New stats show the asylum appeals backlog was over 80,000 cases at the end of 2025, relating to around 104,000 people - a 91% increase on a year before. 4 in 10 of all asylum appeals disposed of in the last 3 months of 2025 were withdrawals, the majority of which will be by the Home Office.
During asylum interviews, Interpreters play a role in articulating a claimants story. But, what if interpretations have inadvertently shaped how applicants’ beliefs and identities are understood, translated, and assessed in asylum decision-making? More at our report launch ↓ tinyurl.com/5eedhknf
I welcome the UK gov’s new definition of ‘anti-Muslim hostility’. It captures vital protections for Muslims and those perceived as such, addressing the rise in hate while explicitly protecting freedom of expression for those who have left the faith ➡️ www.gov.uk/guidance/a-d...
Introducing our new Teaching Resources page! Check out the syllabi, reading lists, and assignment ideas shared by ISHASH members. We hope this inspires others to bring the histories of atheism, secularism & humanism into their teaching.
Take a look at what our academic and research staff published in February!👇
Lucy Potter ( @lucypotter.bsky.social ) has published an article exploring emotional experiences of non-religiosity within the migrant and refugee status determination procedures in @s-n-journal.bsky.social .
buff.ly/dnG740j
Intriguing lecture on how ‘everything we think we know about religion is wrong’ by @ekwilson.bsky.social at @uoyevents.bsky.social 👏🏻
Looking forward to reading the book when it’s out
🔴NEW PUBLICATION🔴
"Becoming Non-Religious: Exploring the Emotional Experiences of Apostasy and Refugee Status Determination" by Lucy Elizabeth Potter.
Read the Open Access paper here:
🔗 secularismandnonreligion.org/articles/10....
#NonReligion #RefugeeStudies #HumanRights #Sociology #AcademicSky
To save typing everything out, I have done a quick video on how Labour's latest attack on people seeking asylum, by halting work and study visas for Afghanistan, Sudan, Myanmar and Cameroon undermines its own arguments defending why they have cancelled other previously remaining resettlement routes.
Paying millions to re-check claims while refusing refugees the basic security they’ need to put down roots, work and rebuild their lives.
We'd love the Government to explain how exactly this lose-lose plan is going to make anything better for anyone.
www.mirror.co.uk/news/politic...
Temporary refugee status poses 'constant threat' to LGBTQ+ asylum seekers: 'Horribly inhumane' https://www.thepinknews.com/2026/03/02/temporary-refugee-status-poses-constant-threat-to-lgbtq-asylum-seekers-horribly-inhumane/?utm_content=1772604001&utm_medium=social&utm_source=bluesky
Spotted two of my favourites in the latest copy of @newhumanist.bsky.social 👏🏻 excellent stuff @zoejardiniere.bsky.social @davidolusoga.bsky.social
Informative video discussing the nuances between non-religious identification and beliefs in the 'Arab world', much of the discussion resonates with my research on non-religious refugees in and beyond this context:
👁️🗨️ youtu.be/Oy3JuwGJWBE?...
Join us for a discussion on the barriers people face when claiming asylum on grounds of their non-religious identity: tinyurl.com/5eedhknf
Asylum reforms proposing reassessments raise questions about how credibility is judged over time.
My research on non-religious & apostasy claims shows credibility often relies on fixed ideas of identity that are hard to sustain when beliefs and safety change over time.
More at our report launch ↓
British dual nationals risk imminent refusal of travel to UK, Home Office affirms
How do you prove who you are when your identity is still evolving? 🌀
Leaving religion in contexts with blasphemy laws is complex.
The UK asylum system lacks the tools to recognise this reality. We’re launching our new report on 24th/3 to bridge this gap.
Register here: tinyurl.com/5eedhknf
'Most of us in Britain aren’t Christian in our beliefs, practices, or identity. Although Christianity has contributed to our heritage, pre-Christian, non-Christian, and post-Christian influences have been just as important.' @andrewcopson.bsky.social
www.politico.eu/article/nige...
The Equality Act needs to be strengthened, not scrapped.
It brings together decades of anti-discrimination law.
It protects you at work and in public life.
It safeguards society's most vulnerable.
Reform UK want to repeal it.
humanists.uk/2026/02/19/t...
Thanks for sharing Michael! 😊
For anyone interested in the intersection of religion, identity, and human rights, the full paper is here: doi.org/10.5334/snr....
I found that the asylum system’s demand for 'credible' narratives can clash with the messy, emotional reality of leaving faith.
These emotions are exacerbated when seeking protection. As another participant explained: 'We're talking about very traumatic things and then getting safety depends on [asylum interviewer] believing them'.
Take, for example, one participant who explained: 'I went into some sort of a depression when I became an atheist because I started to feel lonely. I started to feel like I don’t
have anyone around me who I can communicate'
Refugees who leave their religion experience intense fear, isolation, grief, as well as positive emotions like relief. These emotions shape not only their identity but also how they navigate the asylum process.
Just out: my new research on apostasy and non-religion among asylum seekers in the UK. It explores what it’s like emotionally to leave a religion in countries where it’s dangerous, and seek refuge here. 🧵
to be clear, Matthew Goodwin has one (1) child and should thus be penalised for failing to meet the replacement rate under the incentive scheme that he’s established here
Thrilled to share my *first* academic paper has been published in Secularism and Nonreligion! 🎉
I talk about the emotional journeys of leaving religion & navigating the British asylum system. Read it here 👉 secularismandnonreligion.org/articles/232...
Jim Ratcliffe, a tax resident of Monaco who has legally avoided an estimated £4 billion in UK taxes, says,
"The UK is being colonised by immigrants, isn't it?"
Ed Conway, "You met recently with Nigel Farage, didn't you?"
Jim Ratcliffe, "I did"
