ASSET UK in the East Midlands
In January 2001, NIACE was funded by the East Midlands Development Agency to undertake a skills and qualifications audit of asylum seekers in Leicester, to discover the skills and qualifications of asylum seekers and the potential contribution that they might make to the locality and the regional economy.
The research revealed that a high percentage of those surveyed possessed qualifications ranging from school leaving certificates to higher degrees, including vocational and professional qualifications and had been in paid skilled employment before they came to the UK; the majority spoke more than one language; and many had engaged in voluntary work and secondary occupations.
However, despite the commitment and enthusiasm displayed by those interviewed to developing and using these skills, qualifications and experiences, the research also highlighted considerable barriers to fulfilling these aspirations. As a result of such barriers, research undertaken by the Refugee Council has shown high unemployment rates for asylum seekers entitled to work and refugees, while those who do find employment are often under employed.
NIACE secured funding from the European Social Fund EQUAL initiative in 2001 to employ project workers to audit the skills, qualifications and experiences of asylum seekers across the East Midlands and to facilitate tailor made opportunities for volunteering and labour market orientation alongside learning support.
|
Policy Report
|
Conference Reports
Empowering Asylum Seekers to support the Regional Economy and Local Communities
|
Glasgow City Council hosted the NIACE Seminar, one of four regional seminars. The aim of the seminar
was to raise awareness, inform, collate and promote good practice and identify needs in working with asylum seekers. The seminar examined issues relating to education, training, employment and volunteering.
The seminar was designed for practitioners, managers and policy makers in the fields of education, training, employment and community regeneration and was open to voluntary and statutory organisations.
The full report of this seminar can be downloaded below as a PDF file.
|
Asset UK Publications
Skills audits for asylum seekers and refugees: a practitioners’ manual
Fiona Aldridge, Robert Gray, Anne McGloughlin, Ljaja Sterland, Sue
Waddington and Max Webb
Finding employment is recognised as a key factor facilitating the social and vocational integration of asylum seekers and refugees. However, asylum seekers and refugees usually face multiple and significant barriers to re-orientating their skills to the UK labour market. This practitioner’s manual aims to provide the means by which asylum seekers and refugees can undertake vocational re-orientation through an innovative methodological approach based on individual skills auditing. The skills audit approach developed during the NIACE ASSET-UK ESF EQUAL project provides a thorough analysis of an individual’s current skills and experience forming a suitable baseline onto which to build re-orientation opportunities and providing the opportunity to undertake informed careers decision-making.
This practitioner’s manual will be helpful to experienced practitioners and people beginning to work with asylum seekers and refugees and those only occasionally working with them. The manual explains the fundamentals of skills auditing and providing IAG for asylum seekers and refugees. It then covers the identification of suitable social and vocational re-orientation activities including education, volunteering and work experience. A comprehensive analysis of possible barriers and the means to overcome these when possible is followed by a helpful list of organisations providing support to practitioners and individual asylum seekers and refugees.
Alternatively, if you would like to purchase a hard copy of the manual, please use the link below.
This publication is now for sale in NIACE's online bookshop, priced £27.95,
ISBN: 1 86201 273 3.
Click here to order a
copy of Skills Audits for Asylum Seekers
Valuing skills and supporting integration: A report on the lessons
learned by auditing and developing the skills of asylum seekers as a basis for
social and vocational integration
Sue Waddington
When asylum seekers come to the UK they are looking for opportunities to rebuild their lives. Regardless of how skilled, qualified and motivated they are, they face barriers to both social and vocational integration.
Using innovative methods, NIACE, as part of the ESF EQUAL Initiative, explored and developed skills audit approaches with nearly 600 asylum seekers and refugees living in the East Midlands. The methodology developed included Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) and individual action planning aimed at identifying, valuing and developing skills to support integration.
This report provides a description of the processes and the outcomes of the
initiative.
It includes a profile of the participants, their skills and previous employment
and the opportunities that they took part in.
The key successes and limiting factors, which aid or prevent the integration of asylum seekers and refugees in the UK, are analysed. The lessons learned from this work have been translated into policy recommendations for Government departments, national, regional and local bodies and education and training providers.
If you would like to obtain a copy of this publication, please complete the form below and return to Anne McLoughlin, ASSET UK, NIACE, 21 De Montfort Street, Leicester, LE1 7GE.
