About 

Along with their hopes to make Lewisham a Borough of Sanctuary, The Refugee Cafe dreams of making Lewisham a Borough of Opportunity too! With refugees being 4 times more likely to be unemployed than the general population, The Refugee Cafe aims to break down these barriers and create opportunity, employability and community for those granted asylum in London. They make delicious food from around the world whilst creating a path to employment for people granted asylum in Lewisham.  

What they do 

The Refugee Cafe has a number of projects they run in order to break down barriers and provide opportunities for refugees living in Lewisham. By running local events and markets, they bring the whole community together and create opportunities for refugees all through the joy of good food! There is now an ever growing number of trainee chefs who make amazing food from their home countries which can be sold at these events and markets, giving refugees that much needed opportunity for experience to reach their employment goal. 

This is something which The Refugee Cafe also hopes to achieve through their Hospitality and Employability training programme that they are currently fundraising for. This programme aims to give refugees a foundation in catering through workshops and individual coaching. 

This year, the organisation hopes to open a cafe in the local area. This space will provide a safe place and community who will come together to meet, learn and of course eat some delicious food! 

Get involved

Products from The Refugee Cafe are available at their online shop as well as at a number of local stockists. (You can find the full list on their website.) 

If you’re interested you can also apply to volunteer with The Refugee Cafe. 

The Refugee Cafe relies on fundraising in order to provide refugees with a path to employment. If you want to donate you can find the link here.