"You cannot demand integration while building an asylum system on insecurity" - Amina Khanom

What does it take for refugees to truly rebuild their lives? Stability, safety and the chance to belong.

In this thought-provoking article for openDemocracy, Community Sponsorship Alliance member Amina Khanom reflects on the UK’s proposed immigration and asylum reforms and asks an important question: how can we expect people to integrate when they are living with prolonged uncertainty?

Drawing on more than a decade of experience supporting refugee welcome and resettlement, Amina highlights the vital role that communities play in helping people rebuild their lives and advocates for ambitious, accessible safe routes, including Community Sponsorship.

A powerful read for anyone interested in creating an asylum system that supports protection, integration and contribution.

"If the government genuinely wants fewer dangerous journeys, it must pair a fair asylum system with safe and accessible alternatives for those seeking protection. Here, there is an opportunity in the bill. The commitment to creating new safe and regular routes to seek asylum in the UK, including through Community Sponsorship, should be welcomed.

For a decade, we have advocated for communities to have a greater role in welcoming refugees, including through named sponsorship. This has been a key advocacy priority for the Community Sponsorship Alliance, of which my charity is a member. Communities repeatedly tell us that they want to help people reach safety. We have seen it through Community Sponsorship and on an extraordinary scale through the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

But safe routes must be meaningful and ambitious. If the government is serious about reducing dangerous journeys, it cannot offer small, tightly capped routes that are inaccessible to most people who need protection. Doing so will continue to force desperate people to look for other ways to reach safety".