in Calais.
Blankets, sleeping bags, gloves, scarves and warm hats are among the items which are desperately needed
Dave Plummer, from Epping Forest Green Party, said, “We’ve helped with collections for the Calais Jungle Camp in the past but things have got even harder for refugees since the Jungle Camp was demolished. Watching Jonathan Bartley, Green Party co-leader, reporting from the distribution points last week really brought home the urgency to do more now.”
Bill Linton, from Enfield Green Party, said “These refugees are in a desperate situation, partly because of our government’s lack of humanity. It’s good to find something practical we can do to help.”
Jonathan Bartley, co-leader of the Green Party said: “The refugee crisis in Calais hasn’t been solved – it’s been displaced. A year since the jungle camp was torn down and the UK’s shameful wall put up refugees are living in increasingly desperate circumstances and squalid conditions. 800 refugees in Calais, including 100 lone children, are now sleeping rough in the woods. Every night police raid their makeshift shelters confiscating tents and sleeping bags. Donations of essential items like warm coats and blankets are quite literally a lifeline for refugees who have nothing to protect them from the French winter.”
You can drop off supplies until Saturday 16th December in Buckhurst Hill, Waltham Abbey, Palmers Green and Forty Hall. The Green Party will drop them off to Stand for Humanity in Southgate during the following week.
Buckhurst Hill
Cllr Simon Heap at 702 High Road, Buckhurst Hill, IG9 5HY (map). There should be somebody in most of the time but you can call Simon on 07729 315604 to check.
Waltham Abbey
Dave Plummer at 21 Townmead Road, Waltham Abbey, EN9 1RP (map); before heading off please ring 07875 549440 to confirm. Alternatively, The Crown public house on Romelands, Waltham Abbey (map) has generously offered to take collections if Dave’s not around.
Palmers Green
Bill Linton at 39A Fox Lane, Palmers Green, N13 4AJ (side entrance and up steps – map); please ring 020 3105 1892 or 07906 488 606 to check Bill’s in/arrange a delivery time.
Forty Hall
Kate McGeevor at Forty Hall Lodge (on the Forty Hall Estate, immediately inside the main gates – map). Donations can be left with her in the evening, or dropped off to Forty Hall Farm during the day. Call or preferably text her on 07779 081287.