Young refugees and asylum seekers in Barnet, UK

Refugee Youth Project is currently working in partnership with Whitefield School in the London borough of Barnet to deliver a support and activity project for refugee and asylum-seeking young people in the borough.

Background

There are 32,245 asylum seekers residing in Greater London (London Asylum Seekers Consortium (LASC), 2004), of which 922 live in Barnet (including 441 children in families and 228 unaccompanied asylum-seeking children). There are an estimated 12,000 refugees living in Barnet (Barnet Refugee Service, January 2005).

“In an environment that is increasingly hostile towards refugees and asylum-seekers, children arriving unaccompanied from abroad are a particularly vulnerable group… Save the Children research has found that many are denied their basic rights and needs”

(Save the Children, 2005)

Refugee Youth Project in the UK

Why the Project is Needed

The beneficiaries are young people aged 11-18 from refugee or asylum-seeking families or unaccompanied minors seeking asylum themselves. Young refugees and asylum seekers are one of the most vulnerable groups of people in Britain today. Many have lived through trauma and persecution in their own countries and have often been separated from family and friends.

Pilot Project

From October 2005 - July 2006 Refugee Youth Project worked in partnership with Whitefield School to deliver a pilot support and activity project for refugee and asylum seeking students in London Borough of Barnet. This project engaged refugee and asylum seeking students in identifying support gaps in terms of out of school and holiday activities and worked with young people to plan and deliver appropriate support and activities. The sessions were staffed by the project’s Development worker, volunteers and Teaching Assistants and Learning Mentors employed by Whitefield School.

Summer Activity Project

Following the success of the pilot project Refugee Youth Project ran a four week Summer Activity project in July and August 2006. This provided activites for 20 - 30 young refugees and asylum seekers, who took part in drama, cookery and music workshops, and went on a number of trips.

Activity, Support and Peer Mentoring Project

Refugee Youth Project is currently working on setting up a peer-mentoring programme with young refugees and asylum seekers in Barnet. This project will enable 16 - 18 year olds who have been in the UK for at least 2 years to mentor newly arrived young people. Young mentors will be provided thorough and accredited training. Refugee Youth Project will ensure a structured and supportive setting to allow the mentoring relationship to develop. This will be achieved through continuing to facilitate afterschool, weekend and holiday sessions where young people can come to meet and socialise, with the support of trained workers.

This project allows a disadvantaged group of young people access to activities they would not normally have. The young refugees and asylum seekers benefit from the opportunity to socialise with peers in structured youth group settings, increasing their confidence and social skills and helping to remove barriers to educational achievement.

Contact us

Our London Project Co-ordinator can be contacted on 07962 821144 or by using the online form.