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Refugee volunteering scheme comes to Salford, Trafford and Bolton

June 17 2005

A scheme giving refugees the chance to use their skills and take part in voluntary work is being launched in Salford, Trafford and Bolton.

The Horizons Project has been operating in Manchester since early 2004 and is run by Refugee Action, an independent charity working to help refugees build new lives in the UK. Horizons project workers match refugees with positions in their community in which they can develop their skills and integrate.

The project launch will take place in Bolton on Friday June 24th during national refugee week. In the morning, voluntary and community organisations will have the chance to discover the benefits of taking on refugees and to undertake some refugee awareness training. Between 1.15pm and 2.30pm refugees and asylum seekers can find out about all the exciting opportunities on offer. Nineteen organisations have already signed up to take refugee volunteers.

The Salford and Trafford strand of the scheme in conjunction with Salford Council Neighbourhood Management Team, will take place in Salford on Wednesday June 22nd during national refugee week at the Broadwalk Center on Belvedere Road from 10am until 4pm. The morning session will be for community and voluntary organizations, while the afternoon session will include refugee awareness training, which will also be open to council employees. For information call Tim on 0161 233 1436. It will give voluntary and community organisations the chance to discover the benefits of taking on refugee and asylum seeker volunteers and to undertake some refugee awareness training. Twenty-three organisations have already signed up to take refugee volunteers.

Tim Hilton, manager of Horizons in Bolton, said: “Many asylum seekers and refugees are highly educated and have many professional skills that can be of benefit to their local community. Those living in the Bolton, Salford and Trafford area will have been teachers, medical professionals and skilled workers in their own countries. Most are not allowed to work while they seek asylum in the UK, but many are keen to use their skills. Those who have been granted refugee status and are allowed to work still find it difficult to find employment, and need experience of working in Britain.

"We match our clients with suitable volunteering positions in which they can give so much back to their communities.”

ENDS

If you would like further information or would like to arrange a photograph or an interview with an organiser please contact Julia Ravenscroft, press officer at Refugee Action, on 0161 233 1956 or juliar@refugee-action.org.uk.

Notes to editors:

National Refugee Week is a UK wide festival that celebrates the enormous contribution made by refugees to UK life. Every year hundreds of arts, cultural and educational events are organised across the UK.
Refugee Action is an independent, national charity working to enable refugees to build new lives in the UK. We provide practical advice and assistance for newly arrived asylum seekers and long-term commitment to their settlement through community development work, and received 30,000 visits from asylum seekers last year. As one of the country’s leading agencies in the field, Refugee Action has 24 years’ experience in pioneering innovative work in partnership with refugees.

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