New fund supports Syrian and Ukrainian refugees’ education

Projects were granted funding to provide trauma support and language lessons for children and young people displaced by conflict, as well as vocational training and support for disabled access, in Lebanon, the UK, Greece, Uganda and Sierra Leone.

Altogether just over £290,000 has been awarded from the new fund, which launched this summer and aims to address the challenges that children and young people who have been displaced by conflict face in accessing quality education.

The Hands Up Foundation have been awarded £60,000 to establish an education centre for 280 Syrian refugee children in Lebanon, with additional psychosocial support for children and teachers.

Hull FC Rugby Community Sports and Education Foundation were given £28,740 for their One Community project, providing language, literacy and numeracy skills for 40 young Ukrainian refugees arriving in the area, as well as confidence-building activities and creation of a peer network with each other.

Children and Families Across Borders were given £60,000 for their project to provide trauma support for 30 young refugees arriving in the UK by helping them to create a ‘Life Story’.

Able Child Africa were awarded £59,969 for Restoring Hope: improving access to inclusive education for children and youth with disabilities in northern Ugandan refugee settlements. It aims to improve access to education for children with disabilities living in refugee settlements, by providing support devices for them, training teachers and engaging the community.

Consortium for Street Children were awarded £59,944 to address trauma among war-displaced street-connected children to improve educational outcomes in Sierra Leone. The project will provide vocational training for young people displaced by war, using a trauma-informed approach, training social workers and vocational trainers in how to meet their needs for support so that they do not drop out.

• Refugee Youth Service were awarded £27,960 for their project Living the English Language, providing young people in Greece with English language tuition so that they can tap into the huge employment opportunities in the tourism sector.
• All the projects have been funded to support children and young people over two years.

The Displacement Education Fund provides dedicated support for organisations working with displaced children and young people, internationally and in the UK. Funding is available for up to two years, and BFSS will consider applications from UK registered charities, schools and educational establishments, and local community groups. Full details and criteria are available in the What we fund section of this website.

For further information contact grants@bfss.org.uk