Working with people in the Tees Valley who are seeking asylum
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Our People
Trustees
Alan Brice
A trained counsellor, he is Manager of the Northern Centre of the medical foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture and a keen supporter of the principles for which Justice First Works.
Bill Broad
Bill Broad has recently retired as a Parish priest in the Diocese of Durham after 19 years, following earlier service in Essex. In the 1970s and 80s he founded the Ceridan and Faramir Sailing Trusts to provide the stimulus of adventure for disadvantaged young people. He is also Chair of the Mirianog Trust, a grant making body in the North East, supporting unfashionable causes.
Fiona Cuthill
A Nurse lecturing at Sunderland University, much of Fiona’s work involves enabling people who have been refused asylum to access health and support services.
Barbara Hungin
Our Chair, Barbara Hungin is a tireless worker in a voluntary capacity to support people seeking asylum. Barbara is also the chair of the Diocesan Justice and Peace commission and has established a drop-in centre in Stockton when refugees were first dispersed here.
Bob Kerr
An experienced local politician with Cabinet responsibility for diversity. Bob has a commitment to supporting people seeking asylum in Middlesbrough.
Mike Tomlin
Mike is also Treasurer of Stockton Unitarian Church and Teesside One World Centre. He has many years experience of the voluntary sector and is a founder member of a charity that recycles furniture.
Catherine Ramos
Catherine Ramos is a language teacher and interpreter, with a special interest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Catherine currently active as the Hon. Secretary of Justice First and also acts in a voluntary capacity helping people seeking asylum deal with any problems as they integrate into the local community.
Pete Widlinski
Area Manager of the North of England Refugee Service, Secretary of the North East Coalition for Asylum Rights and a Trustee of the Mary Thompson Fund that seeks to alleviate asylum seeker hardship for those seeking asylum.
Tresor Bukasa
Tresor is a former airline pilot and worked as a human rights investigator for a local NGO back in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Currently, he is working as a Community Development Worker for the Regional Refugee Forum North East. He is the Chairperson of NECFAR (North East Coalition for Asylum Rights) and Bridge Group. Tresor holds a Masters Degree in International Relations and is currently studying for a Masters on Human Rights at Teesside University.
John Fletcher
John is an elected member to Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council representing Eaglescliffe Ward. He has a wealth of experience in public service and a deep interest in the issue of asylum. During his Mayoral Year John raised money for Justice First through his Mayor’s Charity.
Additional Founding Members
Hilaire Agnama
A refugee from Togo, he works for the Teesside One World Centre raising awareness of Refugee issues. He is chair of African Community Advice North East and runs a project documenting the history of African people in North East England.
Rosemary Muthani Anderson
Company Secretary and Kenyan by birth, Rosemary was Secretary of Tees Valley Voices for Justice, an organisation that raises awareness of asylum problems through liaison with statutory and voluntary bodies and the community.
Maureen Hall
Maureen was Unit Manager for Teesside Probation Services. She is a former Redcar and Cleveland Councillor and a member of the NE Coalition for Asylum Rights.
Dennis Oliver
Through his work as an enabler with The Scarman Trust, Dennis has wide experience of working with people seeking asylum.
Rowena Sommerville
Community Programme Manager at Tees Valley Arts - has worked with refugees and people seeking asylum for five years mentoring talented individuals; running projects using music, photography, writing, animation, textiles and more; and organising celebratory events that bring the whole community together.
Ian Jeffrey
Ian has many years experience as an elected member both at County and Unitary level. He represents a diverse ward where residents have multiple needs. Ian chaired a local Forum that brought together practitioners working in the field of asylum.
Val Jones
Valerie Jones is an Immigration Solicitor who represented asylum seekers in Middlesbrough and Stockton for 6 years, but currently acts for refugees in South Yorks. Valerie still lives in the North East and is committed to maintaining legal representation in increasingly difficult times for people fleeing persecution and human rights abuses.
Chris Coombs
Chris has a wealth of experience as an elected member of a ward where many of the refugee community have settled.
Staff
Our Project Manager is Kath Sainsbury and our Case Worker is Hamida White both of whom have extensive networking experience in humanitarian support for those seeking asylum and in the vital work of re-connecting them to the legal process.
Patrons
We are honoured to have as our Patrons The Bishop of Durham Reverend Tom Wright, Stephen Tompkinson, Actor and Curtis Fleming from Show Racism the Red Card and former professional footballer.