Blog: 'We are not their voice but make sure their voice is heard
How children fleeing danger are helped to find sanctuary in Scotland
Young and alone, they arrive seeking safety and shelter but many need one thing even more urgently: a good night’s sleep.
More than 1000 children are now being cared for in Scotland - across every council area – after arriving in the UK unaccompanied, some fleeing war and persecution, others trafficked by crime gangs.
Catriona MacSween, who leads Guardianship Scotland, offering the children lifeline support, said:
When the young people first arrive, many are stressed, uncertain and utterly exhausted,”.
“Many have been travelling alone for weeks and months, living on the streets and on their wits, with no adult to trust or turn to.
“They will have felt surrounded by risk and been constantly vigilant, always on guard. Their sleep patterns are shattered.
“Helping them get some proper rest is often the priority.
The Scotland-wide service does far more than help the youngsters sleep, however, and delivers practical and emotional support to the children and teens as their claims for asylum are processed. There are currently 1070 being cared for in Scotland with around 400 new referrals every year.
Based in Glasgow but with staff across the country, Guardianship Scotland, delivered in partnership by Aberlour Children’s Charity and the Scottish Refugee Council, is now statutory, giving young people the legal right to have someone in their corner.
MacSween, head of service, said:
We help the children navigate what can be a daunting and bewildering process.
“We are not their voice in that process but make sure their voice is heard. We listen to them and advocate for them.
Children seeking sanctuary in Scotland – some fleeing war, persecution or famine, others trafficked by people smugglers or other organized crime gangs – often do not speak English or know who to trust.
MacSween said the guardians provided to each of them offer a fixed point, an anchor, as they apply for asylum or refugee status.
She said:
It can be frightening with many different adults seeking information from them and about their lives in a language that is not their own.
“Social workers will want to better understand their situation, the police might be looking into possible trafficking and the Home Office wants to know why they fled their homes.
“It would be daunting for anyone, never mind a child and, to help, we need to build trust and a relationship with them as quickly as possible.
“They may never have heard of a social worker, or lawyers or the Home Office. They may not even understand what asylum is, only that they want to feel safe.
“We can help them understand why this information is needed, how it will be used and assure them it is confidential.
“Being told what is going on offers some sense of control in a very confusing situation.
Clear communication is the first priority and that means, after staff, the service, funded by the Scottish Government, spends most on interpreters.
MacSween said:
The young people need to understand what’s happening. All these discussions and the decisions leading from them are literally life-changing.
“Why did the children leave their home? Why can they not return? Were they trafficked? The facts matter, accuracy matters.
“It can be both traumatic and overwhelming. We sit down with them and interpreters, if necessary, and talk through every part of it. Who’s who, what they can expect, what their rights are.
"The guardians are at all the meetings, across all the different systems - social care, immigration, criminal justice - so we often gain a fuller picture than any single agency.
Often a small thing noted in one part of the process can colour another, MacSween adds:
We don’t represent the children but work with them and their lawyers or advisors.
“Each agency is looking at things through their own lens but we have no focus apart from the wellbeing of the children and helping them through the process.
“Hard, documented evidence to corroborate their version of events is rare and very often children will not understand what might be helpful or relevant.
“It is a jigsaw of information from all the different discussions but we can help put the pieces together.
“We might pick up on something that provides evidence of trafficking perhaps, or how their experience has impacted on their mental health, or find and collate medical evidence of an assault.
“We are with the young people in many different contexts and learn more about their lives than might be gained in more formal meetings.
The guardianship model, pioneered in Scotland, has become an international benchmark of best practice with campaigners calling for a similar service to be introduced in England and Wales.
The young people can be supported by Guardianship Scotland until they are 26 but must be referred before their 18th birthday.
Without documentation, age can be difficult to establish with certainty but, MacSween said, there seems to be more unaccompanied children being wrongly assessed as adults after arriving in the UK.
She said:
It is understandable, particularly for those arriving in boats on the south coast.
“At that point, when they have literally just got off a boat, age is often only assessed on their appearance and that journey is going to make anyone look older.
“They arrive wet, exhausted and hungry. Some young people look older and often it is only when they are in a hotel, alone among adults, that someone, often staff, will raise a red flag.
Around half of the unaccompanied children arrive through the UK National Transfer Scheme from elsewhere in the UK while others arrive in Scotland “spontaneously” after being smuggled or trafficked.
Some trafficking victims will be found on the streets after escaping from slavery or crime, the cultivation of cannabis farms, for example, or sexual exploitation.
A third come from Vietnam, the largest group by nationality, followed by Sudan and Afghanistan.
The potential involvement of trafficking gangs can make already-complex asylum applications even more challenging, according to MacSween.
Perhaps their families were misled, told there would be a job for them in the UK, and took money from traffickers.
“Even if their home country is safe, returning them might put them in danger from traffickers.
“Investigating these issues can be hugely difficult, involving many different agencies with different points of interest. It can be a long and often unpredictable process.
“These are complex, messy cases, and all the agencies have a different perspective. Our only focus is the child’s wellbeing and their best interests.
“We help them give them stability, a voice and, hopefully, over time, a sense of belonging.
The guardians help with the young people with everything helping them find friends, understanding their legal rights and “wraparound” support offers tailored mental health support and helping them remain positive and hopeful and, yes, get a good night’s sleep.
MacSween said:
There is a lot of trauma there and these children are being interviewed again and again, often about the worst things that have ever happened to them. Unimaginable things.
“Being with them through that process can be challenging, harrowing work and that is just one reason we go out of our way to celebrate good news when it comes.
“Not just when young people hear they are being allowed to stay here in safety but, before that, when their lives take a step forward.
“When they begin to feel safe again, when they start sleeping again, when they start smiling again.
This article was written for The Sunday Post and published on Sunday 31st August 2025.