Abstract

his guide is for those who conduct maternity-related research among women who are seeking sanctuary, including refugees or asylum seekers. It is informed by literature on the participation of refugee and asylum-seeking people in research, lived experiences of those who have participated in the NCT and Yorkshire and Humber Maternity Stream of Sanctuary and the King’s College London No Recourse to Public Funds (NRePF) study, and the joint experiences of the members of the City of Sanctuary Maternity Stream Research Network who have conducted research of this nature. Although this guide has a UK focus, many of the underpinning principles are applicable to research taking place in
other contexts.

It has been developed in response to the increase in research that is being conducted among refugee and asylum-seeking women, recognising that guidance on how to conduct research of this nature is either disparate or incomplete. It aims to counter research practices that can be unwittingly deleterious to those being researched, reproducing harms to women in already highly precarious circumstances. Instead it provides recommendations grounded in ethical principles. It is therefore our aim, through developing this guidance, to consolidate research praxis to provide a centralised resource of good practice, encompassing both academic considerations as well as seldom-documented practicalities. It is not designed to be exhaustive but rather to spotlight good practice and signpost to further reading or information, all within one document. In addition to providing guidance for
those undertaking research, including at the stage of applying for research ethics, this document will also be helpful for research ethics board members assessing applications for research in this field.

The guidance is structured according to the various stages of research, for ease of reference, followed by cross-cutting considerations. Whilst it is recognised that the extent to which this guidance can be implemented may be constrained by resources available to researchers, we nonetheless urge researchers to prioritise, as far as possible, good practice in the context of limited resources.