We are pleased to launch an Employability Panel of trusted, specialist organisations who may be able to assist our beneficiaries to find meaningful, skills-related employment and facilitate access to English language lessons.
If you would like to consider accessing their services, please read more about them below and make contact direct through their web links or email addresses. PoC’s role is to facilitate access to these organisations and it will be for our beneficiaries and the organisations themselves to explore what services may be possible and of use.
We are very grateful to the following founding members of the panel:
Breaking Barriers – Breaking Barriers supports refugees to rebuild their lives through meaningful job, training and education opportunities. We offer intensive, personalised one-to-one employment support to work on CV and cover letter writing, job, university or funding applications and interview techniques, as well as access to work placements and permanent roles in a variety of sectors. Through our Education and Prospects programmes we also provide English and IT courses as well as employability workshops delivered by our corporate partners. Breaking Barriers works across all boroughs of Greater London with people with refugee status, family reunion, discretionary leave to remain, or humanitarian protection as well as non-EU victims of trafficking and asylum seekers with the right to work.
Refugee Council – The Refugee Council has a long history of providing specialist integration and employment support to refugees in the UK. We understand the often complex barriers individuals experience when trying to access employment or reconnect with previous careers. Our team of expert employment advisers offer a personalised approach and work closely with individuals to develop achievable plans to get back to work. We offer employment-preparation workshops, help with CVs and interview techniques. We provide work experience opportunities and ultimately support people for as long as they need us to find a job that’s right for them. We currently offer a range of employment support services across London, Leeds, Sheffield, Hull and Hertfordshire.
Refugee Journalism Project – The Refugee Journalism Project works towards social change through creating opportunities that support the authenticity and agency of a group whose voices and perspectives struggle to get heard in the mainstream media. Since 2016, we have supported displaced and exiled journalists and storytellers to re-connected with their careers. We have focused on helping them to become better connected within the industry, updating their journalistic skills and finding publishing opportunities, freelance work and placements. Since the project’s inception, we have worked with three cohorts involving more than 60 participants, originating from 20 different countries including Syria, Afghanistan, China, Egypt, Eritrea and Sudan. Some of our participants have gone on to win awards, get work published in national media outlets or gain paid work at organisations like BBC, Thomson Reuters Foundation and Daily Mirror.
We will be open to recruit our next cohort in September 2021.
Refugee Radio – Refugee Radio is a refugee and asylum seeker charity in Brighton that produces radio programmes and podcasts about human rights issues. We run a mental-health support group every week for people suffering from PTSD and depression. We also support the Conversation Over Borders project which provides 1-2-1 English tuition and befriending online.
Refugees & Mentors – Refugees & Mentors is based in Greater Manchester and offers pre-employment information and guidance to refugees, people seeking asylum and vulnerable migrants. We also support employers to develop inclusive recruitment practices, diversify their workforce, fill skill gaps and offer support to refugees.
Renaisi – Renasi is a London-based social enterprise that has been helping people and places to thrive for more than 20 years. We are passionate about creating the conditions for strong and inclusive communities so that everyone, regardless of background, can share in the social and economic wealth of their community. One of our key areas of focus is delivering high quality support to London’s diverse communities through a range of employment and advice services. Below are two of our services which help build the confidence and capacity of refugees to secure employment.
- RISE – (Refugees Into Sustainable Employment) is a free employment service for unemployed refugees in London, funded by The Big Lottery and European Social Fund through the Building Better Opportunities programme. We recognise that our participants often face multiple barriers, so we take a holistic approach to securing employment; offering them information, advice and guidance on housing, benefits, and wellbeing in addition to the support listed below:
· A dedicated caseworker providing one-to-one support assistance with job searches and applications
· tailoring CVs and cover letters
· up to £150 job related expenses
· in house ESOL (one-to-one tuition and group conversation classes)
Once a RISE participant enters employment they receive:
· in-work support to ease integration
· a free travel card to cover their first month’s travel to work
- Transitions is a specialist employment service. We work with employers to provide 6 month paid Returner Placements for professional refugee Engineers, Architects, and Business Services candidates (HR, IT, Project Management) living in London to restart their interrupted careers. A job is not guaranteed at the end of our placements but around 70% of our candidates go on to secure permanent employment. We work with our candidates on a 1:1 basis providing information, advice and guidance so that they are ready for employment in their chosen field in the UK for example helping them to rebuild their professional networks and engage with their respective UK professional bodies.
PoC is keen to increase coverage across the United Kingdom and would welcome suggestions for new panel members. If you have any ideas or would like to seek further information on the panel please email info@prisonersofconscience.org.