New chapter for WERS
Today, we are sharing a joint letter from our Chair and Chief Executive outlining an important moment of change for WERS.
After more than twenty-five years, we will be moving on from our base at the former Vicarage in the West End of Newcastle. This marks the end of an important chapter in our history.
What began as a small clothing project has, over time, grown into an organisation supporting thousands of people as they rebuild their lives.
We want to take this opportunity to thank the Church of England and the Diocesan Board of Finance for their generosity and support since 2000. Their welcome allowed WERS to grow into what it is today. We have deeply valued this relationship over many years.
As we step away from the building, we do so with a sense of gratitude — and with a clear focus on what comes next.
We are reshaping how we work so that we can reach people more effectively across the region, staying true to our purpose while adapting to a changing environment.
We invite you to read the full letter to understand more about why these changes are happening and what they mean for the future of WERS.
March 2026
Dear Friend
Join us in shaping a better future for WERS – renewed through the unique way we work together in service of others.
Over twenty-five years ago, West End Refugee Service (WERS) opened its doors in the West End of Newcastle because that is where people seeking asylum were housed, and being rooted in the neighbourhood was central to who we were from the very beginning. People could walk to us. We became part of daily life in the area, and our house stood as a symbol of welcome and hope for thousands of people rebuilding their lives.
Since then, the context in which WERS operates has changed significantly – in where people are housed, how support is accessed and in the wider pressures facing charities like ours.
In response, for the past two years the Board of WERS has been carefully reviewing and reassessing how the organisation works, to ensure it can continue to offer meaningful, sustainable support in a changing environment. During this time, WERS has quietly been going through a journey of renewal, supported by strengthened governance and leadership, including the appointment of Andy Durma as Chief Executive in 2024 and the renewal of the Board through 2024 and 2025. Our Board now has access to a range of skills and relationships that make a meaningful difference and, crucially, we continue to increase the number of Trustees with lived experience of the asylum system, ensuring that decisions are informed by those who have navigated the system themselves and that lived experience shapes the way forward.
The next phase of this work will involve transitioning to a more flexible model that allows us to travel and work across the region, partner with local organisations, and deliver support closer to where people are temporarily housed. That means we will move away from our current building so that we can better support people across the region. This change is about how we work, not whether we continue our work. As we make this transition, some services may pause briefly to allow changes to be made safely and responsibly, but this is a planned and temporary step designed to strengthen our support in the long term.
Alongside these changes, we are taking a disciplined and deliberate approach to our resources. Every pound entrusted to WERS must be directed towards the work that matters most and our long-term impact. This requires careful decisions about our operating model and how we organise ourselves to deliver impact, guided by our values and by the voices of those with lived experience who help shape our direction.
These decisions are being taken against a backdrop of wider changes that have reshaped how people seeking asylum are supported across the region.
The landscape around us has shifted in ways none of us could have fully predicted. The tone of the national conversation has hardened, and its impact is being felt on our streets. Public debate about immigration has grown louder and more polarised, and in too many cases, it has been exploited to justify racism and hostility towards people seeking asylum and refugees.
The reality is that the environment in which we operate has fundamentally changed. People seeking asylum are now dispersed across the wider region, placed in temporary accommodation often far from the communities and support networks that help them find stability. Even when they are initially housed locally, they are frequently relocated at short notice to areas with limited infrastructure and little specialist support. Many people are unable to travel to see us or take part in our activities. For some, a single return journey can take a meaningful share of the money they are expected to live on for the entire week.
This is the direct result of deliberate successive government policies that have reshaped how and where people are housed and extended waiting times for decisions, significantly increasing the scale and complexity of the support we provide.
All of this sits within a period of significant economic strain across the UK. Rising living costs, stretched public finances and unprecedented demand on charitable funders have fundamentally changed the financial environment in which we operate. Like many other charities, we find ourselves operating in an increasingly challenging funding environment. We are aware of these pressures and have responded with a careful review of how WERS works so that our resources remain focused where they matter most. We also recognise the difficult choices grant-makers and donors face, and we value the care and long-term commitment with which they stand behind work like ours.
WERS has never been just a building or a service. It exists because of people – people of goodwill, volunteers, employees, funders, donors, partners and community members who believe that dignity and welcome matter. Civic society has always been at the heart of our work, shaping meaningful support that builds confidence, skills and independence over the long term.
This is a new chapter in our history, and we are inviting you to play a part in shaping it.
Communities are defined by how they respond when the environment around them becomes more uncertain. Across the North East, we have seen people step forward quietly — offering time, practical help, encouragement and financial support without expecting recognition.
If you believe that this work matters, you can help us carry it forward.
Please share our message, speak about our work within your networks and, if you are able, consider supporting WERS financially so that we can continue reaching people across the region.
Every act of support helps sustain this work.
Yours sincerely
Revd John Howard-Norman Chair
(on behalf of the Board of Trustees)
&
Andy Durma
Chief Executive