Co-Developing Trauma-Aware Approaches in Forced Migrant Youth Sport, 2024-2025

Smith, Robyn and Hooper, Oliver (2026). Co-Developing Trauma-Aware Approaches in Forced Migrant Youth Sport, 2024-2025. [Data Collection]. Colchester, Essex: UK Data Service. 10.5255/UKDA-SN-858413

Young forced migrants experience significant challenges to their wellbeing as a result of traumatic displacement experiences, loss and destruction of home, and separation from and or/death of family and friends (Chase & Alsopp, 2020). These challenges are exacerbated in the UK due to long asylum waiting times, fragmented social networks, social exclusion, and poverty, often resulting in a lack of safety, mental health issues, loneliness, and reduced quality of life (Chase, 2013). There is growing interest in understanding how community sport and leisure may support the wellbeing of young forced migrants. While sport can enhance wellbeing through fostering social interaction, belonging, and positive emotions, programmes are often delivered from the top-down to asylum -seeking young males, with limited attention directed toward how sport may enhance and restrict the wellbeing of diverse forced migrant groups (Spaaij et al., 2019). Thus, sport can also be a site for social exclusion and re-traumatization, which may be particularly problematic for marginalized young refugees who have experienced trauma (Nunn et al., 2022).

My timely PhD research used participatory approaches, involving young people and community partners throughout the research process, to explore community sport, leisure, and wellbeing in the lives of young forced migrants in the UK. The proposed fellowship activities aim to facilitate my transition to being a world-leading early-career researcher in sport, forced migration studies, and participatory methodologies. To achieve this aim, I will:

(1) Develop my publication track record, enhance research leadership skills, and promote research excellence in forced migration and sport through disseminating PhD and postdoctoral findings in high-impact journals, at national/international academic conferences, and through leading the creation of a special issue on youth forced migration, leisure and sport.

(2) Expand collaborative partnerships with academics, third-sector and public organizations, and policy makers, and work with partners to widely disseminate PhD findings to inform national and international policy and practice. I will deliver regional workshops for sport for development practitioners on sport and leisure programming for young forced migrants and co-create policy guidance.

(3) Conduct further research related to my PhD to strengthen the foundation for future grant applications and develop specialized participatory analysis and co-authorship skills. LGBTQI+ young forced migrants experience unique challenges to their wellbeing, yet this population has been under-explored in research and there are
significant gaps in service provision (Yarwood et al., 2022). To build foundational knowledge and inform the development of sport/ leisure services for this population, I will conduct pilot participatory research with key stakeholders and young people exploring wellbeing and experiences in sport and leisure activities.

(4) Build from the pilot research to develop funding applications for a prestigious early career award to enable my transition to independent researcher. Applications will be co-developed with an advisory group of practitioners and academic mentors in this field.

Through these activities, I will advance knowledge in this pressing research area, inform policy and practice to enable young forced migrants to lead a life that they value, and establish myself as a future research leader.

Data description (abstract)

This participatory project was conducted in collaboration with the staff and Youth Advisory Board (YAB) at I Speak Football. We aimed to build evidence around best practice in trauma-aware community sport and leisure programming with young people from refugee backgrounds. The research objectives include:

RO1: To explore how young people from refugee backgrounds understand trauma-aware approaches in sport and leisure and to co-develop trauma-aware principles that reflect what matters most to them.

RO2: To examine how community sport and leisure practitioners and coaches make sense of, implement and evaluate trauma-aware sport programmes.

RO3: To empower & enhance the capacity of the youth advisory board.

I Speak Football collaborated in developing the research aims/ objectives and research design, and conducting the analysis. We conducted 15 interviews with coaches and practitioners who design/deliver community sport/leisure programmes for young people from refugee backgrounds & 4 participatory share and learn workshops with the I Speak Football YAB/staff.

This data set includes 15 transcripts from the interviews with practitioners and the interview guide.

Data creators: