CLEAR Southampton - education and action for refugees

Following a full consultation process, and working in partnership with a range of other agencies, CLEAR (part of City Life Church) offers a highly successful one-stop shop to help asylum seekers and refugees.

In 2001 around 400 asylum seekers found themselves dispersed by the Government into Southampton. The vast majority couldn’t speak English, didn’t know anyone in the area, had no knowledge of the system they found themselves in and many had suffered severe traumas in their home country. Moved by the need, City Life church employed a worker to see how they could help and so began CLEAR - City Life Education and Action for Refugees.

The church started with a consultation process, asking the council and the asylum seekers how they could help. The overwhelming need was for English classes - without being able to speak the language there were huge barriers that were preventing the asylum seekers from settling in their new surroundings. Classes are now run by volunteers three times a week with one teacher for the whole group plus a classroom assistant on each table of around five people. For some it is the first time they have been in any kind of learning environment as they aren’t literate in their own language so this extra help is vital in helping them learn. Others use the classes as a springboard to access further courses, but for all, the language skills they pick up are designed to help them in everyday situations.

In recent years it became clear that a number of women were not accessing the English classes as they had small children.  CLEAR set up another English class that had a crèche running alongside it every week. Having this separate class has also given CLEAR the opportunity to address key yet sensitive topics for the women such as domestic violence and mental health issues.

Advice centre

As well as access to English lessons, CLEAR also understood that asylum seekers needed a place to go to get advice. They run an Advice Centre which is open 3 days a week from 9.30am to 3.30pm where they see between 10 and 20 people a day. The majority of their callers are refugees who have been granted leave to remain but who need help understanding the system and their case. They often come in need of help accessing benefits, housing, schools and colleges. As many of the clients are new to the UK, it is vital for the Advice Centre to have a Farsi and Arabic speaking worker to be able to give maximum help.

Drop in centre

CLEAR also works in partnership with other local churches and organisations to be able to offer a wider range of services. They work with St Andrew’s church and the Red Cross to run a drop-in session (called Avenue Multicultural Centre) every Friday. Around 100 people attend each week and asylum seekers can come along to access advice, get help with their asylum case, find out about benefits and be helped with their accommodation. There is a friendly and informal atmosphere and it is a welcoming place that anyone can come into for a cup of tea, a sandwich, to meet people and make friends.  Bags of fruit and vegetables are provided to those in real need to ensure a basic healthy diet throughout the week. Avenue St Andrews also organises activities like outings and visits for example to see local police and fire-fighters to help asylum seekers understand the country and its ways of working (which may be very different from what they are used to). The centre has just got funding for six laptops for clients who want to gain computer skills and need internet access. There are also music groups, crafts like sewing and knitting; plus the odd party now and then!

Empowerment through employment

CLEAR believe in empowerment through helping refugees into employment that fits their training and skills. Sadly they see lots of wasted skills with those who were doctors or teachers in their home country working as taxi drivers and in local fast-food outlets. Many highly skilled workers need help restarting their careers in the UK or are looking to retrain and CLEAR have worked with lecturers, carpenters, doctors, business owners, nurses and vets. CLEAR may spend just one session with a client, helping them to write an up-to-date CV or they may have ongoing involvement, helping someone gain better English skills so they can go to university or receive training to access a new career. They have also run several ‘Get Ready For Business’ courses which help those who want to start their own business understand the relevant UK laws and requirements. The course runs one day a week for 15 weeks and is free of charge (though clients pay a small, refundable, deposit of £50 at the start).

Mentoring and befriending

CLEAR have found that small group mentoring (where two or three people are paired with a mentor) has been beneficial for many asylum seekers. The mentor may help with the basics of helping someone find their way around the city or work with them to achieve objectives such as getting into employment or getting a place at university. This works best when it's not too prescriptive but is focused on an individual's needs and the best way of accommodating them.

The team at CLEAR find their work immensely rewarding. Project Worker Stella says, 'You can be shocked, outraged and driven to despair by people’s situation on a daily basis but when you can intervene in a way that makes a big difference in an individual’s life, it’s a fantastic feeling. We’re doing our best to offer a one-stop shop to make life easier for asylum seekers who are coping with so much already and just need to know someone is there to help them.'

Inspired? Thinking about working with refugees and asylum seekers in your area? CLEAR share their top tips:

• All projects need someone leading them who has a clear vision for the work.
• Find out what’s already going on in your area so you don’t replicate someone else’s work. It may be that you can partner with someone else rather than competing with each other or that you see a gap in their work that you can fill.
• It’s easy to start with a fixed idea of what the solution is to the needs around you but be flexible as it might not be the answer.
• If you can afford to, it really helps to employ someone for a couple of months to gather information and get a good proposal together. It will save you time, effort and energy in the long term.
• Speak to your local council. Find out who is responsible for the area you’re looking at and chat to them about how you can work together.

Contact

If you’d like to find out more about the work of CLEAR and ask them questions about your own plans and projects, you can contact them on admin@clearproject.org.uk

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