We have worked in partnership with Blue Cabin and Therapeutic Life Story Work International to create a family of new resources to support life story work with refugee and asylum-seeking children and young people.

They’re designed to provide guidance in an area where very little is currently available. And ultimately, to help ensure that more refugee, asylum-seeking and unaccompanied children and young people benefit from high quality, trauma-informed life story work.

‍

The three resources are:

1)   An animation for young people explaining what life story work is, available in multiple languages.

2)   A toolkit for practitioners, including life story workers and social workers.

3)   A guide for interpreters who are involved in supporting the delivery of life story work.

‍

All the resources are free and available for anyone to access, and are linked on our website here.

They were produced to help ensure that newly arrived children and young people, including those who are unaccompanied, are supported through high quality, trauma-informed life story work.

Life story work isn’t a legal requirement for newly-arrived, asylum seeking children and young people. However, CFAB offers life story work specifically designed to help newly-arrived and unaccompanied children and young people make sense of their journey. Building on the success of this work, this partnership will equip more organisations with a trauma-informed approach that helps children process their journeys and begin to heal.

‍

Our CEO, Carolyn Housman, said: “Refugee and asylum-seeking children and young people face distinct challenges before and after finding safety in the UK. Many have fled traumatic events, endure dangerous journeys, and faced prolonged uncertainty. Displacement from home and separation from loved ones can also significantly impact their sense of identity and belonging.

Until now, professionals have had little guidance on how to support the needs of recently arrived children and young people. We are proud to share our expertise widely through these free resources, so that more young people get the specialist support they need.”

Links to all the resources can be found on our website here.

We kindly thank the Segelman Trust, who funded the project, and Kazzum Arts, who produced the animated video, as well as our partners Blue Cabin and Therapeutic Life Story Work International.