Donations to the Guardian and Observer 2016 charity appeal in support of child refugees have passed the £250,000 mark in just four days.



The appeal is raising money for three charities working with child refugees in continental Europe and the UK: Help Refugees, Safe Passage and the Children’s Society.

Launching the appeal last Friday, the Guardian editor-in chief, Katharine Viner, said the plight of refugees was “the great humanitarian crisis of our times”.

She added: “The political solutions to the refugee crisis may be complex, but that does not mean we should abandon our humanity. We should not close our hearts, retreat behind walls, real or imagined, or ignore the pressing moral imperative to provide assistance and sanctuary for some of the world’s most desperate people.”

The bright start to the appeal comes as Guardian and Observer journalists prepare for the annual charity telethon on Saturday. Polly Toynbee, Owen Jones, Marina Hyde and Gary Younge will join Viner and John Mulholland, the Observer editor, as well as other writers and editors to take telephone donations from readers.

The charities provide a range of vital services for child refugees, from emergency aid in the form of clothes, food, tents and medicine, to expert advice to help them legally find sanctuary in the UK, and social support to help them settle.

Help Refugees, set up by a group of friends 16 months ago, has grown into one of Europe’s biggest distributors of aid to refugees, supporting more than 50 local projects.

Safe Passage provides legal support to enable unaccompanied refugee children fleeing war and persecution to find safe and legal sanctuary, often by uniting them with family already in the UK.

The Children’s Society runs projects across the UK providing one-to-one support to child refugees including legal and housing advice, mentoring and befriending, language skills, social and creative activities, and life skills.

Last year the Guardian and Observer’s 2015 charity appeal, in support of refugees, raised over £2.6m in donations and gift aid.

• Support the three chosen charities by donating here