National Instituteof Economic and Social Research

Refugees in the United Kingdom

An Analysis of ‘Integration’ using Longitudinal Data

Andreas Cebulla

Key messages to convey

• Refugees face disadvantage– In housing, employment, language skills

• Integration policy ought to be more ambitious– Effective– Pro-active– Interventionist

300,000 refugees and fluctuating numbers of asylum applications in the UK

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000

2007q1

2007q2

2007q3

2007q4

2008q1

2008q2

2008q3

2008q4

2009q1

2009q2

2009q3

2009q4

2010q1

2010q2

2010q3

2010q4

Year/Quarter

Asyl

um a

pplic

atio

ns

UK asylum policy has become increasingly more restrictive…

• 1993 fast-tracking safe country applicants• 1996 ‘safe third country’ concept• 1999 dispersal within UK/NASS• 2002 appeals no longer suspend

deportation• 2004 limit/conditionality of welfare support• 2006 appeals restriction - entry refusal • 2007 immigration officers - police-like

powers• 2010 stricter internal & external border

controls

..while new asylum management & support services were introduced

• New Asylum Model (NAM, 2007)– Segmentation– Fast-tracking– Case owner

• Strategic Upgrade of National Refugee Integration Services (SUNRISE)

• Refugee Integration and Employment Services (RIES)

Between 2005 and 2008, refugees to the UK came from 80+ countries

Europe5%

Turkey4%

Afghanistan3%

Other23%

Other Africa7%Zimbabwe

7%Iraq9%

Asia9%

Somalia16%

Eritrea17%

Many refugees had already spent some time in UK prior to asylum decision

< 6months31%

6 mths - 1 year17%1 - 2 years

10%

2 - 5 years21%

5+ years21%

After the asylum decision, lots of things happened fairly fast for many refugees

• Within eight months of the asylum decision,– 75% of refugees had changed

accommodation• about 2/3 came from NASS accommodation

– 32% of refugees had taken up paid work• 40%, if employed before arriving in the UK

– 64% participated in English language learning• 35% reported participation at 8, 15 and 21

months

Refugees moved into accommodation they often found lacking in size or quality

38

31

23 23

19

17

14

10

37

28

23

19

1718

14

7

34

22

19

17

14

18

13

7

0

10

20

30

40

Too small Inadequatelyfurnished

Too noisy Limited heatingfacilities

Lack offacilities for

disabledpersons

Mould/dampw alls, f loors

etc

Rot inw indow s,frames or

f loors

Leaky roof

Problems with accommodation

% o

f re

fug

ee

s

8 months 15 months 21 months

Employment increased, unemployment & study decreased

22

10

2

23

28

15

27

12

4

17

26

14

33

13

3

12

25

15

0

10

20

30

40

% o

f n

ew

re

fu

ge

es

8 months 15 months 21 months

But education had only a weak effect on employment rates

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Below GCSE GCSE A-level HE/FE certs& diplomas

Under-/post-graduate

quals

Noqualifications

Nottransferable

% o

f n

ew

re

fug

ee

s

Employed at 8 months Employed at 21 months

Refugees who had already lived in the UK reported better language skills (shown by time spent in UK prior to asylum decision, at baseline)

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Understanding Speaking Understanding Speaking

Very well Fairly well Not very well Not at all

Less than 6 months 5 + years

Language skills improved over time, but not for all

• 52% reported improved language skills– 31% no change; 17% decreasing

• 14% had a low level of English language skills throughout the survey period– Aged 35+– Poor health– Parent/guardian of a child– Less than 10 years’ education– Fewer than 2 years in UK before asylum

decision– Participated in language courses

The study’s main practical lessons for refugee support are:

• Focus on early months• Improve transition to mainstream

accommodation– Facilitate move-on into better housing

• Address over-qualification at the workplace– Improve matching & promote in-work

progression

• Promote language learning– Focus on women, parents/guardians and people

aged 45+ – Explore persistently low language skills

The study’s main strategic lessons are:

• Housing and labour market work against refugees

• Refugee integration should not/cannot be seen as detached from national housing and labour market policy

• Special efforts needed to overcome barriers to refugee integration

• Use NAM strategically to promote integration pro-actively

Thank you.THANK YOU!

Andreas Cebullaa.cebulla@niesr.ac.uk