Empowering Belfast's Youth: The Push for Equal Education

Young asylum seekers and refugees in Belfast are calling for equal education opportunities inNorthern Ireland. The young people, aged 16-24, are currently excluded from education here, with no formal provision for this group, and many young people meeting a dead end when trying to secure school places.

Specialist Provision for Education

The young people, supported by Anaka Women’s Collective, are calling for a specialist provision which supports them to hone their language skills and achieve qualifications which can eventually lead to auniversity level education. Their proposal calls for a two-year flexible, rolling programme for those aged 16-24, which will allow newly-arrived young people to start education quickly and can accommodate their various needs and abilities. This programme should offer 3 levels of English at the recognized A1, A2 and B1 levels, with opportunity for progression.

At a meeting atBelfast City Hallon Monday afternoon, Areeg Farah and Saher Idris, Education Support Workers with Anaka Women’s Collective, said they see first-hand the barriers and difficulties these young people face every day. Saher said: 'Many of these young people are stuck in poor quality accommodation while they wait for a decision about their status, sometimes for months or even over a year at time, with nothing to do. They have left a frightening situation, and this trauma is compounded by being locked out of any access to education. As it stands, their rights are not being protected by the state in Northern Ireland.' Areeg added: 'These young people are hard-working and eager to overcome their various setbacks and barriers. But to do this, they need age-appropriate, intensive English support, which at the same time provides them with the skills to progress into further education and employment, orientate and integrate themselves in Northern Ireland, and build their confidence and resilience.'

Rawan is 17 and originally from Syria. She arrived in Northern Ireland in July 2022. She said: 'I had always heard how good education in the UK was, so I expected to continue my studies as soon as I arrived. I startedschooltwo months after I arrived but was told I needed to take GCSEs immediately. Although I could read and write in English, I couldn’t understand anything in the GCSE lessons. I felt more and more isolated, and we decided that leaving school was the best option for me. This was a difficult decision because I love learning and have big dreams for my future. I have taken classes at Belfast Met to improve my English, but at the moment, the only way for me to apply for university here is by completing GCSEs.'

Community Initiatives

The proposal stems from years of experience working with young asylum seekers and has been developed and tested through various small pilot programs run by community groups and educational institutions. Since 2023, the SELF program (Self-Expression, Education, and Living for the Future) has been running in collaboration between Anaka Women’s Collective, andQueen’s Universitystudents from the MSc in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, and the school of Applied Linguistics. Attendance has been high, and the engagement and feedback overwhelmingly positive, with the young people saying that they felt motivated and boosted by taking part in classes in a university setting.

Rawan said: 'A great solution for people like me would be to create a program for students who have a good level of English, but still need further support in some subjects before they start any further education. This will help young people to prepare for their future and integrate with confidence.'