Where there is conflict in the world, there will be the necessary and inevitable movement of people, and the need for places of safety and security in order for people to thrive.
Schools of Sanctuary is a growing network of more than 300 primary and secondary schools “committed to supporting the thousands of young people seeking sanctuary in the UK.” These schools work hard to create a welcoming culture of inclusion whilst at the same time raising awareness of the issues faced by asylum seekers and refugees.
Sara Trewhitt, School of Sanctuary lead at City of Sanctuary explained that Colleges of Sanctuary are an outgrowth of their work with Schools of Sanctuary. She said, “The first recognised FE College of Sanctuary was Preston College in 2018. In 2020, we realised FE Colleges often are the first educational institution that young sanctuary seekers experience after arriving in the UK. Last year, we wrote the Colleges of Sanctuary resource pack which was launched in February 2021. This document details the criteria required to be recognised as a College of Sanctuary.
“Currently there are seven recognised FE Colleges of Sanctuary. The recognised Colleges are City Bristol College, Preston College, Fircroft College, Belfast Metropolitan, Halesowen College, Gower College, and Derby College. A further 6 FE Colleges have expressed interest in going for the award, so we are seeing sustained growth.”
Lee Goodway, Head of Student Experience at Fircroft College, speaks positively about the experience of becoming a College of Sanctuary. He said, “Fircroft is a residential college founded by George Cadbury Jr. Social justice is written into our mission statement and some of our students have lived experience of challenges.
“We were already working with lots of partners in the third sector including City of Sanctuary and we were glad we could contribute to the College of Sanctuary framework. Our College of Sanctuary status sends a clear message that we welcome sanctuary seekers.”
Trewhitt explained that, “Every college of Sanctuary is different and so the way that a culture of welcome manifests itself varies greatly. Further Education Colleges are often the first place people seeking sanctuary encounter educational opportunities in the UK, either through English as a second or other language (ESOL) classes or to gain new professional qualifications. The experience they have on campus will shape their futures in their new country; receiving thoughtful support and attention is crucial to ensuring students from a background of seeking refuge can learn and achieve the best possible outcomes. For this reason, FE Colleges that demonstrate a commitment to a campus-wide welcome are ones that we at CoS UK want to celebrate.”
At Fircroft, sanctuary seekers are able to access a wide range of courses as well as the Free Thinking course for people from new communities. As Goodway explained, “We were already offering English courses to speakers of other languages and then developed out Free Thinking course for people with lived experience of modern slavery, torture and trauma. Students develop resilience and confidence, and learn how to cope with stress and anxiety in their new life. We also teach presentation skills and other skills they will need in the workplace. Some of these students become student champions who focus on inclusion and welcoming others.”
Fircroft is a small college with 60 staff and all are on board with their College of Sanctuary status. But all colleges can work on continuing professional development with their staff on the themes around being a College of Sanctuary. Fircroft promotes inclusion and invites local organisations working with new communities to the college to raise student and staff awareness of the issues and challenges sometimes facing people from overseas. Other enrichment activities have included participation in a sensory walk around Birmingham for Refugee Week 2021 with the Active Wellbeing Society highlighting the positive contribution refugees have made to the city and looking at enhancing inclusion in college practices and policies.
For Goodway, as a College of Sanctuary you are a supporter of new communities. He said, “Learning English is very important but that is not all they need. We help students to realise and acknowledge their existing skills as well as the skills they are developing with us. We also facilitate home students and sanctuary seekers to learn from each other and believe a big benefit of residential learning at Fircroft is meeting like-minded people – but also people from different backgrounds.
“We were helped by Halesowen College and now we are ready to help other colleges to become Colleges of Sanctuary. Many colleges are already naturally doing this work.”
Find out more…
If you are interested to find out more about becoming a College of Sanctuary, these sources will be of interest:
- Schools of Sanctuary (see also for information on City of Sanctuary Status and College of Sanctuary status) Home | Schools of Sanctuary (cityofsanctuary.org)
- Migrant Help UK: Migrant Help (migranthelpuk.org)
- City of Sanctuary UK ran three College of Sanctuary webinars in 2021, and the next webinar will take place in January 2022 - you can learn more here: Supporting New Afghan Arrivals at FE Colleges Webinar | City of Sanctuary UK
About the author
Elizabeth Holmes
After graduating with a degree in Politics and International Relations from the University of Reading, Elizabeth Holmes completed her PGCE at the Institute of Education, University of London. She then taught humanities and social sciences in schools in London, Oxfordshire and West Sussex, where she ran the history department in a challenging comprehensive. Elizabeth specialises in education but also writes on many other issues and themes. As well as her regular blogs for Eteach and FEjobs, her books have been published by a variety of publishers and translated around the world. Elizabeth has also taught on education courses in HE and presented at national and international conferences.