

"Hi. My name is Harneet. I am 18 years old. I arrived in the UK on 11th November 2019.
Like many asylum-seekers, our journey in the UK started in Croydon. We then moved up north and stayed in a guest house in Birmingham for around two weeks. Finally, my family and I moved to an accommodation in Wolverhampton.
Finding a school and getting back to normality was a priority for everyone in my family. We were registering for the GP and searching for schools at the same time. It was very busy and very uncertain.
Unfortunately, the schools I visited refused to take me in for the 2019-20 term because it was already November. I felt a bit confused at first because the schools would give me the application form, but I realised that it was for the next term!
Helen Grimshaw, Senior economist, Head of Strategy & Analytics at the Financial Reporting Council, expressed a similar sentiment:
“I was keen to attend the dinner to hear stories from people from around the world with different experiences, and I was set up to give them some hints and tips. What actually happened was that the Fellows were the ones doing the learning. We heard lots of inspiring stories, the challenges young refugees face and what they have done so far. The truth is that they are already leaders, in their careers and their communities. I wanted to share the benefit of my experience, but actually, it was the other way around.”
It was incredibly valuable for the young people in attendance to hear from senior leaders how they are inspired by them and to hear how grateful the Fellows were for them being here in the UK.
To hear this vote of confidence from individuals who have been highly successful in different positions of leadership was incredibly powerful. It was also deeply inspiring to hear the story of another Fellow who commented that her journey in leadership took time. When she started out in private investment, ‘I tried to be like a white male to fit into the environment, but I’m not. I decided to be myself. If you treat people a certain way, they will treat you that way back’.
So, my options were narrowed down to the college and an online training academy which offered an employability and personal development course. By the time I got into the college, it was already January 2020!
My family and I collectively decided that I should go to college since it is a bigger institution and more opportunities might present themselves there, but I was keen to take the course too."
“It was only natural to feel a bit anxious and awkward, but I was glad that I had finally become a part of the British education system!”
'How it started vs How it's going': Harneet's education journey in the UK

Refugee Week 2021
Refugee Week is a shared moment in our year in which we celebrate the contributions, creativity and resilience of those seeking sanctuary.