Calais Appeal is a consortium of six grassroots organisations, working together since 2021 to provide holistic support to displaced people in the France-UK border regions of Calais, Dunkirk, and Grande-Synthe, in northern France.

At Calais Appeal, we come together with varied areas of expertise to provide essential support:

We distribute tents, tarps, sleeping bags and blankets, providing some basic shelter for men, women and children sleeping rough.

We provide SIM cards, internet connection, and electricity for people to access the information they need, and to keep in touch with loved ones.

We ensure people can access drinking water on their own terms, with 24/7 water tanks.

We offer specialised services for women, including day centres and shower facilities to offer adapted support, rest and respite.

We facilitate daily play and learning sessions for children excluded from education, and with limited access to safe spaces to play, learn and grow.

And, during the freezing winter months, we distribute firewood to help ensure people can stay warm and cook hot meals.

As a consortium, we are committed to continuing this essential network of solidarity, but we need more support to do so.

In 2025, hateful narratives are growing louder. The current political climate is worrying. At Calais Appeal, we are working hard to provide dignified and human support to people on the move at the UK–France border, as they will once again be forced to sleep rough during the freezing winter months.

Only in the first six months of 2025, together we already managed to provide:

2,000 SIM cards.

28,000 meals worth of ingredients.

900,000 litres of drinking water.

3,045 tents and 5,937 blankets / sleeping bags.

We also facilitated access to:

440 hours of charging sessions.

144 hours of play sessions for children.

shower facilities for 884 women.

Still, despite our efforts we are witnessing an emboldened extreme right, with both British and French far right activists visiting Calais in recent months to intimidate people on the move and our associations. We must continue to stand against this, and you can help us to do so!

As part of our 2025 Winter Fundraising Campaign, we are calling on you to help us raise at least £25,000 so we can continue our solidarity based work.

You can stand with us and with people on the move by:

• Making a donation. Every contribution matters, no matter the size

• Sharing this fundraiser with your networks

• Organising your own collection or event in your local area

✊ Help push back against far-right narratives. Stand in solidarity! Make your donation today.

Follow us on social media!

IG : @calaisappeal

Fb : @Calais Appeal

X : @CalaisAppeal

Bsky: @calaisappeal.bsky.social

LinkedIn : @Calais Appeal

Video: courtesy of Sophie de Langloy

Photos: courtesy of Calais Appeal member organisations unless otherwise noted.