My name’s Georgia and I am the Manager for Migrateful’s Bristol branch. Migrateful is an award-winning charity that supports asylum seekers, refugees and migrants on their journey to employment, integration and independence. We do this by training them to teach cookery classes where they share their traditional cuisine and culture with the public.
As well as supporting our chefs, Migrateful’s mission is to correct harmful narratives about immigration. What I love about working with Migrateful is that it celebrates migration, raises awareness about and advocates for the rights of refugees and migrants, while also facilitating meaningful interactions between different people who call Bristol their home.
Migrateful launched in 2017 in London but our founder, Jess Thompson is from Bristol and the first ever class was held that year at Bakesmiths on Whiteladies Road. After finding its feet in London, we officially began our operations in Bristol in 2020 and have just welcomed our second cohort of chefs to the family last month.
We have seven chefs from all over the world teaching classes at Coexist Kitchen in Easton our most recent venue partnership, the Mazi Project in Bedminster. At Coexist, these are hosted every Wednesday evening and approximately one Saturday daytime a month. At Mazi Project, its every Thursday evening and around a Saturday day session monthly too.
To support each class to run smoothly, Migrateful needs 3-4 volunteers for each, for a total time of 5.5 hrs per class. Typically, a volunteer can expect to: help with set up of the space; welcome participants and ensure they enjoy themselves; wash up and help pack up, enjoy a delicious meal, support a migrant-chef and learn about different cultures and food types.
We joined Can Do in 2022 and use the platform to connect with like-minded members of the community looking to engage with us and our mission. We’ve met some amazing volunteers who have made for valuable additions to our family. We’ve seen around 20 volunteers come through to us from the site, with at least five supporting on five classes or more, some even completing as many as ten!
“Migrateful is my favourite charity to volunteer for, as it allows me to witness again and again the transformative power of cooking and sharing. In a world that is increasingly polarised and frightening it is wonderful to see how strangers can unite to achieve a common purpose and get to know each other over a couple of happy hours. Seeing the chefs smile and open up when they talk about their native cuisines is equally uplifting, and I always enjoy hearing childhood stories and anecdotes.” Kamilla, Migrateful volunteer
Find out more about volunteering with Migrateful and sign up here.