International Law and Refugee Rights in Northern Ireland
In 2026, staff and students at Ulster University Law Clinic (within Ulster University School of Law) focused the scope of our policy clinic work on the role and responsibilities of the devolved institutions in Northern Ireland, in the realm of refugee protection. While many aspects of immigration control lie with the UK Central Government, there are of course tangible actions that can and should be taken by the Northern Ireland institutions. Such action can and should make a real difference to the experience of refugees living in the region. As a team, the students worked together to create five short policy-focused pieces which published in this blog series. These pieces first explore the unique setting and governance arrangements in Northern Ireland, before turning to assess the Northern Ireland Refugee Integration Strategy, and substantive challenges including education, housing, and social security. The work is rooted in the context of the obligations contained within both international refugee law and international human rights law, with each piece ending with tangible and actionable recommendations directed to a range of key actors in Northern Ireland. Collectively, the pieces have been compiled as a report which will be disseminated among key stakeholders in the Northern Ireland context.
Towards effective realisation of refugee rights in Northern Ireland: reflections on the role of a university migration policy clinic in a unique local setting
By Gillian Kane and Laura Hyde Introduction In the UK, the law and policy focus on migration and asylum is primarily centred within a central government context. This is unsurprising, given that immigration control is a reserved matter, outside the competence of the...
Housing and homelessness in Northern Ireland: A spotlight on refugees
By Saira Khan “Houses are in many ways at the heart of social and cultural life… they ‘constitute culturally significant space of the highest order’… houses are embedded in a web of diverse notions including home, family, privacy, investment, status and the like.”...
The barriers to education for refugee children in Northern Ireland
By Amy Donnelly Introduction Education in Northern Ireland has seen new challenges with children and young refugees seeking a new life in Northern Ireland. A total of 48,408 people were granted refugee status in the United Kingdom by the year ending December...
Is the Northern Ireland Executive respecting its International Human Rights Law obligations to provide social security to refugees?
By Alannah O’Connor Are refugees in Northern Ireland taking advantage of the benefit system, as harmful rhetoric often indicates? Or are they effectively blocked from accessing the social security support they are entitled to under international human rights law by...
Integration From Day One: Northern Ireland’s Refugee Integration Strategy From an International and Comparative Perspective
By Luseka Mwanzi Introduction In 2023, a Syrian refugee resettled in Belfast, Northern Ireland (NI), through the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme and secured employment as a nurse — a milestone made possible through coordinated language support, credential...
Refugee Protection in the unique context of Northern Ireland: an introduction
By Julie Donnelly Introduction The experience of refugees in Northern Ireland is situated within a governance landscape unlike anywhere else in the UK. This series of short articles will examine how Northern Ireland’s distinctive position within the UK affects...