Blog

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Lessons we learn from young asylum seekers

by: Sarah Lyall

Recently I was given an unexpected Physics lesson from Arman*, a young asylum seeker from Afghanistan and a budding civil engineer. It got me thinking about the other lessons we have learned from the young people we meet here at Refugee Support Network.

This is our current Top Five:

helwyn's picture

Poems (a guest blog post)

by: Hannah Elwyn

Sometimes we meet exceptional young people who take our breath away with their courage and ability to overcome even the most horrendous of situations.

These poems were written by a young asylum seeker currently being mentored through RSN's mentoring programme. We're very impressed with her talent, and the perseverance and courage she has shown despite being faced with extremely difficult circumstances.

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The Launch of "I just want to study"

by: Mary Mitchell

Last night RSN was joined by representatives from over twenty five organisations to hear a presentation of the findings from our report, “I just want to study.”

The report reveals the true extent of the difficulties faced by young asylum seekers in accessing Higher Education and highlights a group of people often hidden from public discourse yet uniquely affected by government policy and the Higher Education funding crisis.

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When Numbers are People

by: Mary Mitchell

We have found some numbers that make us smile. Click here to read why.

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Why Education?

by: Mary Mitchell

Last month we sat down as a team to re-evaluate the core principles of Refugee Support Network, and came up with a new tagline, “Education for a Hopeful Future.”

Education is at the very heart of what we do. Whether supporting young asylum seekers and refugees to access higher education, running a mentoring scheme partnering learning mentors with young asylum seekers and refugees, or providing a weekly space for asylum and refugee women to learn together we are recognising that education inspires, empowers and invests value into the lives of those affected by displacement.

We are asked regularly why we believe in education when there are many other important services that we could provide to those we work with, some of which seem more pressing. This is our answer.

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RSN goes to Budapest

by: Catherine Gladwell

"He is not in heaven, he is not on earth" - the words of an unaccompanied minor in Brussels describe the chronic stress caused to Europe's asylum seeking young people as they wait to discover whether or not they will be allowed to build a future in the new land they have arrived in.  As the EU attempts to find a common approach to assisting unaccompanied minor asylum seekers, Hannah and I were happy to be asked to present some of the promising practices and challenges the UK faces in caring for these young people at a key conference in Budapest last week.
 
Read more about Hannah and Catherine's trip to Budapest with IOM.
 
mmitchell's picture

Kids welcome asylum seekers- when will grown-ups catch up?

by: Mary Mitchell

 

This video shows how a group of primary school children feel about having asylum seekers and refugees join their school.

We love it. What do you think?

mmitchell's picture

Is the UK government protecting asylum seeking and refugee children?

by: Mary Mitchell

Today is the International Day of the Child 2011, when the world’s attention is focused on the welfare and rights of children. The UK is no exception, as the UK Children’s Commissioners have released their Midterm Report on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). The report, which can be downloaded in full here (PDF), shows the progress of the UK government in keeping to the commitments it made in ratifying the UNCRC, a set of internationally binding minimum standards for all children and young people in the UK.

Click here to read our analysis of the report, and what this means for the young people we work with.

helwyn's picture

The young people we work with

by: Hannah Elwyn

Have you ever wondered what mentoring is like, and the type of young people that we work with?

Refugee Support Network's Mentoring Coordinator Hannah Elwyn breaks down some of the myths around unaccompanied asylum seeking minors, and shares some of the difficulties and privileges she has experienced in working with the young people in our mentoring scheme.

Click here to read more.

slyall's picture

University Challenge: Ashur's Story

by: Sarah Lyall

Due to policy changes, more young asylum seekers in the UK are facing substantial financial barriers to starting at university.  RSN’s Access to Higher Education support service has an important role to play, as Sarah explains.

Click here to read more.