Asylum Seekers and Adult Learning

Amongst the asylum seekers living in the UK are doctors, accountants, electricians, teachers, mechanics, engineers, business managers and fishermen. This is one of the findings of research carried out by NIACE.

The study, undertaken earlier this year, is believed to be the first of its kind to be carried out in the UK. A report of the findings has now been published and recommendations for further action have been proposed.

The research, examined the skills and qualifications of asylum seekers, and the barriers the individuals face in using these skills in the local labour market. All 440 Leicester-based asylum seekers were invited to complete a basic questionnaire about their education, qualifications and previous work experience. In-depth interviews were then carried out with over 70 of the respondents from 21 different countries, who were selected at random.

NIACE researcher Fiona Aldridge and Development Officer Sue Waddington discovered that 85% of the asylum seekers held qualifications, from school certificates to higher and professional qualifications and 80% had been in employed in a variety of jobs including the professions, skilled manual trades, business and the service industries. 

85% spoke more than one language and many had taken part in voluntary work. One of these was a teacher from Zimbabwe who had both assisted young people in setting up craft businesses to pay their way through college and helped run an HIV and AIDS education service in rural areas.

Many of the people interviewed were aware of the barriers they faced. These included the need for better English language skills; the lack of appropriate courses; the lack of places on courses; the lack of information about the employment system; the costs of training including the fees, transport and books; non-recognition of their qualifications; and the reluctance of employers to take on asylum seekers.

Sue Waddington said "We were seeking to discover if asylum seekers had skills and qualifications which they could build upon and use here or on return to their countries of origin. We discovered a considerable pool of talent and considerable barriers to making use of it. We are suggesting ways in which these skills can be used, including through work experience, volunteering opportunities and bridging courses to update qualifications to UK standards".

The research has attracted interest from other parts of the country and several other organisations are now intending to conduct their own local audits of the skills and qualifications of asylum seekers.

Sue Waddington said, "This research has demonstrated the wealth of untapped talent amongst asylum seekers in Leicester. We are pleased that it has encouraged others to undertake similar audits in different parts of the country. The next step is to take action to enable asylum seekers, whether they remain in the UK or return to their countries of origin, to use and develop their skills. We know from the Leicester sample that asylum seekers want to contribute to and participate in the labour market and wider society, and we hope that this research will help dispel some of the myths that hinder informed debate about asylum seekers in the UK."

Bringing Skills to the Local Economy

Ground-breaking research into the skills and qualifications of asylum seekers is to be undertaken by NIACE. The research will examine the qualifications and previous occupations of asylum seekers currently living in hostels and hotels in Leicester. Subsequently the survey may be extended to the whole of the East Midlands.

An initial questionnaire indicated that a significant number of the 450 Leicester-based asylum seekers are well-qualified and have worked in a variety of fields, including business, medicine and teaching. NIACE now intends to organise a series of in depth interviews to discover more information about the previous education, training and employment experience of the asylum seekers who have come to the UK from forty different countries.

A spokesperson from NIACE said, "Asylum seekers may have skills, qualifications and qualities which are needed in the UK and in the local economy. This is the first time that research has actually been done in this field. Negative stereotyping of asylum seekers has resulted in them being depicted as people with little to offer. Already our research has revealed a different picture."

The research is being funded by EMDA (the East Midlands Development Agency) and is supported by Leicester City Council and the East Midlands Consortium for Asylum Seekers Support (EMCASS). It was launched on 17^th January 2001, in Leicester, when a variety of education and employment providers were invited to develop referral systems to enable asylum seekers to build upon their existing skills.

A spokesperson for Leicester City Council said, "We are pleased to lend our support to this new initiative. Leicester is amongst the leading multicultural cities in Europe. We want every one who lives here, including asylum seekers, to have the opportunities to use and develop their skills and talents and to contribute to the City."

NIACE responds to inaccurate press coverage of the Project

The passage below is taken from an article in February's issue of Adults Learning, in which Sue Waddington and Fiona Aldridge respond to inaccurate press 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."

"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 article goes on to explain how the project has been the source of some controversy, and how the NIACE Director provided a "spirited defence of the project" in his letter to the newspaper which ran the inaccurate story. The full article can be downloaded by following the link below:

Download the full article on "Recognising Asylum Seekers' Skills"

This page will be used to bring you updates on how the Asylum Seekers Research Project is progressing.

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