Introduction

It is estimated there are 300,000– 500,000 Somalis in the UK. The Somali community has been present in the UK since the nineteenth century, when Somali seamen settled in Cardiff (Council of Somali Organisations, 2017). The vast majority arrived as refugees after the collapse of the dictatorial regime in early 1991. This led to approximately 16,000 Somalis being granted asylum by 2003 (McCrone et al, 2005).

The unfamiliar community-based UK education system compared to that of Somalia posed enormous challenges to Somali migrants. Such new challenges have been complicated by civil war trauma brought from Somalia, painful experiences in refugee camps before arrival in the UK, and subsequent settlement challenges – social integration, youth identity crises, racism and Islamophobia. These trials have led to emotional difficulties and widespread mental health issues. The combination of these problems has contributed to the Somali community being placed at the bottom of the socioeconomic and educational attainment ladder in the UK.

However, an improvement in Somali students’ academic progress has been reported in the last few years before the pandemic (Pells, 2017). The high expectations and investment Somali parents have for their children's education has made a positive impact on outcomes. Similarly, the community tuition centres have contributed enormously to the improvement of Somali children's educational attainment.

Another factor in educational improvement is the common practice among Somali families to enlist the help of community tutors. Furthermore, the cohort of emerging young parents (still a small percentage, but increasing as time passes), who studied in the UK and have a good understanding of the education system and how to support their children's learning, has affected the slow rise in attainment among this community. Unfortunately, COVID-19 brought new challenges that, if not addressed as early as possible, could reverse the progress made possible by this community's hard work.