Community helps Sudan refugees start a new life

For many Sudanese refugees, arriving in the West Midlands means starting a new chapter, far from the dangers and hardships they faced back home.

UK government data shows more than 18,000 Sudanese people have sought asylum in the UK in the past five years, with Birmingham being a central point for resettlement.

Yet, as they rebuild their lives, their journey isn't one they make alone.

From community support to small businesses and football clubs, refugees from Sudan have explained how they are forging a future together.

In April 2023, Sudan was thrown into disarray when the army and a powerful paramilitary group began a vicious struggle for power.

The war, which continues to this day, has claimed more than 15,000 lives.

In what the United Nations has called one of the world's "largest displacement crises", about nine million people have been forced to flee their homes.

Athar Alsadek, based in Birmingham, has been volunteering for nearly three years, offering vital support to women fleeing the North African country with things like housing forms and job applications.

"They've left behind family, friends and everything they knew," she said. "It's crucial for them to know that they'll be OK here."

At the Red Sea Shopping Centre on Soho Road, a group of Sudanese women, including Howida Maher, are creating new opportunities.

"We've built our businesses here," Ms Maher explained. She sells ethnic crafts, clothing, ornaments and home-cooked food.

Alongside her entrepreneurial spirit, Ms Maher and others are also working to support their families back home.

"We raise funds to help those still struggling in Sudan," she said. "Many of our families are fighting just to buy food."

The conflict is the latest episode in bouts of tension that followed the 2019 ousting of long-serving President Omar al-Bashir, who came to power in a coup in 1989.

A joint military-civilian government was established but that was overthrown in another coup in October 2021, when General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan took over.

However, a dispute over the direction the country was going in and the proposed move towards civilian rule, once again sparked violence.

Maddy Crowther, director of the charity Waging Peace, said refugees from the country were escaping "the world's worst humanitarian crisis".

She said Birmingham and a handful of other established Sudanese communities across the UK offered an important "solid foundation of support".

"They are helping each other rebuild their lives," she said.

A perfect example of that is the work by Karim Suleiman, the chair of the Sudanese Development Centre.

He arrived as a refugee more than 20 years ago and co-founded a football club that has grown from a few players in 2001 to more than 70.

"The football club is a place where we offer more than just sport," he said.

"It's a safe space where we support each other, especially for those who've witnessed the horrors of war in Sudan."

As well as bringing people together, the football club provides advice, such as on applying for school places.

Ms Crowther said only a "tiny minority" fleeing the war had come to the UK, but the numbers would increase because "of the levels of catastrophe and atrocity that are occurring in Sudan".

The charity helps meet the "basic needs" of refugees, including providing warm clothes through the winter, mobile phone top up cards and help seeking legal help.

She said: "We help people with whatever they might come to us with and help them build their version of a life that has meaning or purpose for them here in the UK.

"Sadly if there is a war of this scale, some will flee that situation and try and flee to whatever country they can."

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