'Walking a tightrope’: Exploring hidden issues, challenges and complexities surrounding the protection needs of unaccompanied minors from Albania living in the United Kingdom.

Albanian children form the third largest group of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in the UK. Yet in 2015, out of 440 initial decisions, only one Albanian child was granted asylum and by September 2016 only 4 per cent of all Albanian nationals claiming asylum had been granted refugee status or an alternative form of protection. To date the factors underlying children and young people’s claims to asylum in the UK; the fact that they are so commonly refused asylum; and the impact of these refusals on their wellbeing outcomes as they become young adults have received scant policy, research or media attention.
This event seeks to increase understanding of the lives, circumstances and fundamental issues of culture faced by Albanian young people and to help dispel the myths that perpetuate and act as a barrier to achieving durable solutions for those seeking safety and support. It will bring together practitioners, legal specialists, policy makers and academics working in the field together with Albanian young people to:

• Explore these issues in greater depth through sharing knowledge and expertise
• Give voice to Albanian young people seeking safety in the UK
• Develop a research, action and policy agenda towards achieving durable solutions for unaccompanied minors from Albania. 

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