£34,000 Bank of Ireland grant backs Derry café for refugees and asylum seekers

What is the background?

North West Migrants Forum (NWMF) has supported migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees across Derry City and Strabane since Chief Executive Lillian Seenoi Barr founded the charity in 2012. Its work includes welfare support, English classes, and community events, but for years NWMF had no dedicated space where people it supports could cook a meal, do laundry, or simply meet others outside a formal appointment.

What happened?

On 28 May 2026, Bank of Ireland UK confirmed it had allocated £34,000 over two years to NWMF through its Community Fund, to support a new project called the People’s Café. Three weeks later, on 20 June 2026, the café officially opened on the second floor of the Embassy Building on Derry’s Strand Road. Mayor of Derry and Strabane Grace Uí Niallais, Equality Commission Chief Commissioner Geraldine McGahey, and Derry City and Strabane District Council’s PEACEPLUS Programme Manager Sue Divin joined Seenoi Barr at the launch.

How did it happen?

The café draws on two separate funding streams. Derry City and Strabane District Council’s PEACEPLUS Local Co-Designed Action Plan, backed by the Special EU Programmes Body, paid for fitting out a previously unused premises with a fully operational training kitchen and laundry facilities. Bank of Ireland’s Community Fund grant then covers two years of the practical support and skills sessions that run inside it. Vocational provider Craft Training is teaching 30 participants catering operations, menu planning, health and safety, and food hygiene in the café’s kitchen, alongside training in marketing, communication, and presentation skills.

Why does it matter?

Bank of Ireland UK Chief Executive Gail Goldie said the Community Fund, running since 2019, aims to help “more people feel included, supported and confident about their financial futures.” NWMF Chief Executive Lillian Seenoi Barr said the café’s focus is “on reducing loneliness and isolation by providing a safe space,” adding: “It’s about creating a more connected community, where people can feel at home, no matter where they are from.” Sue Divin said the café responded directly to needs identified through a co-design process with local communities, noting that more than 60 nationalities are engaged across the council’s wider PEACEPLUS programme.

What were the key results?

• £34,000 committed by Bank of Ireland’s Community Fund over two years, confirmed 28 May 2026
• People’s Café officially opened 20 June 2026, on the second floor of Derry’s Embassy Building
• 30 participants enrolled in Craft Training’s hospitality and catering skills programme
• Café combines a training kitchen, laundry facilities, and a shared meeting space in one site
• Second funding stream: Derry City and Strabane Council’s PEACEPLUS Local Co-Designed Action Plan
• More than 60 nationalities engaged across the council’s wider PEACEPLUS local programme

What happens next?

NWMF said it will run thematic events throughout the year, open to all residents of Derry City and Strabane district, to build connections between migrant, refugee, and settled communities. Seenoi Barr told guests at the launch that the café is open to everyone in the district, “not limited to racially minoritised communities.” Bank of Ireland’s grant runs for two years, giving the café dedicated funding through its early period of operation, while Craft Training’s current 30 participants work toward skills organisers hope will lead to volunteering roles or paid hospitality jobs. The charity, marking 14 years since Seenoi Barr founded it, described the café’s opening as the start of a new chapter.