Refugee Week
Counterpoints Arts produces and coordinates Refugee Week in the UK and supports the festival in over 20 countries around the world.
Refugee Week is the world’s largest arts and culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. Founded in 1998 and held every year around World Refugee Day on the 20 June, Refugee Week in the UK is a collaborative project with more than 20 national partners and an open platform for participation.
Through a programme of arts, cultural, sports and educational events alongside media and creative campaigns, Refugee Week enables people from different backgrounds to connect beyond labels, as well as encouraging understanding of why people are displaced, and the challenges they face when seeking safety. Refugee Week is an opportunity for people who have sought safety in the UK to share their experiences, perspectives and creative work on their own terms.
Refugee Week in 2026
In 2026 are excited to share that the nation’s favourite illustrator, Quentin Blake has illustrated this year’s Refugee Week Simple Acts Campaign, as providing an illustration responding to this year’s theme, Courage. This year’s festival takes place between 15-21 June. Read the latest Refugee Week news on our blog.
1.1 million
Live Audience
57 million
Online Audience
9,000
Participants
