12.40pm I grab a warm utility jacket for the afternoon – in luminous orange. I’m told I look like a highlighter!
12.50pm Afternoon briefing begins. We are talked through the distribution. The emphasis is on the indignity of having to queue at the back of a van to get footwear and how important it is to ensure it is organised and fair. We get the charging boards out for people to charge their phones – serve the hot drinks and get the hairdressing and bike repair stations set up. Other services include games and activities, sewing and litter picking.
1.35pm We squeeze into vans, cars and minibuses and are off.
1.55pm We arrive at the distribution site and there’s already a small queue of people. C4C goes to certain sites five days a week and people know we will be there whatever the weather.
Get the latest news and insight into how the Big Issue magazine is made by signing up for the Inside Big Issue newsletter
2pm I stand by the van and chat with A from Iran and S from Sudan who wait patiently.
2.15pm As the services are set up the queue gets longer. Everyone is given a ticket for an item, like shoes and coats.
2.25pm We set up our change station a little way away from the van. This means if people try on the shoes and they don’t fit, we have a table, masking tape, pens and spare socks.
2.45pm The mood is so positive with people delighted with their boots and trainers and new dry socks. Many come over to thank us. Most don’t have waterproof boots or trainers in good condition. I see trainers soaked through with soles falling off, people with wet socks wearing only sliders. Boots with peeling leather and holes in them. Shoes that don’t fit. People have already travelled miles. In Calais there are no formal refugee camps and people are constantly being moved on. They are forced to live in marshy places and have to walk back and forth to access basic services.
3.45pm We are told we have run out of size 42 boots which makes changing more stressful for the refugees.
3.55pm We run out of size 43 boots.
4pm We’ve also run out of size 42 trainers so the distribution closes. After packing up our change table, a team of us take up the litter-pick challenge. Three refugees join us because they want to help. M, aged 21 from Yemen, holds the bin bag for me in his lovely new boots. His old trainers had been a size too small for him. He speaks good English and had been studying to be a pharmacist before it became too dangerous for him to stay.
4.30pm With M helping with interpretation I am able to spend some time talking with people. Some want me to take photos of their old shoes so we could show people how bad they were. People tell me how wet and cold their feet had been. Some had visited the first-aid team as they had problems with their feet. Some of the children (at least 30% of the people on this site are under 18) chose trainers over boots – it’s a style thing! M tells me that in Calais they live peacefully alongside each other – they share language, they’ve travelled far, share a common faith, have experienced police oppression and brutality both in their home countries, on their journeys and here in Calais. “We are all connected,” he tells me.
4.45pm The generators are switched off as it’s time to leave.
5.20pm Back at the warehouse some volunteers unload the service van. I was on the volunteer team counting back the shoes and boots – one of my favourite things to do. It’s rewarding knowing how many people have been given such an important item. It’s also important to understand numbers to plan future distributions. In total we gave out 445 pairs of shoes – 326 boots and 119 trainers.
5.40pm The debrief starts. I’ve been coming regularly now for over a year and for me, every day I learn something new.
6.10pm I start the walk back to my apartment. I call my daughter in the UK. I take a detour through the town centre to grab some chips from the best friterie. Calais is shiny, sparkling and buzzing. The Christmas lights are on tonight just a few minutes away from where refugees live in complete squalor.
This article was written before a shooting in mid-December where five people, including migrants, were killed close to camps near Calais. Find out more about Care4Calais.
Do you have a story to tell or opinions to share about this? Get in touch and tell us more. This winter, you can make a lasting change on a vendor’s life. Buy a magazine from your local vendor in the street every week. If you can’t reach them, buy a Vendor Support Kit.
