Social capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizations

Based on UK fieldwork in the West Midlands, Manchester and Liverpool and London, the paper explores the impacts of asylum-seeker dispersal on the formation of refugee community organizations (RCOs). An outline of policy precedes discussion which demonstrates how dispersal has consolidated a solid co...

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Main Authors: Zetter, R, Griffiths, D, Sigona, N
Format: Journal article
Language:English
Published: 2005
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author Zetter, R
Griffiths, D
Sigona, N
author_facet Zetter, R
Griffiths, D
Sigona, N
author_sort Zetter, R
collection OXFORD
description Based on UK fieldwork in the West Midlands, Manchester and Liverpool and London, the paper explores the impacts of asylum-seeker dispersal on the formation of refugee community organizations (RCOs). An outline of policy precedes discussion which demonstrates how dispersal has consolidated a solid core of established RCOs in London, whilst stimulating a regional periphery of volatile semi-secure and insecure RCOs competing for shrinking financial support. The main part of the paper challenges the prevailing paradigm of RCOs as formally constituted organizations of social capital which crucially mediate the process of integration. This traditional role and rationale has been sacrificed for largely short-term, defensive tasks in a hostile policy environment. Despite their proliferation, RCOs resist institutionalization within both the state apparatus and their community networks. © Oxford University Press and Community Development Journal. 2005 All rights reserved.
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spelling oxford-uuid:f76dfb43-b46c-4594-93ca-d6fc01f4c5552022-03-27T12:42:31ZSocial capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizationsJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:f76dfb43-b46c-4594-93ca-d6fc01f4c555EnglishSymplectic Elements at Oxford2005Zetter, RGriffiths, DSigona, NBased on UK fieldwork in the West Midlands, Manchester and Liverpool and London, the paper explores the impacts of asylum-seeker dispersal on the formation of refugee community organizations (RCOs). An outline of policy precedes discussion which demonstrates how dispersal has consolidated a solid core of established RCOs in London, whilst stimulating a regional periphery of volatile semi-secure and insecure RCOs competing for shrinking financial support. The main part of the paper challenges the prevailing paradigm of RCOs as formally constituted organizations of social capital which crucially mediate the process of integration. This traditional role and rationale has been sacrificed for largely short-term, defensive tasks in a hostile policy environment. Despite their proliferation, RCOs resist institutionalization within both the state apparatus and their community networks. © Oxford University Press and Community Development Journal. 2005 All rights reserved.
spellingShingle Zetter, R
Griffiths, D
Sigona, N
Social capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizations
title Social capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizations
title_full Social capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizations
title_fullStr Social capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizations
title_full_unstemmed Social capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizations
title_short Social capital or social exclusion? The impact of asylum-seeker dispersal on UK refugee community organizations
title_sort social capital or social exclusion the impact of asylum seeker dispersal on uk refugee community organizations
work_keys_str_mv AT zetterr socialcapitalorsocialexclusiontheimpactofasylumseekerdispersalonukrefugeecommunityorganizations
AT griffithsd socialcapitalorsocialexclusiontheimpactofasylumseekerdispersalonukrefugeecommunityorganizations
AT sigonan socialcapitalorsocialexclusiontheimpactofasylumseekerdispersalonukrefugeecommunityorganizations