RAPAR (Refugee and Asylum Participatory Action Research) is a human rights organisation based in Manchester, UK, which is primarily concerned with displaced people, and issues relating to displaced people.
RAPAR was founded in Salford in 2001. Initial membership comprised academics, researchers, displaced people, 2nd/3rd generation migrants, and practitioners in the fields of community development and statutory services.
A registered charity, RAPAR functions as an enabler with displaced people, a campaigning focal point, a community development facilitator and a participatory action research producer.
We are the winner of the 2009 Elspeth Kyle National Award for Best Community Impact.
RAPAR was founded in Salford in 2001. Initial membership comprised academics, researchers, displaced people, 2nd/3rd generation migrants, and practitioners in the fields of community development and statutory services.
A registered charity, RAPAR functions as an enabler with displaced people, a campaigning focal point, a community development facilitator and a participatory action research producer.
We are the winner of the 2009 Elspeth Kyle National Award for Best Community Impact.
RAPAR's previous Leadership Group elected at the Annual General Meeting, December 2019.
Leadership
Co-Chairs: Ivy - Alimamy, Bukky
Vice-Chair - Nestor
Secretary - Aria, Vitalis, Amy, Kath
Treasurer - Vitalis
Research - Grainne
Health - Nazanin
Casework - Aria
Translation/Interpretation - Max
Mental Health Group - Alimamy, Amy
Women’s Group - Ivy and others (to be co-opted)
Men’s Group - Vitalis
Fundraising - Billy
Website - Sophie
Freedom of Information - Billy
Social co-ordinator - Bukky
Housing - Ivy, Vitalis, Alimamy, Bukky
International research, Information and Learning - Billy, Amy, Alimamy, Vitalis, Bukky, Aria, James
Campaigns - Alimamy and Bukky
Music - Noah, Maurice, Philomene
Creative - Alimamy, Rahwa, Kouame
Trustees:
Shaista Sabiha Raja (Chair)
Kathleen Grant (Secretary)
Tendai Masiya (Treasurer)
Stephen Anderson
Dr Grainne McMahon
Dr Edward Mynott
Vice-Chair - Nestor
Secretary - Aria, Vitalis, Amy, Kath
Treasurer - Vitalis
Research - Grainne
Health - Nazanin
Casework - Aria
Translation/Interpretation - Max
Mental Health Group - Alimamy, Amy
Women’s Group - Ivy and others (to be co-opted)
Men’s Group - Vitalis
Fundraising - Billy
Website - Sophie
Freedom of Information - Billy
Social co-ordinator - Bukky
Housing - Ivy, Vitalis, Alimamy, Bukky
International research, Information and Learning - Billy, Amy, Alimamy, Vitalis, Bukky, Aria, James
Campaigns - Alimamy and Bukky
Music - Noah, Maurice, Philomene
Creative - Alimamy, Rahwa, Kouame
Trustees:
Shaista Sabiha Raja (Chair)
Kathleen Grant (Secretary)
Tendai Masiya (Treasurer)
Stephen Anderson
Dr Grainne McMahon
Dr Edward Mynott
Advisers to Leadership
Rhetta Moran - External Relations
Sophie Gardiner – Website Design
Advisers to Trustees
Frankie Mullen
Professor Peter Folkman
Matrons & Patrons
Mr Mervyn Cross
Mr Mark George QC
Mr Gary McIndoe
Ms Zeinab Mohammed
Canon Professor Nicholas Sagovsky
Mr Mark George QC
Mr Gary McIndoe
Ms Zeinab Mohammed
Canon Professor Nicholas Sagovsky
Funding
RAPAR is run entirely on a voluntary basis, with financial support from changing sources. Past and present funders include: Allen Lane Foundation, Awards for All, Ben and Jerry's Foundation, CommonWord, Dr Barnardo's Homes, Economic and Social Research Council of Great Britain, Equality and Human Rights Commission, EU Erasmus, Future Ventures, Gingerbread, Huddersfield University, Liverpool Hope University, Lloyds TSB Foundation, LUSH UK Charity Pot, Oglesby Charitable Trust, Quakers Refugee and Asylum Fund, Quaker Work Fund, individual donors and trade unions, including Unison and the National Union of Education, and fundraising events.
History of RAPAR
In 2001, RAPAR’s founders were approached for help by community health, cohesion and social work practitioners who were confronted with a new population when refugees, forcibly dispersed to these practitioners' localities in North West England conurbations for the first time, became their ‘clients’.
Drawing on our skills and networks as clinicians, epidemiologists and social scientists, our personal identities as refugees and second or third generation migrants to the UK, and our professional relationships with community development practitioners, RAPAR gradually became live.
RAPAR began to reach the national media with our research about what was happening to people seeking asylum from both Iraq (2003) and Somalia (2004) and to their local communities here. Since 2005, RAPAR has been talking publicly about the relationship between the history of colonialism, the creation of tax havens that service multinationals, the arms trade, the war on terror and becoming a refugee. Watch the video here.
During 2004-5, RAPAR faced highly concentrated - and highly placed - efforts to stop its work in its tracks; see 2011 University of Oxford PhD thesis by Joshua Hatton entitled How and why did migration and refugee studies (MARS) facilitate migration control? (click here for pdf) particularly section 4.3. on power and practice (pp.254-278).
The organisation originally comprised researchers, policy formulators and front line practitioners within key statutory services, and small pockets of displaced people. At its inception, it aspired to the continuous development and delivery of action-orientated research, community development and individual casework about and with - as opposed to on and for - displaced people and their surrounding communities. This aspiration continues.
Drawing on our skills and networks as clinicians, epidemiologists and social scientists, our personal identities as refugees and second or third generation migrants to the UK, and our professional relationships with community development practitioners, RAPAR gradually became live.
RAPAR began to reach the national media with our research about what was happening to people seeking asylum from both Iraq (2003) and Somalia (2004) and to their local communities here. Since 2005, RAPAR has been talking publicly about the relationship between the history of colonialism, the creation of tax havens that service multinationals, the arms trade, the war on terror and becoming a refugee. Watch the video here.
During 2004-5, RAPAR faced highly concentrated - and highly placed - efforts to stop its work in its tracks; see 2011 University of Oxford PhD thesis by Joshua Hatton entitled How and why did migration and refugee studies (MARS) facilitate migration control? (click here for pdf) particularly section 4.3. on power and practice (pp.254-278).
The organisation originally comprised researchers, policy formulators and front line practitioners within key statutory services, and small pockets of displaced people. At its inception, it aspired to the continuous development and delivery of action-orientated research, community development and individual casework about and with - as opposed to on and for - displaced people and their surrounding communities. This aspiration continues.
How RAPAR began: description of the first meeting
Description of the Broughton Library meeting of 29th October 2001 between RAPAR and young Afghani men living in the locality who were contacted through a combination of outreach from the Salford Refugee Health team and word of mouth.
Cath Maffia, the Salford Refugee Health Team Health Visitor, and Rhetta Moran, from the Revans Institute, make themselves known to the Broughton Library staff and go upstairs to the room that has been booked. The tables are pushed to the side to create a sort of circle with about 20 chairs. 5 Afghani men arrive, one of whom is highly bilingual.
We smile and greet. They have all already met Cath. Rhetta briefly goes through the background to being here:
…how Refugee and Asylum Seekers Participatory Action Research (RAPAR) came into being through people wanting to develop our abilities to be able to do action research with refugees and asylum seekers in the here and now…
…wanting to build on work that has been in development over 5 years with and within our Somali community in Manchester. About wanting to create evidence that demonstrates what is needed by our refugee and asylum seeking communities, and that goes about creating and collecting that evidence using an approach that, in itself, begins to help meet those needs. e.g. Breaking down the social isolation by meeting together and thereby bringing together the processes and the procedures so that we both act and learn at the same time through conscious and aware research...
…the decision to attempt to reach out to Afghani men in the locality and in the aftermath of September 11th...
…the pledges of financial support already given by Salford PCT through the community health development team, by Salford Mental Health Trust and by Salford CVS...
…the fact that we do not have any answers ... we have many questions...
…and our hope that this event would begin to break down the social isolation being experienced, and mark the beginning of collaborative working between this community and the shapers and deliverers of practical support services in health, social care and education.
Mai Dixon from the Red Cross arrives. She tells everyone present that, by the end of this week, the Red Cross will have wireless communication with Afghanistan. Once this is established they will be able to help to send messages between Afghanistan and UK. She explains that the Red Cross is officially allowed to be in Afghanistan – because there is a war happening.
Anne-Marie Fell from the Salford Catholic Diocese and Sadid Shapoor from Refugee Action arrive. Anne Marie explains that her work is very much involved with supporting refugees and asylum seekers. Sadid explains that since 11th September, Afghani people have not come together – today is the first time in Manchester.
We explore some of the potential and actual connections between their experiences and other refugee experiences. Our Somali colleagues and friends have long experience of being refugees and knowing what it is like to live inside of a civil war, and of the means and ways to communicate some of those issues to a wider audience and with help from friends who are not, themselves, living as refugees. Rhetta explains that some of them are coming and they are bringing food.
More Afghani men (about 7 men from another local household), Ameen Hadi, a community safety officer from the local authority, and a lone Afghani man who is already involved in a local football initiative come. The discussion continues in Afghani.
A little while later, Rhetta intervenes to say that those people present who are currently working within the system in the UK are here because we know that there are needs within the Afghani community and we want to find ways of making sure that their situation is understood and acted upon by people with responsibilities in the health and social and education sectors. Rhetta invites the group to consider whether there are any stories that they would like to tell about what they are experiencing, and if they want to write things down or want to talk. One man who has not spoken before says “we want to talk to each other, we can write things down at home alone.”
The men talk some more amongst themselves. An interpreter says that they have decided what the most important thing for them is. One man who has not spoken before describes how, every morning, they wake up early and listen for the sound of the footsteps of the postman…for a letter that says 'you must go here, now, or you cannot stay here any longer'…or for the sound of banging on the door and voices that say 'you must go'.
Sadid Sapoor from Refugee Action begins to explore, mostly in an Afghani language but intermittently in English, about the war, about what it means. The conversation gradually becomes more and more conducted in Afghani. Some time into the conversation, there is a brief period where the interpreters translate into English. There is a worry that if British ground troops go in and British people begin to be killed in Afghanistan, British people living around Afghans in Britain may react negatively towards them as individuals. There is a fear that is with them all the time about the people around them.
Ameen Hadi, the community safety officer from the Local Authority explains that his job is about trying to create security for everyone living in the area. The men here have as much right to security as everyone else. Irrespective of what anyone thinks about the rights or wrongs of the war that is going on, he has his responsibilities in his job and that is why he is here. As a part of his work, he runs an event every Friday 2-4pm at Broughton Recreation Centre, Camp Street: Fitness, Weights and Football. Everyone is welcome. It’s free.
After about 20 minutes the food arrives with Zeinab Mohamed our colleague and friend from the Somali community, companions from the Somali community and Hermione Lovel from the University of Manchester.
People break into smaller groups and eat together. After about 30 minutes, we come back together again in a big group. Hermione explains a little more about the Somali work that has gone on before and how important it is for the men to be able to set the priorities for themselves and with support from others. She also invites people to indicate whether they are interested in being sent tickets for a Basketball Event at the Arena in Manchester this weekend. Most of the men say that they are interested. Hermione also shows them the Afghani apple figure that she was given 25 years ago when she was in Afghanistan and explains how privileged she feels to be able to show them the apple today.
Further Action
Rhetta asks the group to briefly share their thoughts on the best way to proceed. The following decisions are reached:
Cath Maffia, the Salford Refugee Health Team Health Visitor, and Rhetta Moran, from the Revans Institute, make themselves known to the Broughton Library staff and go upstairs to the room that has been booked. The tables are pushed to the side to create a sort of circle with about 20 chairs. 5 Afghani men arrive, one of whom is highly bilingual.
We smile and greet. They have all already met Cath. Rhetta briefly goes through the background to being here:
…how Refugee and Asylum Seekers Participatory Action Research (RAPAR) came into being through people wanting to develop our abilities to be able to do action research with refugees and asylum seekers in the here and now…
…wanting to build on work that has been in development over 5 years with and within our Somali community in Manchester. About wanting to create evidence that demonstrates what is needed by our refugee and asylum seeking communities, and that goes about creating and collecting that evidence using an approach that, in itself, begins to help meet those needs. e.g. Breaking down the social isolation by meeting together and thereby bringing together the processes and the procedures so that we both act and learn at the same time through conscious and aware research...
…the decision to attempt to reach out to Afghani men in the locality and in the aftermath of September 11th...
…the pledges of financial support already given by Salford PCT through the community health development team, by Salford Mental Health Trust and by Salford CVS...
…the fact that we do not have any answers ... we have many questions...
…and our hope that this event would begin to break down the social isolation being experienced, and mark the beginning of collaborative working between this community and the shapers and deliverers of practical support services in health, social care and education.
Mai Dixon from the Red Cross arrives. She tells everyone present that, by the end of this week, the Red Cross will have wireless communication with Afghanistan. Once this is established they will be able to help to send messages between Afghanistan and UK. She explains that the Red Cross is officially allowed to be in Afghanistan – because there is a war happening.
Anne-Marie Fell from the Salford Catholic Diocese and Sadid Shapoor from Refugee Action arrive. Anne Marie explains that her work is very much involved with supporting refugees and asylum seekers. Sadid explains that since 11th September, Afghani people have not come together – today is the first time in Manchester.
We explore some of the potential and actual connections between their experiences and other refugee experiences. Our Somali colleagues and friends have long experience of being refugees and knowing what it is like to live inside of a civil war, and of the means and ways to communicate some of those issues to a wider audience and with help from friends who are not, themselves, living as refugees. Rhetta explains that some of them are coming and they are bringing food.
More Afghani men (about 7 men from another local household), Ameen Hadi, a community safety officer from the local authority, and a lone Afghani man who is already involved in a local football initiative come. The discussion continues in Afghani.
A little while later, Rhetta intervenes to say that those people present who are currently working within the system in the UK are here because we know that there are needs within the Afghani community and we want to find ways of making sure that their situation is understood and acted upon by people with responsibilities in the health and social and education sectors. Rhetta invites the group to consider whether there are any stories that they would like to tell about what they are experiencing, and if they want to write things down or want to talk. One man who has not spoken before says “we want to talk to each other, we can write things down at home alone.”
The men talk some more amongst themselves. An interpreter says that they have decided what the most important thing for them is. One man who has not spoken before describes how, every morning, they wake up early and listen for the sound of the footsteps of the postman…for a letter that says 'you must go here, now, or you cannot stay here any longer'…or for the sound of banging on the door and voices that say 'you must go'.
Sadid Sapoor from Refugee Action begins to explore, mostly in an Afghani language but intermittently in English, about the war, about what it means. The conversation gradually becomes more and more conducted in Afghani. Some time into the conversation, there is a brief period where the interpreters translate into English. There is a worry that if British ground troops go in and British people begin to be killed in Afghanistan, British people living around Afghans in Britain may react negatively towards them as individuals. There is a fear that is with them all the time about the people around them.
Ameen Hadi, the community safety officer from the Local Authority explains that his job is about trying to create security for everyone living in the area. The men here have as much right to security as everyone else. Irrespective of what anyone thinks about the rights or wrongs of the war that is going on, he has his responsibilities in his job and that is why he is here. As a part of his work, he runs an event every Friday 2-4pm at Broughton Recreation Centre, Camp Street: Fitness, Weights and Football. Everyone is welcome. It’s free.
After about 20 minutes the food arrives with Zeinab Mohamed our colleague and friend from the Somali community, companions from the Somali community and Hermione Lovel from the University of Manchester.
People break into smaller groups and eat together. After about 30 minutes, we come back together again in a big group. Hermione explains a little more about the Somali work that has gone on before and how important it is for the men to be able to set the priorities for themselves and with support from others. She also invites people to indicate whether they are interested in being sent tickets for a Basketball Event at the Arena in Manchester this weekend. Most of the men say that they are interested. Hermione also shows them the Afghani apple figure that she was given 25 years ago when she was in Afghanistan and explains how privileged she feels to be able to show them the apple today.
Further Action
Rhetta asks the group to briefly share their thoughts on the best way to proceed. The following decisions are reached:
- The Afghani young men will have discussions amongst themselves and then get back in touch with the group to arrange to meet again soon to progress this work.
- Cath Maffia, the Health Visitor, will press on with organising a second meeting with another group of Afghani men in the Salford Precinct Area, and the Broughton Library group of men will come along and join in.
- Rhetta will write up a short description of today’s meeting and circulate it, along with the contact list that is being completed, to everyone who attended today.
Policies & Procedures
If you have a query about any of RAPAR's current policies please contact admin(a)rapar.org.uk
Presentation Form - Download [Currently under review]
Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form - Download [Currently under review]
Informed Consent Form - Download [Currently under review]
Child & Vulnerable Protection Policy - Download
Recruitment Selection - Download [Currently under review]
Standing Orders - Download [Currently under review]
Risk Assessment Form - Download [Currently under review]
Procedure for investigating complaints against members - Download [Currently under review]
Complaints Form - Download [Currently under review]
Presentation Form - Download [Currently under review]
Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form - Download [Currently under review]
Informed Consent Form - Download [Currently under review]
Child & Vulnerable Protection Policy - Download
Recruitment Selection - Download [Currently under review]
Standing Orders - Download [Currently under review]
Risk Assessment Form - Download [Currently under review]
Procedure for investigating complaints against members - Download [Currently under review]
Complaints Form - Download [Currently under review]
Registered Charity Number: 1095961 // Company Number: 4387010