‘My story to be told’: Explorations in narrative documentation with people from refugee backgrounds— Chanelle Burns

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This paper explores the use of narrative documentation in work with people from refugee backgrounds, specifically in contexts of responding to trauma. It recounts, through an in-depth case study, work with a man from Sierra Leone in which a number of documents were co-created, including letters, documents of skills and knowledge, and rescued speech poetry. Through the lens of narrative documentation, a number of narrative principles and practices are explored, including eliciting responses to trauma, scaffolding, externalising, re-authoring, and outsider-witnessing. This paper is the outcome of a project of co-research and offers insights into how the practice of narrative documentation might be used across language and culture.