Young refugees are entitled to education in England; however, England has no specific educational policies that focus on their needs. Nevertheless, ‘a longstanding body of literature points to the importance of language proficiency to refugee integration’ (Morrice et al., 2020, p.3). Madziva and Thondhlana (2017) found that English has a critical role ‘in developing friendships or peer relationships, which in turn facilitate the integration and learning processes’ of refugee students (p. 953).
Social relationships with peers in school and in the community help young people learn more effectively (ibid). However, austerity measures and exclusionary policies impact young refugees’ ability to access an ideal provision in England. Considering this, I designed a doctoral study focusing on how young refugees and their families encounter England’s education system.
