Our Partners

The University of York Migration Network has contributed to the University of York's application to become a University of Sanctuary. In September 2020 the University of York achieved a 'University of Sanctuary' award in recognition of its sector-leading efforts to expand access for refugee and asylum seekers. The award, led by the charity City of Sanctuary, recognises the efforts of the University's students and staff to welcome forced migrants into the community and promote a culture of inclusion.

The University has a range of measures in place to increase education opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers. Since 2016, York has offered Equal Access Scholarships for asylum seekers and has continued to increase the number of scholarships available. Eligibility criteria has also been widened in order to reach more people excluded from education, such as forced migrants.

The University has a range of measures in place to increase education opportunities for refugees and asylum seekers. Since 2016, York has offered Equal Access Scholarships for asylum seekers and has continued to increase the number of scholarships available. The University also offers support in the form of bursaries for refugee students, and has dedicated advice and support resources for all sanctuary seeking students and applicants within the Student Hub.

Refugee Action York (RAY)

Refugee Action York (RAY) was co-founded in 2002 by MigNet Co-Chair Simon Parker to raise awareness about the plight of refugees and migrants in and beyond the City of York and in order to establish the city’s first Refugee Week.

Since then RAY has become a registered charity with a core group of paid staff who work to support and advocate on behalf of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants from within and around the City of York.  RAY provides a safe meeting point (the Hub) where people can seek information and support, learn new skills and languages and form lasting friendships. Through providing this support RAY aims to empower individuals to assist them in rebuilding their lives.

In addition to the various sessions and services RAY offers, the charity also campaigns on behalf of local asylum seeking families and their relatives who are under threat of detention and/or deportation. MigNet members have been active in volunteering their time and expertise to RAY, and undergraduate and postgraduate students from the University of York have gained valuable experience as volunteers by offering English conversation classes for adults, working as part of the information and support team, acting as ambassadors for RAY in the local community, organising youth club activities for older children and reading, craft and play activities for younger ones. MigNet continues to work with RAY and other local stakeholders who form the York Refugee Week committee to organise talks, workshops, concerts and film events for the annual Refugee Week in York as part of a national and international awareness raising campaign.

Shpresa Programme

The Shpresa Programme (shpresa means “hope” in the Albanian language) was founded in 2003 by Luljeta Nusi to provide help and support to those who had fled the Kosovo conflict in the 1990s as well as those who have sought asylum in the UK from Albania following the collapse of communism and the civil war that briefly followed. In 2005, Shpresa Programme became a registered a charity and it now has a paid staff of six as well as 45 volunteer staff. Having been based in the London Borough Newham, Shpresa’s activities now span Greater London as well as providing outreach support to Albanian speakers in several other parts of the UK.

Shpresa’s award winning projects include

• Children and Young People project
• Women's Heath and Wellbeing project
• Volunteering project 
• Advice and Advocacy project

In addition, the Shpresa Programme community as a whole has been actively involved in campaigns to improve awareness and understanding of the plight of refugees, forced migrants and victims of trafficking as well as promoting social integration through cultural events in London and across the UK. For several years Shpresa’s young immigration champions, who are young asylum seekers trained to raise awareness of the discrimination and hardship that this group of asylum seekers face in the UK asylum system, have taken part in workshops, participatory arts learning labs, workshops and conferences as part of York Refugee Week with MigNet members Simon Parker, Rachel Allsop and Sara de Jong.

Most recently Shpresa’s young asylum seekers took part in a workshop examining the impact of Covid-19 on their lives organised by MigNet for York Refugee Week 2019.

Shpresa also has ongoing research collaborations with a number of UK universities including the University of York where Shpresa is a key NGO partner in the ESRC/GCRF Citizenship Futures-The Politics of Hope project led by Indrajit Roy.