A Voice, a Home, and a Shared Purpose – My Journey

When I first arrived at St James’s Church, Piccadilly, in June 2024, I carried the weight of displacement and the uncertainty of the UK asylum process under the Hostile Environment policy. Like many in St James’s International Group also known as the Asylum and Refugee Group, I had fled persecution as an LGBTQ+ person seeking safety. What I found here was far more than temporary shelter: I found a second home, a place of profound support, and eventually, a meaningful way to contribute through my volunteer role on the steering committee.

The International Group is a vital space of solidarity for asylum seekers, refugees, and others navigating Britain’s often harsh immigration system. We meet regularly to share stories, offer practical guidance, and build community turning isolation into connection through conversations, tea, cooking and eating together, social outings, laughter and tears. Some of us are LGBTQ+ individuals who left countries where our identities were criminalized, Christians, Muslims and other faiths; and here we affirm that our dignity and stories matter.

St James’s Church became my anchor throughout the asylum journey. The moral encouragement lifted me when doubt overwhelmed; the mental and emotional space allowed me to process trauma and anxiety; the spiritual nourishment through inclusive worship, reflection, and a faith that embraces questions, gave me hope; the economic support and signposting to resources eased practical burdens; and the social warmth fostered friendships that feel like family. I remain deeply grateful that I have now been granted refugee status, a milestone made possible, in part, by the steady encouragement and support I received here.

A couple of years ago, I was invited to join the steering committee as a volunteer, and that invitation transformed how I engage with the community. In this role, I help shape our priorities and direction: we discuss and decide together which issues to focus on, how to support members most effectively, and how to ensure every gathering remains safe, inclusive, and welcoming.

Being part of creating the group’s rules, guidelines, and ways of working has been especially meaningful—it means co-building the kind of empathetic, fair space we all needed earlier in our journeys. For me, this matters profoundly because it shifts us from being solely recipients of support to active shapers of our environment. We move from asking to be heard to helping set the agenda.

Representation has been one of the most powerful dimensions of the role. I will never forget meeting the Mayor of Westminster on behalf of the International Group, speaking directly about the lived realities of asylum seekers and refugees in the borough: housing pressures, barriers to health-care and education, and the emotional exhaustion of indefinite waiting. Those moments are rooted in the experiences of the people I sit with every week, 2 weeks or month. Advocating in this way gives the community a direct voice with decision-makers and ensures our stories influence broader conversations about justice, welcome, and dignity.

My contributions also include sharing opportunities that restore agency. I spoke about my own hands-on free digital training journey, earning a City & Guilds certified Diploma in IT Technician from JBC Skills Training Limited and a free Diploma program in cyber-security with Bath College—which opened doors I hadn’t thought possible during the asylum process. That sharing sparked interest, questions, and follow-up actions among members; people exchanged contacts, explored similar pathways, and took empowering steps forward. In a system that can erode possibility, these acts of mutual support are quietly revolutionary.

I remain committed to attending meetings consistently, offering encouragement and practical advice to those still navigating their claims. Having walked that path, the fear, the paperwork and the waiting, I share coping strategies, navigation tips, and reminders that setbacks are not the end. Through the group, I have in occasions participated in St James’s church readings and other activities like garden cleaning which has further given me a sense of belonging, love and acceptance. Our connections reach further too, through enriching visits from organizations like Migrant Organize, who listen attentively to our experiences and offer advisory support, linking us to the wider migrant justice movement.

I am especially thankful to the church Priests: Revd Lucy Winkett, Revd Dr Ayla Lepine, Revd Dr Mariama Ifode- Blease and to Max Fedyk, our Refugee and Asylum Seeker Project Coordinator and Joanna Kelly, the Outreach Projects and Partnerships Manager and all the group members. Their compassionate pastoral care, thoughtful guidance, tireless advocacy, and steady presence have supported me personally and every member of the group. Their example inspires the work we do on the steering committee and embodies the radical welcome at the heart of St James’s.

What I value most about this community is how it turns individual struggles into collective strength, silence into shared voice, and strangers into kin. Being part of the steering committee allows me to help build and sustain that space contributing not just as someone who has received help, but as someone who now helps shape it. In a world that too often marginalizes those seeking safety, this volunteer role gives me purpose, belonging, and a lasting sense of home.

To anyone feeling unheard or alone: spaces like ours exist because people choose to show up, listen, lead, and care together. I am honoured to do that here, week after week, as a steering committee volunteer at St James’s.

Ole Michael Toochukwu