‘I was a stranger and you made me welcome’
Matthew 25:35

EMBRACE is a group of Christians working together to promote positive responses to people seeking asylum, refugees, migrant workers and people from minority ethnic backgrounds in Northern Ireland.


Northern Ireland is becoming richer in its diversity of culture and ethnicity as it becomes home to an increasing number of people from other countries. 

EMBRACE seeks to equip the church to fulfil its call to welcome our new neighbours, by providing information, training, materials and channels for practical help. In doing this we seek to build a community which welcomes and respects diversity. 

On this site you will find information relating to the situation for people seeking asylum, refugees, migrant workers and people from resident minority ethnic backgrounds within Northern Ireland. There are also links to related sites. 

MEMORIAL SERVICE

SUNDAY 19TH NOVEMBER 2023 AT 3:00 PM

EMBRACE NI 20th ANNIVERSARY

Greetings,

EMBRACE is 20 years old.

Please see attached our invitation to you to join us in marking our anniversary with lunch at City Hall.

We need you, please, to RSVP for catering purposes. 

We also want you to share this invite with someone you know who has a connection with EMBRACE so we don’t miss anyone who would like to be there.

I look forward to seeing you on 19 October.

God Bless,

Scott

Scott Boldt – Chairperson

*EMBRACE REFLECTIONS Summer 2023*

The fourth edition of Embrace Reflections 2023 is now available!

Please click the link below for a PDF copy

https://www.embraceni.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/EMBRACE-REFLECTIONS-SUMMER-2023-5.pdf

Latest News from EMBRACE

EMBRACE NI – Report Launch February 2023

Thanks for coming to our Embrace event last week to launch Dr Emma Soye’s study Embracing the Stranger Challenges and Opportunities for NI Churches, led by our chairperson Scott Boldt. We had a fantastic turnout (over 50 attendees) to listen to Emma talk in more detail about the outcomes of her research.

We hope you enjoyed the experience and gained more insight into how your church community can continue to welcome refugees and people seeking asylum, working together to build relationships.

Please click the link below for a PDF copy of her study.

https://www.embraceni.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Embracing-the-Stranger-Report-2023.pdf

We look forward to seeing you at the next EMBRACE NI event!

Ukraine Crisis Support and Resources

List of Informal English Language Classes

A new list of Informal English Language Classes in Belfast has been prepared by Johanne Martin and Angie Russell. For more information, contact the ESOL coordinator for Northern Ireland, Ligia Parizzi, at the Belfast Metropolitan College (See our Ways You Can Help page for contact details). Click here for the list (current as of February 2022).

Welcome Churches UK

We support the initiative from Welcome Churches UK to welcome Afghan refugees into the UK, including Northern Ireland. Visit the Welcome Churches website here to find out more about the work this organisation is doing, or to see how your church can join their network. Click on the link below to learn about the Afghan Welcome initiative.

https://welcomechurches.org/churches/afghanwelcome/

Ways You Can Help


We have taken reasonable measures to check the accuracy of the information on this site and trust that it is useful. However, it is intended as a general summary of information and should not take the place of written law or regulations.

The inclusion of links to organisations in any section is not an endorsement of these groups. We cannot take responsibility for information contained on other websites.