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Recognising asylum seekers’ skills
Sue Waddington and Fiona Aldridge respond to inaccurate coverage of a project into the skills of asylum seekers
In recent years the number of people claiming asylum in the UK has dramatically increased from about 4,000 a year in 1988 to over 70,000 in 1999. As London and Kent initially receive most asylum seekers, local authorities in these areas are struggling to provide housing and support. In 1999, the Immigration and Asylum Act aimed to address these problems by introducing a new ‘no choice’ dispersal policy, thereby ‘nationalising’ support arrangements. As a result of this policy many regions of the country are now home, albeit in some cases only temporarily, to people from over 40 different countries, who are waiting to see if they will be given refugee status.
The men, women and families seeking asylum do not always receive a warm welcome. Asylum seekers coming to the UK have often been depicted by the press as ‘bogus’ scroungers with nothing to offer and much to take. In many localities they face hostility and prejudice.
Leicester is currently home to 450 asylum seekers and another 500 are expected soon. With its long tradition of multiculturalism, Leicester is perhaps better placed and more experienced than many other towns and cities in accommodating new comers. Nonetheless the asylum seekers in Leicester are living bleak lives in a large hotel or smaller hostels while their futures are determined. After six months, if no decision is made, asylum seekers may seek temporary work, and if and when they become refugees they are expected to find work. The Home Office report Full and Equal Citizens (2000) asserts that "For highly motivated and skilled people not to be fulfilling their potential in work is clearly a waste. Ensuring that refugees return rapidly to their former or related careers is in the best interests of themselves and their families, as well as the wider interests on the community".
NIACE, which is based in Leicester, decided to work with the local authorities to undertake an audit to discover what skills and qualifications asylum seekers in Leicester have. We also decided to contact the relevant education, careers and employment providers in the area to see what support they might be able to offer asylum seekers and refugees and to produce a local directory of relevant agencies for referrals. The Regional Development Agency of the East Midlands (EMDA) agreed to support the Leicester pilot project for three months with a view to rolling it out across the East Midlands next year.
The skills audit is comprised of two stages: an initial questionnaire which all asylum seekers were invited to complete, followed by approximately 70 in-depth interviews undertaken with a sample of the original respondents. The initial questionnaire, asking for brief details about previous experiences of education and employment, was distributed in early January. It is already becoming clear that a significant proportion of the Leicester-based asylum seekers are well qualified. 85% of asylum seekers reported some education or training qualifications, ranging from school certificates to higher education and professional qualifications. 80% reported being in paid employment before they came to the UK, many involved in occupations such as medicine, business, engineering and teaching.
The second part of the research involves a sample of in-depth interviews to understand more clearly the nature of the qualifications and work experience of the asylum seekers. They may possess skills that are needed in the East Midlands, where there are recognised skill shortages. They may need further training or conversion-type courses to enable them to use their skills in the UK. The research, which is unique, will enable a more informed debate and the opportunity to look at the systems for the recognition and conversion of skills and qualifications gained outside of Europe.
Interestingly, even this modest piece of research, because of its positive approach to asylum seekers as people with talents and something to offer has been a source of controversy and confusion. The Mail on Sunday ran an inaccurate front-page story about the research on January 21st saying "Asylum seekers are being invited to become NHS doctors and nurses to the dismay of patients and immigration experts." and referred to "the fear that they will be recruited as NHS employees providing life-or-death care before their credentials are checked". As a consequence of that story NIACE has received a number of calls from asylum seekers and refugees living in various parts of the UK, who are trained nurses and doctors who would like to use their skills, but have few opportunities to gain access to the relevant courses. These enquiries have been referred to the Refugee Education and Training Advisory Service (RETAS).
Alan Tuckett, NIACE's Director provided a spirited defence of the project. In his letter to the Mail on Sunday he stated "Your sensationalist report on our work with asylum seekers misses the point. Each week that asylum seekers stay in Britain awaiting a decision on their right to stay costs the taxpayer thousands of pounds. This is why they can take paid work after six months. Our project in Leicester simply seeks to find out what skills asylum seekers in the city possess, and, at the appropriate time, to pass on advice to where work and training for work is to be had.
The project has a number of benefits. It minimises the cost to taxpayers. It makes sure the British economy benefits from the skills of people staying in Britain. And for people stuck in limbo, waiting for a decision about their future, it offers the chance of the dignity work brings.
It takes place against the background of Leicester’s economic success in using the skills of people displaced by Idi Amin’s regime in Uganda. At the time Leicester Council took adverts on Radio Kampala saying, "Don’t come to Leicester". Fortunately for what is now a successful multicultural city many ignored the advice, and we enjoy the fruits of their skills and talents. And within two years, the Council apologised to its Asian community. Far from encouraging employment of people ‘whose background will necessarily be something of a mystery’, we are working to make sure that people’s experience and qualifications are clear, and can be used while they are in Britain. I would have thought that chimed with the policy of self-reliance the Mail on Sunday espouses."
The findings of the research will be summarised in a future edition of Adults Learning. For more information on the project please contact Sue Waddington (sue.waddington@niace.org.uk) or Fiona Aldridge (fiona@niace.org.uk) at NIACE.
National Asylum Support Service (2000) Full and Equal Citizens: A strategy for integration of refugees into the United Kingdom, Home Office, Croydon
RETAS (tel: 020 7426 5800) provide advice, support, grants and some provision for their refugees and asylum seekers.
