When a person flees his country to a safe place, he leaves with a desire for safety, personal dignity, and a chance to live a better life.
Every single application for asylum and policy debate on immigration and refugees revolves around a human being who has left a home, a personal story in search of a safe and secure future, free from violence and threats.
When you seek asylum, which is enshrined under international law, the way that right is experienced in actuality does not only depend on the governments and political systems, but also private sectors and communities that not only receive those who arrive with hope.
In Scotland, Forth Valley Welcome is one of those organisations that has done a remarkable job for the welfare of refugees and asylum seekers, welcoming those who have migrated to Scotland in search of a safe future.
Forth Valley Welcome is a Scottish charity that supports new scouts (refugees and asylum seekers) as they begin their lives in Scotland. Originally, it was founded in 2015 as Stirling Citizens for Sanctuary. It became a registered charity in 2016 and later adopted the name Forth Valley Welcome in 2018, as its work expanded alongside the arrival of more families. Since then, the organisation has continued to grow, bringing on additional staff and volunteers to meet the needs of newcomers.
Its mission is to welcome, support, and advocate for New Scots, helping them build connections and integrate into their new communities. Through a dedicated volunteer network, the organisation offers practical assistance, companionship, and guidance tailored to the challenges faced by newly arrived families.
A key highlight of Forth Valley Welcome’s work is its annual Refugee Week event, held at The Tolbooth (a historic municipal building that is now a contemporary music and arts venue), where new Scots and Ukrainian speakers lead cultural workshops that help build understanding between communities. The organisation also offers support through its Material Needs team, which provides essential household items and responds to both anticipated and unexpected requests through donations and community appeals. Alongside this, its employability project helps New Scots access work through job fairs and workshops.
To better understand the realities and the challenges within the asylum system in Scotland, I got a chance to speak with Miss Elizabeth Fairgrieve, who offered insights into both the hopes and the hardships that shape the lives of those seeking refuge and asylum.
Elizabeth has worked for Forth Valley Welcome for more than 3.5 years. Before that, she was a volunteer Home Visitor with the organisation for a year. As a Volunteer Coordinator, she was responsible for training, placing, and ensuring the well-being of volunteers. She also oversaw the Life and Languages team of the organisation, which centres around language support, such as Conversation Cafes and Reading Groups. Furthermore, she headed up the organisation's External Relations team. This involves running their social media and website, and delivering community talks. The following are some answers from her interview, in which she shared some insights from Forth Valley Welcome and her take on asylum rights.
Can you please tell us about Forth Valley Welcome and how your organisation supports the right of asylum here in Scotland?
Forth Valley Welcome is a volunteer-led community organisation that supports people seeking safety in the Forth Valley area. Our work is grounded in the belief that the right to seek asylum is a fundamental human right.
We provide practical help. This can include clothing, household items, and support navigating local services. We crucially also offer social support, such as befriending, language practice, employability support, community activities, and advocacy. Our aim is to make sure that people seeking asylum or resettled refugees feel safe, included, and able to rebuild their lives with dignity.
From your perspective, how well is the UK currently upholding its international obligations towards asylum seekers?
From a community perspective, we see people who are caught in long waiting times, uncertainty, and systems that can feel punitive rather than protective. While the UK remains a signatory to international refugee conventions, the practical experience of people going through the system often does not align with the spirit of those commitments.
Policies designed to deter rather than support tend to increase vulnerability, anxiety, and instability. In our view, there is significant room for more humane, efficient, and rights-respecting approaches.
What kind of challenges do people face while applying for asylum?
People face a wide range of challenges, including long and unpredictable waiting times, often lasting years; limited financial support that leaves families struggling with basics; restricted accommodation choices, frequently in crowded or unsuitable environments; barriers to legal advice, especially access to free, high-quality representation; language barriers and difficulty understanding complex procedures, as well as isolation, poor mental health, and uncertainty about the future.
The combination of these pressures often leaves people feeling powerless at a time when they are already coping with trauma from what they have fled.
How do you see asylum and refugee policies impacting Scottish communities, socially and economically?
When people are given safety and the opportunity to integrate, communities benefit greatly. We see increased cultural diversity, new skills, new businesses, and stronger community ties.
However, restrictive UK-wide asylum policies, like bans on working, dispersal to areas without adequate support, or sudden policy changes, can put strain on local services and make integration harder. In Scotland, local councils, charities, and volunteers often step in to fill gaps, but supportive national policy would make this work much more sustainable.
Do you think current support structures (housing, legal aid, integration programmes) are adequate? Where are the biggest gaps?
The biggest gaps we see are housing, legal aid, mental health support, and the inability to work. Housing for people seeking asylum is often overcrowded, poor-quality, or temporary accommodation that undermines dignity and stability. There are numerous problems with legal aid, such as too few immigration lawyers with capacity, leaving people without timely or effective representation. There is also a lack of adequate mental health support, with lengthy NHS waiting lists and psychologists who aren’t equipped to deal with the complexities of war trauma. Furthermore, asylum seekers don’t have full working rights, which further entrenches poverty, limits opportunities for integration and wastes talent.
If you could change one aspect of the current asylum system to make it more humane and efficient, what would it be?
Introduce a fair, timely, and well-resourced decision-making process.
Delays are the root cause of many other problems: poor mental health, inability to work, pressure on accommodation, legal uncertainty, and high administrative costs. A system that makes quicker, better-quality decisions would be more humane and far more cost-effective for the public.
What message would you want to share with policymakers, students, and the wider public about the importance of asylum?
Seeking asylum is not a crime. It is a legal and moral right. Behind every application is a human being who has survived something unimaginable and is asking for safety.
When our communities respond with compassion and fairness, we don’t just support individuals, we strengthen the values we claim to stand for: dignity, justice, and humanity.
Policymakers have the power to choose systems that protect rather than punish. Students and the public have the power to shape the narrative, challenge misinformation, and build welcoming communities.
Anything else you would like to share?
Only that the kindness of ordinary people is often the most powerful force for welcome. Volunteers, neighbours, teachers, students…small acts of solidarity make an enormous difference in the lives of people seeking safety.
If we continue to build communities rooted in empathy and understanding, Scotland can remain a place where people not only find safety, but also the chance to thrive.
Learn more: https://www.forthvalleywelcome.org/
Please click the photo below to read my articles on the right to asylum and human rights.
Shehryar Hassan is the Right to Asylum and Human Rights Editor for Wandering Educators. He is a Master’s student in Human Rights and Diplomacy at the University of Stirling, with a strong academic and professional interest in international human rights. Passionate about issues concerning asylum seekers and displaced persons, Shehryar is currently interning with Wandering Educators as The Right to Asylum & Human Rights Editor, where they contribute to articles exploring global human rights topics. Dedicated to advancing human rights advocacy, Shehryar aspires to work with international organizations supporting vulnerable communities worldwide.
All photos courtesy and copyright Forth Valley Welcome