Stats – credit: Top facts from the latest statistics on refugees and people seeking asylum – Refugee Council and How many people claim asylum in the UK? – GOV.UK
ICN provides accommodation and support to unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) aged 16–24 who are under the care of the local authority. We currently support, and have previously supported, young people from a wide range of countries, including Iran, Iraq, Syria (including Kurdish young people from these three countries), Afghanistan, Sudan, Albania, Eritrea, Yemen, Egypt, Somalia, The Gambia, China and Vietnam.
Our team’s purpose is to empower each young person to become positively integrated, independent, and able to thrive within UK society.
We are contracted by local councils to support UASC young people in several ways, including:
- Providing safe accommodation, such as Supported Lodgings placements and a New Arrivals House. The New Arrivals House accommodates up to four young people at a time and includes an ICN Residential Support Worker living on-site. If you are interested in becoming a Supported Lodgings Host, please click here: Provide accommodation for young people seeking asylum – ICN.
- Offering 24/7 support, ensuring young people always have access to guidance and assistance when needed.
- Arranging and attending key appointments, including GP, dentist, optician, mental health or counselling services, solicitor meetings, and Home Office asylum interviews.
- Developing independence skills, such as cooking, cleaning, personal care, and managing finances.
- Supporting access to education, helping young people enrol and engage with appropriate learning opportunities.
- Promoting community integration, for example by helping young people access local clubs and activities such as sports, theatre, and music.
Throughout this process, we walk alongside young people as they await decisions on their asylum claims, which can often take several years.
During school holidays, we organise a range of activities for all UASC young people in the local area, not only those directly supported by ICN. These activities include residential trips, day outings to local towns, attractions and natural spaces, as well as educational and wellbeing sessions. Topics may include budgeting, therapeutic art and music, sexual health, personal safety (delivered with police input), drug awareness, and mental wellbeing.
For these sessions, we collaborate with local charities and organisations such as The Koru Project, National Energy Action, and Christians Against Poverty.
