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An exciting outreach programme has used chemistry workshops to help refugee children reconnect with education after years of disruption.

The initiative is aimed at young refugees in Greater Manchester who have missed out on formal schooling due to displacement and conflict. The pilot programme is the brainchild of Dr Abdullatif Alfutimie and offers weekly hands-on science sessions designed to boost confidence and close learning gaps.

Backed by a 拢5,000 RSC grant, the course introduced more than 40 participants to basic scientific concepts through practical experiments and small-group mentoring. Sessions covering everything from water purification and pH testing to energy sources and the chemistry of medicine were delivered on the university campus and supported by student volunteers acting as mentors.

Refugee support organisations, including the Greater Manchester charity Rethink Rebuild Society, helped to identify students who could benefit. The workshops were free to attend and concluded with a community showcase, where pupils present their work to family members.

Many of these students have experienced broken education and limited access to resources Our aim is to offer something engaging and aspirational 鈥� a positive first step back into learning, particularly in science.

Dr Abdullatif Alfutimie, senior lecturer in chemical engineering and analytical science at the University of Manchester

He added: "We dreamed of leading an outreach project that would bring chemistry education to children from a refugee background. Many of these children have high potential, but they need more encouragement to continue their education."

Lecturer inspired to help displaced compatriots

Dr Alfutimie first arrived in the UK in 2007 from Aleppo to pursue postgraduate study. His PhD journey was interrupted by personal losses, including the deaths of two supervisors and his father. He completed his doctorate at the University of Manchester in 2012.

But while he was pursuing research in the UK, his home city of Aleppo 鈥� once one of Syria鈥檚 most vibrant cultural centres 鈥� was being devastated by civil war.

He remained deeply connected to his community, regularly in contact with relatives and friends, many of whom were struggling with loss, displacement and the collapse of public services, including education.

"I was here when the war started in Syria," he said. "But my relatives, my mum, my sister, my friends were there. They struggled too much 鈥� the electricity was cut, there were water shortages, and there was the grief of losing someone you love as well. My sister lost her son when he was six years old."

Large swathes of Dr Alfutimie's hometown of Aleppo were destroyed in the war

The destruction of schools and the fragmentation of formal education systems in Syria, he said, left a generation of children at risk of falling permanently behind.

In Manchester, where a growing number of refugee families have resettled in recent years, Dr Alfutimie began to consider how he might use his own expertise to help displaced students regain educational confidence.

"If we need to rebuild our country or even to contribute to improve this country, we need to educate this generation," he said. "Because education saved me."

He envisioned a programme that could reintroduce children to the excitement of learning through chemistry.

Chemistry can help the people to find simple solution for big problems. This project was designed to be healing, discovering, and also inspiring.

Dr Abdullatif Alfutimie

He added: 鈥淚 hope this project sparks endless curiosity for learning and science. I hope these children one day will contribute to building or re-building our country in the future, or at least to improving the humanity in the world.鈥�

Building curiosity beyond the classroom

Students participated in a different themed workshop, with practical topics including making batteries out of lemons, testing acidity with natural indicators, and simple filtration experiments.

"The experiments were designed to be accessible, attractive and fun," said Dr Alfutimie. "We made sure that all the children would understand the experiment even if they don鈥檛 have pure knowledge."

He added: "Chemistry is not only abstract material or a lecture in a theatre. Chemistry is a bridge 鈥� a bridge between the children and their future, between trauma and hope."

They helped each other, explained the experiments to each other and sometimes even dared each other. They worked as one family. We were teaching chemistry but also creating belonging.

Dr Abdullatif Alfutimie

Each child received a take-home chemistry kit to continue experimenting independently after the sessions.  According to Dr Alfutimie, the impact was immediate: "One of the parents told me their child rushed out in the house to repeat the experiment. Another parent said their child will not forget the visit to the university forever."

There are hopes the scheme can serve as a model for wider outreach. Plans are under way to expand the project in 2026, with additional sessions and potential school partnerships.

"This is not just about chemistry," said Dr Alfutimie. "It鈥檚 about inclusion. It鈥檚 about showing these students that they have a place in science 鈥� and a future in it."

Celebration event brings Syrian community together

Greater Manchester鈥檚 Syrian population totals more than 10,000 people, and Dr Alfultime鈥檚 efforts to help the next generation have struck a chord with many in that community.

To mark the end of the sessions, families were invited to join a showcase event held at the Rethink Rebuild Society, a Syrian community centre in the south-eastern suburbs of Manchester.

Dr Alfultime opened the celebration with a heartfelt speech about the power of science and education to help create a brighter future and ultimately rebuild his homeland.

One of the children followed this up by demonstrating some of the experiments for the watching crowd, including conducting the lemon battery experiment, before certificates of achievement and chemistry sets were given to everyone on the programme.

Dr Alfultime with Alaa Zam

Also invited was current King鈥檚 College London PhD researcher Alaa Zam, who attended the event to interview Dr Alfultime as part of an RSC project. For Aleppo native Alaa, the experience was an eye-opening one, and she even joined in by passing out the chemistry sets to the children.

"It was such an amazing event. I feel so hopeful about the future," she said. 鈥淚'm so proud seeing the kids and what they've achieved, the fact that they now did experiments themselves. They know now that chemistry is not just theory, it's actually everything around them."

I have a lot of feelings after this event 鈥� all of them are positive. I'm very excited about the future. It was such a heart-warming event, brilliantly done.

Alaa Zam, PhD researcher, King鈥檚 College London 

Ongoing outreach and educational engagement

The Chemistry Education for Refugee Students programme was supported by our Outreach Fund and received financial backing of the Chemists鈥� Community Fund (CCF). It is one of a multitude of initiatives aimed at widening access to science education and fostering engagement in underrepresented communities.

Magda van Leeuwen, Volunteer and Engagement Manager for the 新月直播app下载, added of the programme: "Chemistry Education for Refugee Students is an important initiative that gives young people who have already experienced a lot in their lives hope and opportunities.

Programmes like the one Abdullatif has developed show that chemistry really is for all and can be a catalyst for instilling a lifelong passion in our subject.

Magda van Leeuwen, Volunteer and Engagement Manager, RSC

"Through the Outreach Fund and with the backing of the Chemists鈥� Community Fund, the RSC is committed to supporting projects that give more people the opportunity to get hands-on scientific experiences. We are proud to have played a small part and want to applaud Abdullatif and his colleagues for their hard work in putting together such a practical and engaging experience for the participants."

Dr Alfutimie said he is already exploring options for expanding the programme in future years. These could include a longer-term version delivered in partnership with local schools, or a regular term-time club on campus.

"There is clearly a need, and there is clearly demand," he said. "This has shown that when given the opportunity, these children are not only interested in science 鈥� they thrive in it.

Everyone has benefited from chemistry. The medicine we take, the food we eat, the environment we live in... Chemistry can help the people to find simple solution for big problems.

Dr Abdullatif Alfutimie

What鈥檚 more, he also believes that these types of connections 鈥� between learners, mentors, families and institutions 鈥� are essential for having long-term impacts. "We seeded the plant,鈥� he said. 鈥淣ow we wait to see the fruit."