Our story
Stories & Supper is a charity based in the London borough of Waltham Forest. We create spaces of welcome and encounter where refugees and people seeking asylum can come together with local residents over food and stories. We were founded in 2017 by Rebecca Tully, in response to the increasingly negative stories about migration. Unfortunately, since we launched, the climate has become even harsher for those seeking safety and the need for alternative narratives is greater.
At the heart of our work are regular meet-ups – creative workshops every Saturday and weekly allotment sessions throughout the growing season. We offer opportunities for artistic expression, reconnecting with nature and finding common purpose, helping to improve wellbeing and provide hope. We want everyone who joins our community to find a place where they can feel safe, laugh together and imagine a better future.
We started out as a supper club project, showcasing delicious food cooked by refugee chefs and creating a platform for migration stories. We still host suppers at least once a year, but have innovated to find more ways to make connections. We have published two books, run story cafes and pop-ups at local festivals, made short films and led school workshops. We currently have a year-long community residency at the William Morris Gallery in Walthamstow.
Our values
solidarity
•
welcome
•
radical hope
•
care
•
refugee voices
•
solidarity • welcome • radical hope • care • refugee voices •
Meet the Team
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Helen Taylor
Director
Helen has been delivering Stories & Supper projects and events since our launch in 2017. She has worked as a lecturer, researcher, writer, editor and theatre practitioner. Her PhD explored the meaning of home for Cypriot Refugees in London, and was published by Palgrave in 2015. She is a Trustee of Waltham Forest Migrant Action.
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Carine Zeka
Trustee
Carine is a refugee from Democratic Republic of Congo. She initially joined Stories & Supper as a participant before becoming a trustee. She is also a member of the management committee of the Jesuit Refugee Service. She wants to use her lived experience to help others dealing with displacement and the UK asylum system.
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Filiz Emre
Trustee
Filiz is London Partnerships Lead at charity The Reader, working in a variety of community and care settings. She collaborates with education initiative Shadow Heroes, supporting young people to embrace their heritages, and has 10 years experience as public sector interpreter with Turkish-speaking communities.
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Laura Martinez
Trustee
Laura is a portrait photographer from Venezuela with more than eight years experience. Her work is based on the family archive, migration and human body trauma. She runs photo workshops for charities and community centres in Waltham Forest and has taken photos of Stories & Supper members for our books and events.
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Olivia Sheringham
Trustee
Olivia is a lecturer in Geography and Social Justice at Birkbeck University of London. Her research expertise is on questions of home and belonging in contexts of migration, and the role of creative practice for fostering new forms of solidarity. She has published widely and is on the editorial board of the journals Migration & Society and ACME.
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Sharon Goldman
Trustee
Sharon is a registered social worker who brings safeguarding knowledge. She has over 30 years experience running projects including refugees and asylum seekers, and managing staff and volunteers. She has worked in both charities and local authorities and is also a trustee at Walthamstow community centre The Mill.
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Terri Harris
Trustee
Terri has worked in the cultural industries for over 20 years, specialising in finance for seven years. She provides financial management services to small organisations such as theatres and charities, building resilience by demystifying accounting. She’s been a Stories & Supper volunteer since 2019 and is our treasurer.
We’ve collaborated with creatives, charities, universities and arts organisations, including:
Organiclea
Phosphoros Theatre
Queen Mary University
Sarah May
Stories in Transit
Sue Mayo
Artillery
Barbican
Birkbeck University
Joelle Taylor
Jumana Moon
Mbilla Arts
Our funders
Make a donation
The donations we receive from our supporters mean we can reach more people with more projects. We know that our work makes a difference to those who participate in our activities, as well as contributing to our aim to change the narrative about migration.
Will you stand with us to create a more welcoming society?
