Belonging Begins Here: Sharing Our Learning on Supporting Separated Young People

Why Belonging Matters, and Why We're Sharing This

At Oasis Care, we support separated young people who arrive in the UK alone. Statutory guidance often labels them Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC), but we prefer the more respectful term separated young people. They are young people first , and deserve to be recognised as such.

Through our work, we have seen how belonging can transform lives. But we’ve also learned that belonging is complex. It is shaped by statutory duties, immigration systems, community attitudes, and the resilience of the young people themselves. In this blog, we share our learning journey , informed by practice, by the voices of young people, and by research evidence, in the hope that it supports other services.

Recent research describes belonging not as a single achievement but as an assemblage, a web of safe housing, trusted adults, peers, education, culture, and legal security, all interacting in complex ways (SAGE, 2023). For separated young people, especially those navigating transitions into adulthood, this web is fragile. Services have a crucial role in strengthening its threads.

"When I first came here, I didn’t want to leave my room. Everyone spoke so fast, and I felt stupid. Then one of the carers asked me to show him how to cook a meal from my country. That was the first time I felt like I belonged." M.H Oasis Care Resident

1. Safety and Stability Come First

Research shows that stability is one of the strongest predictors of positive outcomes for separated young people (Hadwin & Singh, 2024). Yet too often, they face frequent moves or housing decisions driven by efficiency rather than belonging.

True stability is about far more than a roof over someone’s head. It is about the people and relationships that surround them. Familiar staff, predictable routines, and trauma-informed care reduce fear and create a sense of safety. Just as importantly, they send a powerful message to young people: you are worth investing in.

• Safe, regulated accommodation gives young people the security they need to rest and rebuild trust.

• Consistency matters: familiar staff and predictable routines help reduce fear and anxiety.

• Trauma-informed care acknowledges that young people may be carrying deep scars, and healing takes time.

In Sutton, the local authority trained its care team in trauma-informed practice and built stronger partnerships to improve placement stability. (LGA, 2023)

Reflection for Services:

• Does our environment feel like a home where young people can belong, not just a service they live in?

• Are we helping young people connect to community activities, peers, and support networks?

2. Language and Learning Open Doors

Language is often seen purely as an educational need, but it is also a matter of rights and safeguarding. Without access to ESOL and education, young people cannot fully advocate for themselves, build friendships, or engage with the services that support them (Wharton, 2023).

• Quick access to ESOL gives young people the confidence to communicate and start forming relationships.

• School or college places provide structure, social connections, and a sense of everyday normality.

• Practical learning, such as using public transport or shopping for food, builds independence and prepares young people for adulthood.

Suffolk County Council created a dedicated UASC team and commissioned integrated ESOL and education support, making transitions smoother. (LGA, 2023)

Reflection for Services:

• Do we track how quickly new arrivals are enrolled in ESOL and school/college?

• Are we paying attention to how gender shapes access to and experience of learning?

3. Friendships Build Bridges·      

Isolation is one of the greatest risks separated young people face, and it heightens vulnerability to exploitation (Maioli et al., 2024). Research shows that peer connections and community mentors are protective factors, reducing risk and supporting resilience.

• Mentors and buddies help young people settle and feel less alone.

• Sports, arts, and youth clubs provide safe spaces to belong without words.

• Conversation cafés give opportunities to practice English while meeting local people.

The ACS-UK Integration Project connects young people with volunteers who help with housing, health, and friendship , ensuring no child feels invisible. (ACS-UK, 2024)

Reflection for Services:-

• Are we actively brokering introductions into community activities, rather than leaving young people to find their own way?

• Do we measure belonging not just by housing stability, but by the quality of friendships and networks?

4. Healing Minds and Hearts

Many separated young people carry trauma, yet mental health provision often lags behind need. BMJ research highlights that safeguarding frequently misses emotional health, focusing only on physical safety and legal compliance (Maioli et al., 2024).

• Counselling and therapeutic groups give space to process trauma.

• Training for carers and teachers helps them respond with compassion when signs of distress appear.

• Patience is essential: some days will be hard, but healing is a journey.

The British Red Cross supports separated children through casework and mental health support, combining practical help with emotional care. (IFRC, 2024)

5. Creating Belonging in Communities

Belonging is not assimilation , it is recognition. Communities that invite young people to share food, culture, and stories enable identity to flourish rather than be erased.

• Celebrate culture and identity: invite young people to share their food, stories, and traditions.

• Simple welcomes , like a pack of essentials on a bed, or a community meal , send powerful messages of care.

• Challenge stigma: awareness events and open conversations help local residents replace fear with understanding.

In North Lincolnshire, Tackling Inequalities funding enabled UASC to join community activities during COVID recovery, keeping them connected. (Active Humber, 2023)

Reflection for Services:

• Do we equip communities to welcome, rather than fear, separated young people?

• Are we creating structured opportunities for cultural sharing that affirm identity?

  
  

6. Working Together Makes the Difference

The needs of separated young people span health, housing, education, and immigration. When systems operate in silos, young people fall through the gaps. Research on resilience stresses the importance of joined-up ecosystems of support (Tachtler et al., 2020).

But integration is not just about services. Staff and volunteers also need support. Without supervision, reflective spaces, and resilience training, the adults who care for separated young people risk burnout , and belonging cannot be sustained without resilient carers.

Checklist for Services Supporting Separated Young People:

• Deliver trauma-informed training. At Oasis, we trained our whole team in trauma-informed practice.

• Map ESOL, college, and vocational partners. We built direct links with local colleges for quick enrolment.

• Provide mentors and peer networks. Once residents feel settled we support them to engage with local sports/social activities.

• Strengthen links with health and mental health services. We created a referral pathway with local counselling services.

• Track belonging indicators (friends, activities, wellbeing). In our reviews, we ask about friendships and participation.

• Plan early for housing and immigration transitions. We start planning within 3 months of there arrival.

• Support staff and volunteers with supervision and resilience training. We introduced reflective practice sessions.

In Yorkshire & Humber, the Refugee Integration programme linked councils, training providers, and communities to create housing, skills, and participation opportunities. (Migration Yorkshire, 2022)

7. Preparing for Adulthood: A Rite of Passage

For separated young people, turning 18 is often a cliff edge. Legal status, housing, and support may all change at once. Research calls for this to be treated as a humane rite of passage, with preparation beginning well before 18 (Omorogbe & Salter, 2023).

Oasis Practical Example:

• We now begin transition planning within the first 3 months of arrival, ensuring that legal advice, housing options, and adult support networks are identified early.

Closing Reflection

At Oasis Care, we are learning that belonging is not a “soft” extra , it is a foundation for safeguarding, resilience, and future stability.

For us, this has meant making practical changes: embedding trauma-informed training, building stronger partnerships with colleges and counselling services, and starting transition planning much earlier. These shifts have taught us that belonging is built in the details , in the way we plan, the way we welcome, and the way we listen.

We share this learning because belonging is not built by one service alone , it is woven through systems and relationships. The question is not only how separated young people will adapt to their new lives, but how we will adapt our services and communities to welcome them.

References and Further Reading

• Local Government Association – London Borough of Sutton: Developing person-centred support for UASC

• Local Government Association – Suffolk County Council: Managing a growing UASC population

• ACS-UK – Refugees and Asylum Seekers Integration Project

• IFRC Case Study – British Red Cross support for UASC

• Active Humber – Tackling Inequalities Funding: UASC project

• Gov.uk – Asylum Mental Health & Wellbeing Team: Community Kitchen Project

• Migration Yorkshire – Refugee Integration Service

• Hadwin, J., & Singh, S. (2024). Social work with unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and young people: resisting the rhetoric. Critical & Radical Social Work.Read the article (University of Birmingham repository)

• Omorogbe, O., & Salter, T. (2023). A Humane Rite of Passage: Supporting young unaccompanied asylum seekers transitioning into adulthood. Youth & Policy.Read online

• Maioli, S. et al. (2024). Improving safeguarding of unaccompanied migrant young people. BMJ Opinion.Read online

• Tachtler, F. et al. (2020). Supporting the Supporters of Unaccompanied Migrant Youth: Designing for Social-ecological Resilience.Read on arXiv

• Wharton, A. (2023). Unaccompanied girls in England: (re)constructing spaces of belonging and learning. Doctoral Thesis, University of Sussex.View thesis on Sussex Research Online

• SAGE (2023). Belonging-Assemblage: Experiences of Unaccompanied Young People Seeking Asylum.Read abstract & download (SAGE Journals)