On 17^th ? 18^th October 2015 we returned to Calais for our second visit to ?the jungle?.

Helen, Helen, Ali and Jose spent a day at the warehouse used for collection drop-off and distribution of donations run by L?Auberge des Migrants.This is a large space but it was full of donations, with more and more arriving with each passing hour.There is a very efficient system for sorting donations and nothing is wasted but it is endless work and, as soon as volunteers sort items, more arrives.It really brought home how important it is to only donate items that are necessary and useful at that time: space is at a premium and much time and effort is used sorting and removing unsuitable items. Whilst at the warehouse, a volunteer came several times asking for children?s clothes, once for a three month old baby, which, on a rainy day in a cold warehouse, made us think how dire the situation really is for the new mothers trying to take care of their children in ?the jungle?.

(Helen, Ali, Helen at L'Auberge des Migrant's warehouse)

Megan and Paul went into ?the jungle? to distribute sacks of onions, spices and tinned food to two of the community kitchens that have been set up to try to ensure every resident of the camp gets one hot meal a day.These are separate from the ?official? kitchen at the Jules Ferry Centre and are run by female residents of the camp.Whilst there, they met a young Iraqi woman who had arrived at the camp that day with her 12 year-old twin daughters, her 2 year-old son and her three month old daughter, possibly the same child Ali had but a package of clothes and essentials together for at the warehouse.The Iraqi woman made the journey with her mother and had given birth in Turkey after a treacherous boat trip.One of the volunteers at the camp, who is there for a longer period, helped to secure the family a van to sleep in and the children were happy to have some sweets but the long-term prospects for the family are very concerning.

We took lots of women?s underwear and socks, which was purchased, in part, with a donation made by the Southend-on-Sea Unison branch and the local TUC. We also took a lot of chocolate!

These donations were given to Liz Clegg, who went to the camp in August 2015 to distribute wellies and has never left. She lives in ?the jungle? and runs a small women-only safe space where female residents of the camp can go to collect essentials and, once a week, get clothes in a ?boutique? where the women?s space is set up to be like a shop so residents can browse and choose their own items.Liz is playing a vital role in ?the jungle? and supporting her is definitely supporting our sisters in Calais so, we gave her �300 to continue her amazing work and to ensure that her vehicle is in good working order for the winter months.

(Helen and Ali with Liz's amazing and crucial truck)

(The women's safe space)

(Inside the women's safe space)

In addition to this trip, we have also been working with Clement Blain and Association Salam to provide three winterised tents that have a stove, which will hopefully provide proper shelter for around 30 people over the coming winter months.

After many, many set backs and a great deal of hard work, Clement has secured the appropriate tents and these will be erected once the French government have identified the area of ?the jungle? which will be cleared to accommodate them along with the 1500 refugee tents they have said they will provide.The French government have guaranteed that these tents are not at risk of being demolished, which is obviously a great concern for us all.This will be overseen by an NGO already operating in ?the jungle? and will be allocated to women and children who are new residents and who may not wish to leave the male members of their family, which they would need to do if they were housed at the Jules Ferry Centre.

You can find Clement's updates here: https://assets.gogetfunding.com/provide-shelters-to-migran...

So, what?s next?

As you can see from this latest update, the work we are able to do in collaboration with other groups and NGOs in Calais has moved way beyond providing sanitary products. In fact, as a result of everyone?s amazing generosity, we are in a position to be able to fulfil all future need for sanitary products.

What we hope to do now is to work closely with the existing women?s services in ?the jungle? to expand the provision.For example, a group of women from Eritrea would like to open a nail bar, which was their profession before the camp, and we hope to be able to help them build that.Of course, life in ?the jungle? is not predictable and the actions of the French government and police could mean plans change but that is what we hope for the moment.In the long-term, we also hope to help provide advice and support from sexual health nurses for women in the camp.There is a great deal of discussion taking place between international women?s organisations and government bodies with regard to the sexual violence and forced prostitution that is happening in the camp and we are contributing to that work.

Our major concern is how much ?the jungle? has changed in the past 6 weeks since our last visit.Official estimates have the number of residents at 6000, so double what it was in August, but volunteers on the ground estimate it is closer to 8000.The area is noticeably more crowded and, of course, the change in weather means the mud is now a massive problem, as is stagnant water and the lack of toilet facilities.Helping women and children keep warm, dry and able to cook hot meals in the coming months is going to be our priority in Calais whilst we also work on ?encouraging? organisations outside Calais to recognise the specific dangers women and children face as long as the camp exists.

Supporting Our Sisters in Calais has become something we never would have thought it could when we started this only three months ago and that is ALL down to the generosity of friend and many, many strangers.Please, continue to follow our updates and share the link far and wide so we can continue what we do: https://assets.gogetfunding.com/supporting-sisters-in-calais/

With love and solidarity

Helen, Helen and Meg.