Leonita’s (21) parents came to London as refugees from Kosovo seeking safety and hope for their futures. As one of our SEEN Ambassadors, she shares how that experience has shaped her life, and the lives of her parents, and explains how we could be better allies for others who are seeking sanctuary in the UK.
Growing up in between worlds
“I’ve never been a refugee, but I carry the weight of that experience in my blood, mind, and culture. My experience isn’t about the direct fleeing of war or navigating a new country with no map. It’s about watching my parents do it, silently, selflessly, and with more strength than anyone should ever have to go through. They left their home country Kosovo in search of something that should never feel out of reach: safety. A life. A future. And that is all refugees want.
“I was born in the UK, but I grew up in between worlds. At home, there was a warmth that smelled like home-cooked Albanian food and sounded like a language I didn't hear at school. Outside, there was a different reality, one that didn’t always feel like it had space for us. My parents tried to make sense of a new country while raising kids in a place that often felt cold and unfamiliar to them. And that’s the part we often forget. The part that newspapers and the media choose to ignore.
“As young people we see our parents as just that - parents. Providers. But before that, they were young people, dreamers, students, builders of futures. We rarely stop to remember that they too were once trying to figure life out and had ambitions. And for those who came as refugees, they were trying to figure it out with the trauma of war behind them and an uncertain welcome ahead.”
As young people we see our parents as just that - parents. Providers. But before that, they were young people, dreamers, students, builders of futures. We rarely stop to remember that they too were once trying to figure life out and had ambitions.
Leonita
“What always grounded my mother and father - even in the face of the displacement they experienced in 1999 - was their skills.
My mother couldn’t bring everything from her home: not her community, not her friends, not even her memories in a physical form.
But she brought her recipes with her and her skills of cooking. Her hands remembered what her heart could not forget. Through cooking, she kept her culture alive and bought her country with her.
“My father too, held on to his creative knowledge, how to build, to fix, to make something out of very little.
"In another world, he might have been able to pursue his passion of engineering. But the occupation he fled forced him to give up both his education and his passion.
“It’s unfortunate that a generation so skilled, people like my father, are often left with no path to continue what they love.”
How we can support refugees to feel like they belong
“We need to invest in industries that support and engage refugees, offering them opportunities to continue their education, develop their skills, and share their talents so that they don’t ‘lose’ their years, a way of thinking a lot of refugees unfortunately see their lives as.
“Such support wouldn’t just change economic outcomes; it would change the way many refugees see themselves. It would restore confidence, dignity, and hope.
“That’s what being an ally means to me: acknowledging the quiet, powerful stories that don’t make headlines. It’s understanding that the refugee experience isn’t just simply about escaping danger, or trying to exploit a country for safety as the narrative often goes, it’s about rebuilding life from the ground up and starting from the beginning again. It's about navigating a foreign land with a foreign tongue, often feeling isolated and invisible.”
…the refugee experience isn’t just simply about escaping danger, or trying to exploit a country for safety as the narrative often goes, it’s about rebuilding life from the ground up and starting from the beginning again. It's about navigating a foreign land with a foreign tongue, often feeling isolated and invisible.
Leonita
“My parents rarely talk about their experience as refugees. Maybe they’ve normalised it within themselves and buried it under the weight of survival. But that silence doesn't mean their journey wasn’t full of pain, sacrifice, and resilience. What hurts is knowing how often people like them - who didn’t speak the language, who looked or sounded ‘different’ - were belittled, misunderstood, or silenced.
“Refugees aren’t coming to take; they’re coming to survive. Even 25 years after my parents’ arrival to the UK, we still have this narrative persisting within the UK. And we need to stop dehumanising refugees for doing what any of us would do if faced with the same reality.
“It is not easy for someone to give up their homeland, and no one would do it without the necessity to do so.
“What I wish my parents had, and what I wish for every refugee and asylum seeker today, is a community. A network. A sense that they are not alone, and more importantly, that they are seen and valued. That’s where we, those of us who haven’t lived it but care deeply, come in.”
What I wish my parents had, and what I wish for every refugee and asylum seeker today, is a community. A network. A sense that they are not alone, and more importantly, that they are seen and valued.
Leonita
“We can invest in community hubs and support groups, and in improving language access and cultural understanding. The programmes designed to support people in the UK must start by recognising the needs of those who often feel excluded, those who avoid engaging with systems because they seem unwelcoming or isolating.
“Equality, diversity, and inclusion practices should be strictly embedded in every workplace. We must push for policies that humanise rather than criminalise. And above all, we can choose to listen more and invest in facilities that make refugees feel more confident and therefore amplify their voices rather than speaking over them.
“Because at the end of the day, borders are man-made.
“Everyone deserves safety. Everyone deserves belonging. And everyone deserves to be seen not just as a refugee or a migrant but as a whole human being.”
The power of keeping family recipes alive through generations
Family recipes can play a big role in shaping your identity and helping you to stay connected with your past, but their importance is sometimes only remembered after they’ve been lost. Our Grandmother’s Hands project, led by our SEEN Centre, aimed to remind young people of the deep personal connections they share with food by creating a space for different generations to come together, cook, and share their own treasured family recipes. We spoke to Christine, Systems Change Manager for SEEN, to find out more.
Children seeking asylum
Under international law, the UK has a duty to offer asylum to people who flee their own countries because of a well-founded fear of persecution.
Families seeking asylum have fled wars or famines in search of a better life - and they have often faced poor health, poverty and hunger on their way to the UK. Despite their parents' best efforts, the children often suffer most and can be incredibly vulnerable.
Why it’s important to understand young people’s identities and lived experiences
Have you ever wondered what children and young people see when they look around themselves? Where do they find purpose and joy? What makes them feel a sense of safety and belonging? And how can we improve the world around them by better understanding their complex identities and lived experiences? The ‘Life Through My Lens’ project sets out to answer these questions and aims to encourage a more culturally aware approach in children’s services to improve the support we offer to children, young people and families.