SCAN UK’s mission is to coordinate between the Syrians in the UK, and to offer them support, coordination and encourage cooperation between groups. SCAN UK aspires to serve as an umbrella under which Syrian groups in the UK can work together towards ensuring that members of the Syrian community within the UK lead safe, productive, and well-integrated lives. The network does not speak on behalf of its members, rather serves as a platform for their voice.
ANAS TOOMA
Board Member
Anas is a Syrian British activist. Over the last ten years, his activism ranged from civil society consolidation to political solution initiatives. Anas helped cofound SCAN UK Network, British Solidarity for Syria (BSS), Mosaic Initiative and Help Other Progress and Evolve (H.O.P.E). In 2013, Anas joined the Syrian Interim Government in Gaziantep/Turkey as a consultant and led “In Green Program”, one of the major initiatives which was co funded by USAID/OTI’s Syria Regional Program (SRP).
Anas moved to the UK in 2008 and completed his MBA in Strategic Human Recourse Management at the University of South Wales, and runs a talent management boutique in West London.
Board Member
Country Director and Co-Founder of Hand in Hand for Aid and Development (HiHFAD).
Board Member
Lena is an active member of the local and Syrian communities. She has organised many social and fund-raising events and has raised awareness about the Syrian conflict and the plight of the Syrian people. Lena has volunteered to help Syrian refugees when they first arrive to Nottingham. She is still active in giving help and support to the local Syrian community as and when needed. As a founding member of Nottingham Women's Voices, Lena is also an active ambassador in the Trust Building Forum. She is part of the Difficult Conversation Project in Nottingham, which is funded by Nottingham City Council. She is a keen advocate for social justice, women's right issues and all that promotes community understanding and cohesion.
Board Member
Dr. Mohammad Alhadj Ali is Clinical Lecturer Diabetes and Endocrinology at Cardiff University with focus on Immunotherapy and Type 1 Diabetes. He is passionate about public engagement and humanitarian causes.
Board Member
Dr Aula Abbara is a consultant in Infectious Diseases/ General Internal Medicine at Imperial College NHS Healthcare Trust, London and an Honorary Clinical Senior Lecturer at Imperial College. She teaches and supervises students on the Global Health BSc course at Imperial College and the TMIH at LSHTM.
She has volunteered in different humanitarian and refugee settings including direct clinical work, teaching healthcare workers and building capacity. Since 2012, this has been predominantly with Syrian non-governmental organisations.
WASL وَصْلْ (connecting or pairing in Arabic) is a network of European Syrian umbrella organisations. The website serves as a platform to present the European Syrian Civil Society Organisations and their members. Through increasing visibility, our goal is to bring together Syrian Civil Society with like-minded actors and to empower the Syrian diaspora in Europe.
The SCNP is a platform of rights-based Syrian diaspora civil society networks and coalitions. Its purpose is strictly to facilitate information sharing, coordinate efforts, and amplify Syrian voices.
The SCNP networks from Europe (including France, Sweden, Germany, and the UK), Turkey and the US that together include over 90 organizations. The SCNP holds quarterly meetings to improve coordination and collaboration between the networks. Previous meetings have included the topics of Syrian civil society, gender, refugee return, reflections on the Brussels III Days of Dialogue, conditions for refugees in host countries, and humanitarian aid diversion.
