The State of Migration & Refugees in Scotland Amidst a Changing World

This hybrid workshop is aimed at engaging stakeholders working/interested in migrant rights in Scotland, and seeking recommendations to inform a policy brief.

Migration has become a defining subject of our times. Undoubtedly, it will mark a key issue ahead of the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections. Compounding global challenges such as conflict-driven displacement from regions like Ukraine, the Middle East, and Africa; and post-Brexit UK immigration policies that limit Scotland’s autonomy in areas like asylum processing and integration all intersect to exacerbate domestic migration issues in Scotland. Despite these challenges, opportunities remain for Scotland to contribute globally through its progressive New Scots Refugee Integration Strategy and human rights-based approach to external relations.

Considering such opportunities, this hybrid half-day workshop seeks to bring together insights from NGOs and academia to assess the current state of migration and refugees in Scotland.The workshop will foster knowledge exchange among diverse stakeholders, developing insights on actionable, accessible, and innovative strategies for enhancing Scotland’s refugee policies in areas within devolved competence including (i) education, (ii) housing, (iii) healthcare, (iv) access to justice and (v) social cohesion.

This workshop is funded by the Scottish Council for Global Affairs State of the World Project for 2025-26 as part of the project titled ‘The State of Migration in Scotland‘.