<div><strong>Skates4Mates — Keep us rolling </strong>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Joy is a radical act.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>People seeking sanctuary in the UK arrive into a system designed to exclude, isolate and make life hard. Skates4Mates is a community-designed rollerskating and rollerdance programme supporting wellbeing, confidence and social inclusion with people seeking sanctuary in the UK.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>We work at every level:</strong>
</div>
<ul>
<li>with individuals through workshops, kit and pastoral care,
</li>
<li>with communities through events and connection, and
</li>
<li>with wider society by bringing people together across difference.
</li>
</ul>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The World Health Organisation confirms what we already know — arts engagement strengthens the wellbeing of displaced people and the communities around them.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We started in November 2024 and already we cannot keep up with demand.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>What we do</strong>
</div>
<div>We offer free introductory workshops in rollerskating and rollerdance skills in a supportive and fun environment.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Every participant in Skates4Mates receives their own pair of rollerskates and full safety equipment to keep, so they can skate for as long as they want, wherever they want, long after the programme ends.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Your own skates connect you to one of the most welcoming and diverse communities in the world. The global skate community doesn't care where you're from or how you got here. We've seen participants turn up at skate parks, join local crews, travel to festivals and make friends across the country.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We also run community events and opportunities that connect participants with the wider skating world, alongside pastoral care and wider support.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>We are excited to announce that we have recently partnered with <a href="https://www.doublethreatskates.co.uk/?srsltid=AfmBOoplIgTtzCu-TRnj9tgv-RgqaMMYJFaLhOk4Z8x8VX7J6EjFsYHg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Double Threat Skates</a>, an all-female owned skate shop, who supply brand new, high quality gear at heavily discounted prices for about the same cost as second-hand, but without the hours of sourcing.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Good quality gear matters. As well as being imperative for safety, it is one of the ways we demonstrate that every person who joins the programme is worth investing in. Everyone gets kit that works, fits properly and is theirs to keep.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>What participants say</strong>
</div>
<div><em>"When they skate, people move out of their way. Now they're not migrants, they're skaters. It's changed their lives." </em>— Majid Dhana, 432 Nomads, partner organisation
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>"Right now, I am a skater. I teach other people how to skate. When people ask me what I do, I say skating and football."</em> — Mo, Cohort 1
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Mo joined Skates4Mates in November 2024. He had never skated before. Within a year he had travelled to a major skating festival in London, appeared in a short film, and moved to a new city where he now teaches other people to skate. He still has his skates.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>"I was tired and overthinking. It got rid of the overthinking. I found friends."</em> — Jon, Cohort 2
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>What we've achieved</strong>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Since November 2024:
</div>
<ul>
<li>93% of our first cohort completed the full programme
</li>
<li>100% of participants reported new friendships and increased confidence
</li>
<li>Over 30 people have attended our introductory workshops and have their own skates and gear
</li>
<li>45 people are currently on our waiting list
</li>
<li>Masterclass with Frankie J AKA <a href="https://www.instagram.com/thereddreadhousehead/?hl=en-gb" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">thereddreadhousehead</a>internationally recognised jamskate artist
</li>
<li>Participants have travelled to Roll On Festival in London where they connected with skaters from around the world, and built friendships that continue long after the sessions end
</li>
<li>We have been featured in The <a href="https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/refugees-roller-skates-skates4mates-jennifer-irons/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Big Issue</a>
</li>
<li>Invited to Counterpoints Arts' <a href="https://counterpoints.org.uk/event/holding-space-arts-refugees-and-mental-health/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Holding Space Conference</a> in 2026
</li>
<li>Invited speaker at <a href="https://luma.com/wy8h6unf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Sidebar</a> Skoll Week 2026, Oxford — Refugees and Migrant Workers: Pathways to Dignity, Work and Inclusion
</li>
<li>Nominated for the <a href="https://www.creativityforsocialchangeaward.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">European Creativity for Social Change Award</a>(2025 and 2026)
</li>
<li>Won Honourable Mention, <a href="https://www.globalleadersinstitute.org/gap/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Global Arts Prize Legacy Award</a>
</li>
</ul>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>What's happening right now</strong>
</div>
<div><strong>New sessions </strong>- We are currently running two new cohorts, including a women-only group that had the most oversubscribed taster session the host organisation has seen in two years.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><em>“I feel happy!” </em>- Sina, cohort 3
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>New event </strong>- We are preparing for our first ever street skate: the Ride Joy Roll Out on 21 June through Portsmouth for Refugee Week 2026.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>New training</strong> - And we are beginning something we are really proud of: training previous participants to become coaches. Mo already teaches people to skate in his new city. He is proof that when someone has something as simple as skates and a community, the ripple goes far further than the programme.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>What's next</strong>
</div>
<div>We are planning more masterclass and community connector events, and are in early conversations to bring Skates4Mates to two new cities in 2026 and 2027.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>What your donation covers</strong>
</div>
<ul>
<li>A pair of rollerskates: £65
</li>
<li>⛑ A helmet: £25
</li>
<li>Full protective pads: £20
</li>
<li>A Skates4Mates t-shirt: £15
</li>
<li>A kit bag to carry it all: £15
</li>
<li>Full kit for one participant: £140
</li>
<li>One session training a participant to become a coach: £150
</li>
<li>One full workshop for 15 people including space hire, lead coach, assistant coach, travel and pastoral support: £700
</li>
</ul>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Join us on 21 June for the Ride Joy Roll Out</strong>
</div>
<div>Roll out with us through Portsmouth for Refugee Week 2026. Free to attend, everyone welcome — bring your skates, blades, boards or just your feet.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong>Register on Eventbrite: <a href="https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ride-joy-roll-out-street-skate-and-roller-jam-party-tickets-1990621201600" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HERE</a></strong>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Come find us and please feel free to share our story on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/skates4mates/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Instagram</a>
</div>
<div><strong><a href="https://www.instagram.com/skates4mates/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/skates4mates/" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://www.instagram.com/skates4mates/</a></a></strong>
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Every donation, however small, keeps someone skating.
</div>
<div>Thank you.
</div>

Susan Irons

Julia Stansfield

Sharon McArdle

Virginie Taranne

Sungkyung Kang

Jason Leman

Mai Hashimoto

Katherine Tucker

Anonymous

Dr Ben Marion Ben Marion

John Butler

Heather Spalding

MR TOBIAS M WILSON

Jennifer Laycock

Skates4Mates: Share the love of roller skating with refugees

platform

Platform is iOS

Android

Adyen Google Pay Development Audience

$opt_dummy_attribute

English only

Deprecate Stripe Legacy

dyn_template_ids

Adyen V6 Bene Transfer & MyMoney Campaign Organizers - test01

Bene transfer V6 and AdyenV6MyMoney Campaign Organizers - production

OneTrust next-app audience

fundCountryCode

NextDoor Share Option Users

Fundraisers with Reactions feature capability

fundCurrencyCode

US + Non-charity COs Only

locale

fund country is US and user language is English

personId

comms-internal-person-ids

Enhanced Story Experience Users

Suggested Goal Experience Users

user language is English and fund country: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

Poster share - new funds eligible (newest 9/18)

Streaming widgets beta user

paymentProcessor

3DS payment method

user language is English and fundCountry: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

currencyCode

Money Box Donation List Prompt Experiment Audience

GoFundMe Employees

ipAddress

Mark Rieth IP Address

Version 9.2.0 and above

Fund is in English speaking country

desktop

Android v12.11.0 and above

Platform is Android

paymentMethodType

checkoutType

Payment method type group to be vaulted on success

admin pr kit prod

EUR Donation Upsell

Share Text generation Skip Fundraiser

(prod) new funds eligible for amp12 (UGC gallery)

fintrac_cad_idv_form_v2 audience

paymentProcessorAccountId

fallback mode accounts

proCampaignId

p2p legacy startfundraising page

AMP24 New Funds Only PROD (DO NOT MODIFY)

countryCode

charityId

UKCharities

Federated Search Internal Testing

route.pathname community

US Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks Feature Audience

Supporter Comments Eligible Funds

International Only

fundId

braze fundraiser group 

Payment Identity Transfers ATO Risk Check (Targeted) - Production

Fundraiser Saved Payment Method Rate Limit Bypass (Production)

leaderboard-partner-id-audience-givepanel

Eligible for Profile Comment Badge

Version 9.2.1 and above

AUD Donation Upsell audience

fundraiserCountryCode is US/EN

Active Fundraiser - Smart Default Cadence

DAF Internal

Vault on success card payment method

Platform is iOS v11.0.0 and above

Desktop users

Person ids

United States (US) users

allow yuno fundraisers for test

Mexico country code

Posters INTL

NPO Profile Opted-In

iOS at or above 12.4.0

non-US recurring donors

Canada Campaign Owner Group

Fundraiser Without Meta Link

Scheduler payment tester gorup

charityCommunityId

Charities allow to be claimed unclaimed (PRD)

Canada (CA) users

UC Tipping v20250115 International

pymk_production_xplr_fe_team

Android at or above 12.2.0

Profile photo entry point audience

smart goals (fundraiser/manage) on test01

Activity Tracking v1 Beta Testing

writePath

Stream Notification

start gfm intl allowed locales

Platform is iOS v11.2.0 and above

NPO upsell education category

unclaimed charities

prod_ach_audience

AI Chatbot Audience

amp13 only new funds (prod) (anyword auto)

UC Flow Enabled (Prod)

Payment Identity Beneficiary Verification - Production

shared notification bell audience

Custom users

ach frontend audience

Android v11.0.0 and above

Users Receiving Payments Paused Notifications

smart goals test01

Manage Coach - US English Organizers Only + new funds only

Team EGG - IP Address list

NPO recommendations prod

Fundraiser Without Instagram Deep Link

Native 11.4.0 and above

UC Tipping v20250107

ai_title_page

anyword

openai

control

manual_entry

userEmail

template_id

userId

fundUrl

isCharityCo

email

appVersion

shouldBucketIntoExperiment

partnerId

isEligibleForProfileCommentBadge

donationCadence

isActiveFundraiser

isPartner

isMobile

npoProfileOptIn

fundIsLinkedWithMeta

hasSessionDonation

categoryGroup

isCampaignOwner

fundHasInstagramDeepLink

Native 11.3.0 and above

Native 11.4.0 and higher

New funds eligible - Video Sharing (PROD)

GB Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks V3 Rollout Audience

Thank you V3 testing whitelist

isRecurringFriendly

Is Recurring Friendly

Excluded funds - Video Sharing

NPO upsell animals category

NPO upsell disaster relief category

Logged In Users

CH Donation Upsell audience

Android v10.6.0 and above

NPO upsell essential needs category

NPO upsell medical category

userCurrencyCode

Localized Currency

NPO upsell cancer category

v11.5.0 and above

testAudience

pathname

Survicate

appVersion is at or above 12.8.0

Non-charity fund

isChallengeFundraiser

challenge-fundraisers

Payment Identity Launch Verification - Production

New funds eligible - Posters v2

CAD Donation Upsell Audience

Braze Email Tester

NPO Profile Opted-Out

iOS App Version

hasKnownDonors

PYMK has donors

iOS v12.3.0 and above

Skates4Mates: Share the love of roller skating with refugees

Still £2,229 to go. Help us build momentum.