Northumberland pensioner visits UK refugees by bus pass

A 74-year-old woman who volunteers at an asylum seeker charity is using her bus pass to travel the country visiting those she has helped.

Anne Murray supports migrants in Northumberland adapt to life in the UK.

She is now travelling the length and breadth of the country to meet those who have moved away from the area after being granted leave to remain.

Mrs Murray said the people she is visiting are like her “extended family”.

Mrs Murray, who lives in Belsay, has been volunteering with Northumberland County of Sanctuary (NCOS) since 2016. It is part of the City of Sanctuary group, which supports migrants and promotes inclusivity within communities.

“I started volunteering because I felt it was time to stand up and be counted for what I believe,” she said.

I’d heard that people seeking asylum were going to be housed in Northumberland and I wanted to find out what I could actually do to help.

“It was one of the best decisions I have ever made.”

Many of those Mrs Murray helped lived in Ashington and Blyth but have since moved away.

She is now using her bus and coach pass to visit the families in Manchester, Glasgow, Blackpool, Birmingham, Huddersfield, Stoke, Leicester, Nottingham, Surrey and London.

“We have had people from 44 different countries come to Ashington,” Mrs Murray said.

“All the people I am visiting call Ashington home.”

One of the first people she has visited was Mohammed Abdul Karim, who in 2017 became the first migrant in Ashington to receive leave to remain.

He became close to Mrs Murray and her husband after he was evicted from Home Office accommodation and lived with the couple for three months while the issue was resolved.

Originally from Sudan he now lives in Manchester and works as an ambulance driver for the Red Cross.

“We are all so proud of his faith and determination to succeed,” Mrs Murray said.

As part of her work with NCOS, Mrs Murray said she helped set up England language classes in churches and encouraged Ashington College to set up ESOL (English for speakers of other languages) courses.

The charity also helps people find clothes suitable for the UK weather, as well as pushchairs and baby clothes for expectant mothers.

Mrs Murray is hoping her visit will help raise awareness to the challenges migrants face when they arrive in the UK.

“If you can put yourself in that person’s place, all I would want is for someone to smile at me and say, ‘You are welcome here. How can we help you?’.”