Snappers moved by refugees’ plight donate photos

A freelance photographer was so moved by the image of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi who washed ashore in Turkey that he has set up a website selling photographic prints to raise funds for a refugee medical charity where his wife volunteers.

Mark Sherratt, 36, was compelled to act after seeing the photograph of the youngster, whose family was trying to escape from their war-torn home in Kobani to Greece and ultimately to safety in Canada.

He said: “As a photographer I was wondering how I could help and I thought of selling my own prints and I thought if I was up for doing that then others might be too, so I got in touch with my friends and they were up for it, and it snowballed.

“People keep contacting me now offering to donate prints which is nice.”

His website, Prints For Refugees has now raised nearly £6,000 by selling donated prints by photographers including the likes of Rankin, to benefit the millions of people displaced by violence and political unrest.

Photographers not only donate their time but also the cost of the print and postage, so there are no costs taken away from the charity.

All proceeds go towards Doctors of the World, where his wife Hayley, 27, a GP trainee working in obstetrics and gynaecology at the Homerton Hospital is a volunteer.

The medical charity is the only one providing medical aid on the ground to refugees in Calais, helping to deal with outbreaks of disease, violence, and mental illness.

They also have a clinic in Bethnal Green, where Hayley helps treat undocumented migrants, as well as anyone having trouble accessing NHS treatment.

Prints cost between £45 and £350 depending on size, style and infamy.

For more information see www.printsforrefugees.com.