Asylum seekers and refugees - guidance
Guidance sections provide a space for resources that help convert principles or policy into action. The resources are listed alphabetically by author/issuing body and then by date.
You might also like to refer to the policy and agencies and communties sections for further information on asylum seekers and refugees.
Some of the resources below are in PDF format - see how to access PDF files.
British Institute of Human Rights (2006) Your human rights a guide for refugees and asylum seekers (PDF 179.96KB)
This guide from the British Institute of Human Rights provides practical information about human rights, and their relevance for refugees and asylum seekers. The guide is also for people working in the asylum and immigration sector, or those wanting to learn more about the impact of human rights on refugees and asylum seekers. Available in English, Arabic, Farsi and French.
British Medical Association (2012) Access to health care for asylum seekers and refused asylum seekers – guidance for doctors (PDF 75.04 KB)
This guidance note summarises the various entitlements and means of accessing healthcare for asylum seekers and refused asylum seekers in the UK. It also provides general advice regarding confidentiality, the provision of information about health services and referring these groups to specialist services.
See also the position statement published by the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) below.
Children's Society (2008) Refugee toolkit: Supporting refugee young carers and their families. A toolkit for ALL practitioners
This good practice resource developed by the Children's Society Family Health Inclusion Project and funded by the Department of Health aims to help all service providers to stay informed about the needs, rights and entitlements of refugee and asylum seeker young carers and their families. It is "designed to ensure that both adults and children with asylum seeking and refugee status have access to appropriate health and social care services in order to prevent children under 18 taking on inappropriate caring responsibilities", and includes sections on health, education and accommodation.
Children's Society (2013) Report of the parliamentary inquiry into asylum support for children and young people
The inquiry into asylum support for children and young people received written submissions and heard oral evidence from over 200 individuals and organisations, including local authorities, safeguarding boards and academics. Based on this evidence the inquiry concluded "that the current levels of support provided to families are too low to meet children’s essential living needs. Furthermore, these rates do not enable parents to provide for their children’s wider needs to learn, grow and develop, especially if they have a disability. The report makes a series of recommendations and the Children's Society has launched the End Forced Destitution campaign.
Family Planning Association (2007) Sexual health, asylum seekers and refugees: a handbook for people working with refugees and asylum seekers in England
The handbook developed from a feasibility study which looked at the need for materials to help a range of health and refugee workers address sexual health issues. Free copies of the handbook can be requested.
Health Protection Agency (2012) HPA Migrant health guide
This online resource from the Health Protection Agency is aimed at primary care practitioners and brings together key information on assessing migrant patients, specific health topics and also country specific information. It also includes guidance on cultural aspects of care. There is a specific section on vulnerable migrants such as asylum seekers and refugees. Primary care practitioners can also register with the site to receive email alerts of news items.
Home Office (2008) UK Border Agency Code of Practice for keeping children safe from harm
This Code of Practice which came into force in January 2009. It aims to ensure that the UK Border Agency or anyone providing services on their behalf take appropriate steps to ensure that while children are in the United Kingdom they are safe from harm. The Code sets out principles and guidance on what this involves. Children are defined in the Code as anyone below the age of 18. The Code is made available on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Refworld website.
Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees: information resources
The resources include briefings and navigation guides on key issues relating to asylum and refugees in the UK. The briefings provide introductions to issues and the navigation guides are aimed at non-specialists.
Joseph Rowntree Foundation (2009) The potential of migrant and refugee community organisations to influence policy
This report, which came from the Changes from Experience' project, "addresses the way in which migrant and community groups can use their own history and experience to develop the skills to bring about change". The report looks at 'critical pedagogy' a learning tool used in community development, and discusses what worked and what did not work based on the experiences of the three organisations involved in the project.
Mind (2009) A civilised society: mental health provision for refugees and asylum-seekers in England and Wales
This report is based on research undertaken by Mind with 150 refugee community groups in England and with service providers across. The research found that "despite experiencing high levels of mental distress, refugees and asylum-seekers face many challenges accessing mental health services in England and Wales". The report makes a series of recommendations. See also the related guidance below.
Mind (2009) Improving mental health support for refugee communities - an advocacy approach
This report is the outcome of a refugee and asylum-seeker project which aimed to improve the access of refugees and asylum-seekers to appropriate mental health support. The core approach of this project was to work with advocates from refugee community organisations to develop a robust form of mental health advocacy involving advocacy for the individual and the community as a whole. The project helped to clarify understanding of the factors affecting mental wellbeing of refugee communities, and the challenges faced trying to access appropriate support. The report emphasises the importance of longer-term work towards establishing a robust national network of RCO mental health advocates.
National Public Health Service for Wales (NPHS) (2009) Guidance on healthcare issues for asylum seekers in Wales
This document which is part of the work plan of the Welsh Asylum Seeker and Refugee Health Advisory Group (WASRHAG), updates guidance first published in 2006. It has been developed to inform stakeholders of the potential health care needs and issues for asylum seekers in Wales following major changes in the way asylum claims are processed. Although the guidance focuses predominately on health care in recognition of the need for a consistent and equitable approach to healthcare assessments across Wales for asylum seekers, it also underlines that the guidance must be considered within the wider determinants that impact on health and wellbeing".
Refugee Council: the truth about asylum
Facts and figures that counteract some of the myths and scare stories about asylum seekers and refugees.
Refugee Council (2013) Brief guide to asylum (PDF 159.9KB)
This provides an overview of the UK asylum system.
Refugee Council and Maternity Action (2013) When maternity doesn't matter: dispersing pregnant women seeking asylum
This report looks at the experiences of pregnant women in the asylum system and the impact that the UK Border Agency's 'dispersal' policies are having on the health of women and their babies. The report makes nine recommendations.
Refugee and Migrant Justice (2009) Does every child matter? Children seeking asylum in Britain (PDF 911.20KB)
This report from Refugee and Migrant Justice (RMJ) documents experiences of children within the asylum system based on cases RMJ have dealt with. It shows that the Government has some way to go in meeting its aspirations to protect these children from harm and promote their welfare, and in meeting the commitment made in the UK Border Agency Code of Practice for keeping children safe from harm. The report suggests alternative models for decision making in children's cases and safeguarding children's interests and makes a series of recommendations. Refugee and Migrant Justice no longer exists as an organisation. A copy of the report is available on the Amazon Simple Storage Service web pages and a summary is available on the ICAR (Information Centre about Asylum amd Refugees) website.
A further report from Refugee and Migrant Justice published in 2010, highlights some of the difficult experiences that unaccompanied asylum seeking children have had on arriving in the UK, and tells the stories of a number of these children. See: Safe at last? Children on the front line of UK Border Control. The report is made available by Save the Children.
Royal College of General Practitioners (2013) Asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants
This position statement from the Royal College of General Practitioner (RCGP) underlines that general practice should remain the main access to health care within the NHS. "Based on the principle that General Practitioners have a duty of care to all people seeking healthcare, the Royal College of General Practitioners believes that General Practitioners should not be expected to police access to healthcare and turn people away when they are at their most vulnerable. Further, it is important to protect individual and public health".
See also the British Medical Associations's guidance published in 2012 above.
Social Care Institute for Excellence (2006) SCIE race equality discussion paper 2: The social care needs of refugees and asylum seekers
"People with social care needs are some of the most vulnerable people within refugee communities and their needs are frequently overlooked". This discussion paper attempts to describe the specific experiences of refugees and asylum seekers with social care needs and makes a series of recommendations for services to meet their needs more effectively.
Social Care Institute for Excellence (2010) Good practice in social care for refugees and asylum seekers
The guide aims to support commissioners and providers of social care services in working effectively with refugees and asylum seekers. It describes the current context and provides pointers for practice, practice examples, messages from research and links to further resources. The guide has been developed from research which considered services for adults, older people, children and families across the UK and the evidence for good practice – see: SCIE Report 31: Good practice in social care for refugees and asylum seekers. For key messages and a summary of the research on good practice see: At a glance 26.
Social Perspectives Network (2006) Meeting the mental health needs of refugees, asylum seekers and immigration detainees (PDF 1.13MB)
This publication is based on papers and workshops from a study held jointly by the Social Perspectives Network, the National Institute for Mental Health in England (NIMHE) and the London Development Centre. It includes notes on papers presented, key issues, vignettes and examples.
South East Migrant Health: Meeting the health needs of refugees and asylum seekers
This includes practical information, details of useful contacts and resources and examples of good practice. The resource is arranged in sections which include: culture and communication; health services; key clinical areas; torture and violence; needs of specific groups.
Welsh Assembly Government (2009) Refugees living in Wales, a survey of skills, experiences and barriers to inclusion report
This report was produced by the Wales Strategic Migration Partnership in response to concerns about the lack of information on the background, circumstances and needs of refugees living in Wales.
Welsh Assembly Government (2005) Asylum Seekers and Refugees: Guidance for housing and related service providers in Wales
The Guidance is aimed at 'accommodation providers' i.e. social landlords (local authority housing departments and housing associations) and private landlords who provide, or are considering providing, accommodation and support services for asylum seekers under contract with the Home Office.