Find out how we are welcoming people seeking sanctuary in Coventry
The Belgrade Theatre became a Theatre of Sanctuary on 21 November 2017. Launched by City of Sanctuary in partnership with Counterpoint Arts, Theatre of Sanctuary is a title awarded to venues and theatre companies that demonstrate a commitment to welcoming and celebrating refugees and those seeking sanctuary in the UK.
The Belgrade has an ongoing partnership with Coventry Refugee and Migrant Centre. From 2019-20, the two organisations worked together on two iterations of a project called Translated, supporting refugee and migrant women to develop their own visual and performing arts projects. In January 2021, we launched a new project in partnership with CRMC, Coventry UK City of Culture Trust, Voluntary Action Coventry and Foleshill Women’s Training, funded by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF).
In 2020, the Belgrade also worked with Coventry City Council to deliver Imagine: Kindness as part of Coventry Welcomes Week. This week-long project saw an original poem by Ethiopian poet Biruk Kebede translated into six different languages.
In January 2021, we launched a new project, Integrate Coventry in partnership with CRMC, Coventry UK City of Culture Trust, Voluntary Action Coventry and Foleshill Women’s Training, funded by the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF), that culminated within a celebration event in November 2023.
Fast forward to March 2024, we have a new Community Engagement Facilitator as part of our staff team and have been working up what our next 3 years as a Theatre of Sanctuary will look like. We are committed to sharing stories with, by and for those with lived experience of migration and/or displacement. We are excited to share our plans with you soon!
