Learning about the issues - The Methodist Church

Home For churches Ministries Children, Youth & Family Ministry Agents of Change Resources for Refugee Week and beyond Learning about the issues

For adults or older young people:

Visit the website of the Joint Public Issues Team to read about asylum and migration, including information on the hostile environment and the rights of asylum seekers.
You can watch Newsnight's A terrible journey to Europe, following three teenage migrants as they travel to Italy seeking safety.
Available on the BBC iPlayer is Sitting in limbo, a drama about the recent Windrush scandal.
Christian Aid's page on displaced people has stories from individuals as well as a displacement campaign briefing and information sheets on their call for a fair deal.

For children, families and all age:

The Refugee Week website has some great resources for children and young people, including this list of online films to watch and a list of events to look out for.
In Spring 2019, Junior Mission for All's Rainbow magazine featured a spotlight on Syria and the story of Shahed, a young refugee originally from Syria and now living in Jordan.
On the Christian Aid website you can find loads of resources, including the Safe Place ludo game to download and play and ready to use assemblies on the subject of refugees (which can be easily adapted for other settings).
The organisation Youth for Refugees, co-founded by two young people - Ella and Bruce - has already amassed a significant following on social media. Follow them on Instagram or on Twitter or read some of their blogs.
Download the Amnesty International Seeking Safety activity pack, focusing on asylum and encouraging young people to draw parallels with their own lives.
The beautiful graphic novel Over under sideways down, which is available to read online, depicts the story of teenage refugee Ebrahim.
From Lost Sheep, the book Jesus was a refugee is available to read online.
BBC's Newsround is always a great source of factual information for a younger audience.
Finally, for a list of books that teach about refugees and asylum seekers, the Book Trust has a list here for younger children and another here for older children. The Huffpost has also produced its own list of 12 books that will help teach kids about refugees.

Don't forget, a great place to start is with the book The boy at the back of the class, and there's a host of supporting resources for that book here.