Giving birth in a country where you are unfamiliar with the systems and processes, where you don’t speak the language, and where you aren’t surrounded by family and friends is a daunting experience for any family. Mirvat, who was resettled to the UK in 2021 through Community Sponsorship, sat down with us to talk through…
Mohammad and Roba sat down with us to share their experience of being welcomed by a Community Sponsorship group in Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria. Pictured above are Mohammad, Roba and their three daughters. Having recently celebrated their one year anniversary of resettling to the UK, they hosted a surprise celebration for the Community Sponsorship group and…
We know that 12-20% of women will experience mental health difficulties like depression and anxiety during pregnancy and during the first 2 years of their baby’s life (the postnatal period), and refugee women are at an even increased risk of developing postnatal mental health difficulties. The associated stress, uncertainty, and trauma of the refugee experience may…
Having now lived in the UK for over two years, Zahir and Lena sat down to talk with us about how their family have settled into a rural community, one which now feels like home. They spoke to us about their experience of leaving Syria, the hardship of rebuilding their lives in Jordan, and the…
We sat down to speak with Nour, a student who was resettled to the UK with his family. In our interview with him, Nour speaks on his experience of coming to the UK shortly before the first Covid-19 lockdown, the differences in schooling in the UK compared to the Middle East, and his future aspirations….
Families can be waiting for resettlement for many years, so it’s understandable to hear that Ghazala and Nidal could not believe it when they were told they were going to be resettled to the UK! They shared with us their time and experience of living in the UK, speaking on what their first 6 months…
Navigating resettlement as a teenager can be full of extremely difficult challenges, including losing friends, losing your education and losing your home. On top of this, you are contending with starting a new life in a host country you may not feel at home in, or feel wanted in. This has been Rawasia’s experience, one…
Making the journey firstly from your home country to a host country, and then to another country via resettlement, is a hard undertaking for any family – and one that becomes even more difficult as a single parent. The reassurance there is in being able to turn to your partner in such a situation, and…
On 6 January 2022, the UK Government announced that the Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme had opened, having previously confirmed that Community Sponsorship groups were going to be able to resettle Afghans through the scheme and into their neighbourhoods. The UK Government will welcome up to 20,000 people from Afghanistan and the region over the coming years. This includes over…
When it comes to finding a property for a refugee family, it can feel like an insurmountable obstacle to overcome given the lack of affordable housing in the UK. We’ve seen how groups have been creative in meeting this housing challenge; some are able to find compassionate landlords who are willing to rent below the…
Abdullah arrived in the UK as a Syrian refugee in 2017 with only a few words of English and was welcomed by the CHARIS Community Sponsorship Group in the South West. 10 months later, he had passed his theory and practical driving tests, giving him vital independence and freedom. When he arrived in the UK,…
When you receive a referral of a family from the Home Office, the Resettlement Registration Form you receive may indicate that a member or members of the family are smokers, or you may discover that they smoke after arrival. Whilst it’s their choice whether they smoke or not, you will need to make the smoker…
One question that we’re often asked in Reset’s Community Sponsorship training sessions is: “What do refugees think their life in the UK will be like before they’re resettled?” We usually answer these questions with a range of anecdotes but with a strong reminder that refugees will have a breadth of opinions, worldviews and expectations of…
One question that we’re often asked in Reset’s Community Sponsorship training sessions is: “What do refugees think their life in the UK will be like before they’re resettled?” We usually answer these questions with a range of anecdotes but with a strong reminder that refugees will have a breadth of opinions, worldviews and expectations of…
Raising awareness of your work is going to be essential in recruiting volunteers and raising funds to support your Community Sponsorship project. This guide outlines some key things to think about when starting out. If you are working with a Lead Sponsor organisation, make sure you discuss with them if there is any guidance they…
When the family you support arrive in the UK, they will be beginning a new chapter in their lives. But to get to this point, the family will have been going through a process to be resettled for years. In this page, we will give you an idea of the behind-the-scenes process that is involved…
There are various different ways you can work with interpreters. You could work with paid, volunteer or bilingual volunteers (who work with the family in their own language, and also interpret when required). They could carry out their interpreting either face to face or over the phone. Whichever option you choose, make sure that the interpreter you work…
Community Sponsorship groups have shared with us that many of the newly arrived refugees they are welcoming are keen to have access to their own transport, to enable them to be independent. Refugees arriving with a valid driving licence from another country are usually permitted to drive on that licence for 12 months. In order to continue…
When the family you support first arrives in the UK, it’s unlikely that they will speak English well enough to communicate with your Community Sponsorship Group without an interpreter present. Although working with interpreters, especially in the early days, will be key in supporting the family to access essential services and learn new things about…
Understanding the culture of the refugees your Community Sponsorship Group are supporting is very important in the process of building rapport with the refugee family. Cultural awareness can include so many different areas – from understanding the family’s preferences or taboos to being able to help them celebrate their religious festivals. In this resource we…
The start of UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS) and Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) means that we will see refugees resettled from a broader range of countries and nationalities and will likely speak languages other than Arabic. In this resource we look at what this means for Groups who are writing their applications now and we will…
