| Description |
This report presents findings from a two year mixed methods study (2024–2025) examining how youth workers in the United Kingdom engage with the families of migrant and refugee young people, and how these relationships influence social inclusion, wellbeing, and integration outcomes. Drawing on 547 participants, including migrant parents from 12 countries, youth workers, young people, and sector leaders, the study provides one of the most comprehensive empirical analyses of family engagement within non formal youth work in Europe.
Relevance to Migration Research
Although the study is UK based, its insights speak directly to Europe wide debates on migrant integration, intergenerational dynamics, relational welfare, and community based support systems. The research highlights the role of youth workers as intermediaries who help families navigate education, public services, and cultural expectations. These dynamics mirror challenges experienced across EU member states. The report also contributes to wider European scholarship by centring the lived experiences of migrant parents, the cultural negotiation that occurs within migrant households, and the structural barriers that shape participation in civic and educational life.
Key Findings
Family engagement is widespread but largely invisible.
84 percent of youth workers engage informally with parents, but this labour is rarely recognised, resourced, or included in training and monitoring systems.
Young people from migrant families want their parents to be able to support them better.
Relational practices drive impact.
Regular check ins, informal conversations, signposting, and basic updates significantly strengthen parents’ confidence, understanding of UK systems, and sense of belonging.
Migrant families occupy diverse positions within society.
Expectations of youth work depend heavily on the strength of families’ support networks and their sense of belonging. Newly arrived or isolated families tend to seek practical navigation support. More established families often look for collaboration and opportunities to contribute.
Intergenerational tensions are common.
Young people frequently mediate between parental expectations, cultural norms, and local social environments. Youth workers act as bridges when communication between generations becomes strained.
Barriers limit engagement on both sides.
Parents face linguistic, cultural, technological, and socio economic challenges. Youth workers face limited time, limited training, and organisational constraints.
Conceptual Contribution
The report reframes family engagement in youth work as a central mechanism for integration rather than an optional enhancement. It proposes a three part model applicable across European migration contexts:
Trust building and welcoming environments
Sustained and consistent communication
Active collaboration that recognises parental strengths
This model emphasises relational inclusion and cultural responsiveness, reinforcing themes in current European research on migrant participation and community involvement.
Implications for European Policy and Practice
Youth work can serve as an accessible and low threshold entry point for migrant families who may mistrust or struggle to access formal institutions.
Recognising migrant parents as contributors rather than deficits supports fairer and more effective integration policies.
Investment in translation, cultural competence, family liaison roles, and continuity of staff can increase engagement for newly arrived families.
Monitoring systems should capture relational and emotional labour to ensure youth organisations receive adequate resources.
Why This Matters for a European Audience
Across Europe, migrant families face comparable challenges: language barriers, varying familiarity with public systems, precarious work, discrimination, and intergenerational adaptation pressures. This report offers a transferable and practical framework for understanding how community based youth services can strengthen migrant family participation and young people’s wellbeing. It provides evidence that youth work, when connected to families, can be a quietly powerful integration tool.
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