Museums and refugees' integration in United Kingdom

The case study analysed here is part of an on-going PhD research project on the social, personal and psychosocial benefits refugees can derive from museum-based activities. The study presented is particularly concerned with the way museums in Britain can encourage refugees to integrate with their local communities and to eliminate barriers, particularly those stemming from the lack of linguistic and cultural competences. It analyses the work done in the last 4 years by the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts(2) with refugees resettled in Norwich as part of the Gateway Protection Programme, a scheme jointly run by the Home Office and UNHCR (United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees). The idea of museums as free-choice learning settings is proposed to support the learning of new knowledge and skills. The case study also explores how objects can be used as means of stimulating subjective narratives concerning the process of resettlement as a way of acquiring cultural and linguistic skills. The data was collected from a range of qualitative research methodologies, including ethnographic participant observation of workshops and the analysis of creative responses to collections. The research found that the participants reported considerable progress in their language and cultural competences as a consequence of their involvement in museum-based activities.