Our training handbook Country of Origin Information (COI): Evidencing asylum claims in the UK was developed in collaboration with ARC Foundation as part of a joint training project at the occasion of our 10th anniversaries. The handbook explains basic principles of country-of-origin information research, its use in the UK refugee status determination, quality criteria, research tips and guidance on avoiding common pitfalls. It is available for download here.
 

Download Training Handbook

Along with the handbook publication, we have opened registration for the next five training webinars. Our webinars are targeted towards legal representatives and those providing COI support in the UK.

The basic training webinar Researching and Using Country of Origin Information will take place on 18th November, 2nd December 2020 and 13th January 2021. It covers the following topics:

• What is country of origin information (COI), when can it be used and what are its limits
• How to frame research questions and develop a research strategy
• Identifying sources of COI that address these questions and applying practical research techniques
• Understanding quality criteria for researching, selecting and presenting COI
• Presenting COI to decision makers according to best practice in the UK
• How to request research from Asylos and ARC Foundation

The thematic webinar Child-Focused Country of Origin Information will be convened on 13th January and 10th February 2021. In this workshop, we will discuss the legal instruments and principles that lay out the various ways in which protection claims from children need to be treated differently to those from adults in refugee status determination procedures. This will include the various different considerations and legal interpretations, that decision makers in the should apply when assessing children’s asylum claims, and what this means for UK-based researchers conducting child-focused COI. The workshop involves practical case studies to demonstrate how child specific issues can translate into appropriate research strategies.

Please note that it is strongly recommended that you have attended the basic webinar before you attend the specialised child focused webinar.

Register for Webinar

Are you unavailable on these training dates or would you like to discuss the possibility of setting up an in-house webinar for your UK-based organisation? Get in touch with us at [email protected].