I am a writer and former journalist who volunteers with a refugee charity.

I am convinced that, as a country, we need to welcome refugees. My inspiration comes from my godmother, Trudi Eulenburg, who was granted shelter in the UK from Nazi Germany as a teenager in 1939. Her Jewish father had already suffered internment in a concentration camp and the family’s music publishing business had been confiscated. Trudi subsequently wrote about being cold-shouldered by German school friends, and seeing the windows of Jewish shops smashed on Kristallnacht. Her accounts are now apparently used as source material for GCSE history students!

Trudi spent many years as deacon and church worker in London, at St.Botolph’s, Aldgate, including supporting homeless people and those with addiction problems. She was always ready to speak out about the dangers of intolerance, and she is often in my mind today. Her life shows that welcoming refugees can enrich our society.