Fifteenth International Conference on Sport & Society

Abstract

Community sport programming has become increasingly utilized in Western resettlement countries to enhance the wellbeing and integration of young people from refugee backgrounds. While sport can provide opportunities for social interaction, belonging, and positive emotions, it can also be a site for social exclusion and re-traumatization, which may be particularly problematic for young refugees who have experienced trauma. While there is growing recognition in wider community sport programming of the need to adopt trauma-aware approaches, which seek to recognize the manifestations and impact of trauma on the individual and establish practices that respond accordingly, these approaches have not yet been applied in the context of sport and young people from refugee backgrounds. This innovative three-year-long Participatory Action Research study in London, England examines how community sport and leisure programmes are designed for and understood by young people from refugee backgrounds. In this paper, we draw from interviews with stakeholders, participant observation field notes, and the young people’s photo diaries, to critically examine how Quarmby et al’s (2022) trauma-aware principles of (1) safety and wellbeing, (2) routine and structure, (3) positive relationships, (4) youth voice, and (5) promoting strengths and self-beliefs were experienced and negotiated by the young people and staff in the context of a sport-based programme. These novel findings not only identify what works for young people from refugee backgrounds in community sport programming but also offer significant practical guidance for sports organizations and practitioners hoping to embed trauma-aware principles in programme design/delivery.