THE island of Leros has always been known as the “island of outcasts”.

Under the Greek dictatorship of the Sixties and Seventies, 4,000 political prisoners were exiled there for agitating against the military government.

After the fall of the “Regime of the Colonels”, the island’s mental hospital became infamous across Europe.

But in 2015, when scores of refugees fleeing drought, poverty and violence began to cross the Mediterranean, the island faced an entirely different problem.

Joel Gage, who lived on Leros for many years but now resides in Steyning, saw firsthand the beginning of the crisis.

“It was unusual for refugees to arrive directly there, especially because Leros is such a small island,” the 40-year-old said.

“It was completely different to what we saw in the media at the time.

“People were so desperate. There were so many things you didn’t expect to hear or see.”

In December, a “hotspot” camp was built on the island by the Greek government designed to look after 650 asylum seekers.

But that did not help matters.

As countries struggled to process the asylum seekers, many closed their borders, backing up the camps.

So when Joel returned home, he wanted to do something to help.

“When I got back to the UK my perception had completely changed,” the airline worker said.

“I wanted to start raising a bit of money for Leros.

“But because it’s not on the news anymore it’s hard to raise awareness about what’s still going on.

“You really don’t believe it until you see it.”

So Joel set up the Aegean Solidarity Network, a group working to “plug the gaps”.

“We fund sleeping bags for those who are sleeping rough, and we buy buggies for families,” he said.

“We even sponsored the start-up of a school in an Athens squat in 2016, but it was evicted last week.”

Though the refugee crisis is in the back of most people’s minds, in Leros it is only getting worse.

“What was amazing in 2015 was people had hope back then,” Joel said.

“Sometimes there was quite a lot of joy in reaching safety.

“But after the borders shut in 2016 a lot of them lost that hope.

“Every refugee has the right to appeal if their claim is rejected, but that can take months.”

One of those asylum seekers stuck in purgatory is Adam, not his real name, who fled Palestine because of the unrest there.

Arriving from Turkey in a crowded boat, Adam has been on Leros since December.

“We don’t have anything here,” he said.

“There’s not much for me in my country anymore. But there’s nothing to do here except wait.

“The police never help me whenever there’s theft or attacks.

“But I want to find a new life and a new job. My brother is in Germany and has a family and a career.”

With camps overflowing, more and more refugees are sleeping rough in Leros and with winter on its way, the situation is becoming desperate.

“This is the worst I’ve seen it for a few years,” Joel said.

“Sometimes I have had to turn down requests for aid because we don’t have enough.

“Just yesterday two boats arrived with 80 people.”

Inside the camp, the situation is not much better.

Catherina Kahane, an Austrian charity chief who works with Joel in Leros, has not been allowed in the camp often, she said.

She added: “It feels like the idea is to make the refugees feel unwelcome.

“The conditions are horrible. Everywhere is dirty and crowded.

“There’s not proper sanitation or places to wash.”

But Joel has also seen the best of humanity.

“I’ve seen some beautiful, tender moments,” he said.

“I was driving through the town of Lakki and saw a refugee mother and her little boy with severe learning difficulties.

“But she was so tender and gentle with him. I had to buy them some sweets.

“It reminded me of the humanity of the crisis there.

“Humans are caught up in this mess .”

To donate or learn more, visit asnteamuk.org.