Our Places: Finding Safety in the UK
A project by Nick Lockett Photography and Upbeat Communities
Those seeking asylum in the UK have often experienced untold horrors in their home countries.
They fled their homes, and travelled across the world to seek refuge and find safety.
El Salvador
“There are many gangsters and thieves in my country. Many dangers. We were not safe.
“A gang with guns threatened me and my small grocery shop. They demanded money and said they would kill my family.
“We had to get away to protect our children.”
“Everywhere wants you to have experience to work. I have experience in my country, but that doesn’t count here. Upbeat Clean gave me the chance at a job.
“Now I am feeling great and I would like to say thank you to God because he made all of this possible when we came to England.”
Yemen
“My country is beautiful, but it is ripped apart by a very dangerous and frightening war.
“I had to run for my life.
“Traffickers pushed 45 of us in the boat. We ran out of fuel half way across, and the water was coming in.
“I though I would die. I was very afraid.”
“I really like Derby, it’s quiet and safe.
“Upbeat is like a big community. You can learn about other cultures and make friends. They are a lot of help.”
El Salvador
“There are so many guns in my country. I was afraid for my life most of the time.
“Men from a gang came to my house and said they would kill my children. We had to leave to find somewhere safer.”
“I love that I can volunteer in the UK. You can’t do that in my country.
“There are so many opportunities here that we don’t have.”
Afghanistan
“I have lived through four decades of war and civil conflict in my country.
“I worked in Security for the United Nations. I was in the UK when something happened in my country, and I could not go home.
“When I arrived to the UK I was put in a hostel with other people seeking asylum.
“My roommate had frostbite. He had stowed away in a frozen food truck to get here.”
“My wife and my three daughters…
We are very grateful that this country has given us sanctuary and enabled us to start a new life.
El Salvador
“We had to escape in the night with our children and just the clothes we were wearing.
“I was very scared, I though ‘Will I ever have a life again?’
“You never think your life will be this way. I had to leave behind my grandmother, my home, my business and my dreams of becoming a doctor.”
“We were so sad, but then we found Upbeat and they gave me hope.
“We are really happy because this city is really friendly, and the people are really kind.”
Eritrea