Babylon Project is a Community Interest Company which runs creative activities by and for young people from refugee, asylum seeking and migrant backgrounds. We provide a safe and welcoming environment in which young people can take part in creative activities such as drama, storytelling, film-making and art.
Our activities aim to address the disadvantage and exclusion experienced by refugees and asylum seekers living in the UK, boosting young people’s confidence and providing them with the necessary tools to express themselves.
Babylon Project came from the realisation that there are a large number of young asylum seekers, refugees and migrants who have no real provision. In 2021 there were 3,762 asylum claims from unaccompanied children, a 36% increase on 2020. As of June 2022, over 120,000 people were waiting on asylum decisions, with thousands of young people being kept isolated from society in hotels while their claims are processed. Our activities aim to address the disadvantage and exclusion experienced by refugees and asylum seekers living in the UK, giving them a place where they can make friends, gain skills, and feel like they belong. We have seen from our participants’ feedback just how vital this can be.
We look for volunteers who are friendly, organised and motivated. It is especially helpful if they have a connection to migration or displacement, and speak an additional language other than English.
We were founded by refugee activist, actor and facilitator Ali Ghaderi, who continues to lead the organisation. We encourage lived experience input at all levels of the organisation, and are moving towards employing more people with lived experience in facilitation and leadership roles. This is vital to the feel of Babylon - the young people see themselves reflected in the organisation, and know that our facilitators, volunteers and leadership understand what they are going through.