Refugee Council. Hand in Hand: a resource pack to help meet the needs of refugees and asylum seekers in secondary school

Transcription

1 Refugee Council Hand in Hand: a resource pack to help meet the needs of refugees and asylum seekers in secondary school Megan McCorriston Andrew Lawton November 2008

2 About the Research Unit The Refugee Council s Research Unit was set up to encourage and undertake research that is informed by the experiences of refugee agencies and refugee community organisations and that engages refugees as partners in research. We work in partnership with universities, voluntary and statutory bodies and refugee community organisations to investigate policy options, collect and communicate data, identify good practice and assess policy impact. Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank several people for their contributions to this resource pack. The following people were instrumental in setting up the project partnerships which offered the examples of good practice highlighted in this resource pack. In particular, we would like to thank: Gloria Townsend and Catherine Bull from Abbeydale Grange Specialist Media Arts School; Juan Varela, Kennedy Muia, and Helen Todd from the Northern Refugee Centre; Gurbi Wadhan from Heartlands High School and Mohammed Elmi from the Nechells Regeneration Project; Jan Pearson from Valentine s High School and Rita Chadha and Aisha Sohni from Refugee & Migrant Forum of East London (RAMFEL); and Ella Savell- Boss of the Shireland Academy. We would also like to thank our colleagues from within the Refugee Council who provided additional guidance and support. Thanks especially to Lisa Doyle and Gemma Juma for their valuable support during the development of this resource pack. Thank you also to the Basis Project team for their help with the production of the resource pack. Susanna Siddiqui, Jonathan Ellis, Barbara Keating and Martin Parker also contributed greatly to this pack. We would like to thank our funders, the KPMG Foundation. Neil Sherlock was especially generous in lending his support to this resource pack. Finally, we would like to thank the members of the refugee communities, local authorities and schools that took part in the early stages of the Inclusive Secondary Schools research. Without their contributions, this resource pack would not have been possible.

3 Refugee Council Hand in Hand: a resource pack to help meet the needs of refugees and asylum seekers in secondary school Megan McCorriston Andrew Lawton November 2008

4 Contents Introduction to Hand in Hand: a resource pack 3 Contextual issues The role of schools and local authorities in inclusive education The role of RCOs in inclusive education for refugees Working in partnership What is a needs assessment? Activities to engage refugees 21 Refugee inductions Induction resource Induction resource Induction resource Engaging refugee parents and carers Idea Idea Idea Idea Idea Support for young refugee people in secondary school 41 ESOL Activity Case Study Mentoring/befriending Guidelines for mentoring Case Study Counselling services Case Study Continuing Professional Development Case Study Case Study Funding, monitoring and evaluating your activities 57 Main sources of funding Monitoring and evaluation of your activities Resources 67 2 Refugee Council 2008

5 Hand in Hand: a resource pack Introduction Hand in Hand is a resource pack designed to help schools and community organisations work together to meet the needs of refugees and asylum seekers in secondary education. This resource pack has also been created to help foster community cohesion by engaging parents and carers of refugees, and the wider community, in inclusive education activities. The pack is suitable for all secondary schools, including those with low numbers of refugees and asylum seekers. Many of the activities contained in this resource pack are already taking place in schools across England. We have tailored them to specifically address the needs of refugees and/or their parents and carers. This resource is an excellent starting point for teachers, school administrators, local authorities as well as refugee community organisations (RCOs) working on behalf of refugee and asylum seekers in education. Education practitioners and RCO representatives who are more familiar with the issues and activities covered by this resource pack will also find new materials and suggestions. Some facts about asylum Refugees and asylum seekers are forced to flee their home countries for reasons such as conflict or natural disasters. These individuals come to the UK to seek sanctuary. Young refugees and asylum seekers are exposed to many negative myths and frequently hostile media coverage of migration and asylum issues. This resource pack aims to counteract those myths by providing secondary schools and RCOs with educational activities and ideas that reflect the real needs and experiences of refugees. You can find out more about the facts on asylum on the Refugee Council s website by following this link: Useful things to know An resource list is provided at the end of this resource pack. The following resources provide general information on education and community service providers in England. The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) website has useful information and guidance for schools and organisations working with refugee and asylum seeker students. We encourage users of this pack to visit the DCSF website for information on secondary schooling, including: Safeguarding vulnerable children; Parenting support; and Finance and funding. To find out more about the latest education policy and guidance materials, and other services for refugees and asylum seekers, visit the DCSF website: Hand in Hand: a resource pack 3

6 Hand in Hand: a resource pack The DCSF s website also provides a comprehensive list of all local authorities throughout England. The local authority can signpost your school or community organisation to the appropriate contact in the local authority education service. Directgov is the official government website providing information on education in England, specifically: Secondary schooling in England (including information on the National Curriculum and exam preparation); Counselling services and special educational needs; and Out of school learning opportunities. For more information, follow this link: Ofsted is the official government body inspecting schools. The Ofsted website can also provide useful information for parents and carers and young people in school in England including refugees and asylum seekers: The Refugee Council s website provides up-to-date information on asylum and immigration in the UK including information about recent research on refugees and asylum seekers in education. To find out more, visit: The Refugee Week website provides very useful resources for schools working with refugees and asylum seekers. To access these resources, visit: The National Union of Teachers (NUT) website supplies helpful information and research reports on refugees and asylum seekers in education: 4 Refugee Council 2008

7 Hand in Hand: a resource pack Background This resource pack has been produced by the Refugee Council as part of the Inclusive Secondary Schools Project. This is a three-year project, which began in 2005, being delivered by the Refugee Council and funded by the KPMG Foundation. The overall aim of the project is to research and pilot new ways of working that link secondary schools and Refugee Community Organisations (RCOs) with a view to increasing the role of refugee parents and carers in their children s education. This resource pack builds on the research report published in May 2008 which presented findings from an earlier phase of the Inclusive Secondary Schools Project. 1 The report explored the needs and experiences of refugees and asylum seekers in relation to secondary schooling in England and identified meaningful ways of engaging refugee parents and carers. This resource pack also draws upon the work undertaken as part of the project, that set up pilot partnerships between schools and refugee supporting organisations in order to address factors that impact on parent/carer involvement and develop good practice. 2 This resource pack: Outlines why partnership working between secondary schools and community organisations can be of benefit to those involved Explains the characteristics of schools and community organisations to aid better understanding of what each can offer Describes how to conduct a basic needs assessment to identify what types of activities will best support refugees and asylum seekers Provides guidance on what makes a good partnership and what types of funding may exist Suggests specific activities to engage refugee young people and their parents/carers, including illustrative case studies Proposes methods that can be used to monitor and evaluate activities Lists resources that can help to support refugees and asylum seekers in their education We hope that this resource pack will provide inspiration as well as information, and that the results help to better support refugee communities to achieve their full potential. 1. Beyond the school gates: supporting refugees and asylum seekers in secondary school can be downloaded from inclusiveschools 2. A Briefing will be available later in 2008 outlining the work and experiences of the pilot partnerships. inclusiveschools Hand in Hand: a resource pack 5

8 Hand in Hand: a resource pack Structure of the resource pack The aim of this resource pack is to help schools and community organisations work in partnership to improve support to refugee communities. We realise that many schools and community organisations will be working in this way already. We therefore hope that some of the activities in this resource pack will provide inspiration to extend the work already taking place. We are also aware that many schools and community organisations will not be undertaking such work, nor will they be aware of the benefits partnership working can bring. For this reason, we have included information that will be useful for both schools and community organisations who wish to work together in partnership. Throughout this pack we discuss the role of refugee community organisations (RCOs). We are aware that many areas do not have any RCOs serving local refugee communities, and that this support is often offered by other community organisations. This resource pack has been written to be applicable to community organisations whose remit extends beyond refugees and asylum seekers. For this reason, reference in this resource pack to the role of RCOs can be read more broadly as being applicable to other types of community organisations. This resource pack will use the word refugee to generally refer to refugee and asylum seeker students and parents/carers. It should be noted, however, that refugees and asylum seekers are distinct groups in terms of their rights and entitlements in the UK. These distinctions are highlighted in the document where relevant. The resource pack is split into three main parts: Introductory information and needs assessment Activities Funding and resources The information in this resource pack has been gathered from a variety of sources. The authors have drawn upon their experiences of working with refugees in schools and RCOs, as well as research that was undertaken as part of the Inclusive Secondary Schools Project. The pilot partnerships conducted as part of the project have provided a rich source of information, and also form the basis of the case studies that illustrate some of the example activities. We have only provided a snapshot of possible activities to get you thinking about ways to support partnership working between your school or RCO. The authors have also drawn upon the wealth of resources that exist to support organisations working with refugees, many of which are listed in the resources section at the end of this resource pack. (Note: this list is by no means exhaustive. For further information, contact your local authority or local community organisations.) All of the information presented here was correct at the time of publication. Users of this information pack should bear in mind that the suggestions here are not universally applicable or one size fits all. Individual schools, communities and students have different needs. Only you can judge what is best for your school and/or community. 6 Refugee Council 2008

9 Hand in Hand: a resource pack Aims of the resource pack The aim of this resource pack is to give both schools and refugee community organisations useful information to enable partnership working between them. Specifically, this pack aims to do the following: To raise awareness about issues that refugees and asylum seekers face in education To get schools to encourage the participation of refugee parents and carers and young people (and put this into practice using the ideas contained in this resource pack) To encourage partnership working between schools and RCOs To foster community cohesion To ultimately raise refugee and asylum seeker student achievement Hand in Hand: a resource pack 7

10 Contextual issues Raising awareness about refugee issues in education Refugees and asylum seekers have faced a set of life circumstances which can have an impact on their education and ability to integrate into their new school and new community. Although they are not a homogenous group, many refugees and asylum seekers are faced with similar issues upon arrival in the UK. This resource pack is designed bearing in mind that their educational needs are often distinct from those of other ethnic minority pupils, particularly in respect of language, and therefore this needs to be reflected in policies and practice. 3. This resource pack focuses upon research and development activities, and the education and funding regimes in England. This is not to say that much of the guidance in the resource pack will not be relevant to those outside England, rather some details will apply only to that country. Some of the issues commonly faced by refugees and asylum seekers include: previous experiences of trauma from having fled a conflict situation; the loss of family; arriving in the UK unaccompanied; financial hardship; inappropriate housing arrangements; lack of support networks or peer groups; lack of information on their rights and entitlements; lack of high quality legal advice and representation; little or no English; unfamiliarity with the UK education system and little or no previous experience of formal education. Many refugees and asylum seekers, on the other hand, have experienced education in their home country or several countries and therefore many speak more than one language. Many refugee and asylum seeking families are also concerned with getting their children a school place when they arrive in England. However, it is important that they know about these opportunities, rights and entitlements in languages they understand. Signposting to local services and schools in their district by the local authority or by refugee community organisations can be vital. The challenges to refugee and asylum seeker education at the secondary school level are greater than the primary level. Research has shown that it is more difficult for secondary age refugees to integrate because it is harder for them to learn the language and cope with mainstream subjects in a foreign language; they may be forced to live in uncomfortable housing situations; they may need counselling services as a result of trauma; and the demands of exam pressure (GCSEs) puts an added demand on the need to acquire English quickly (Refugee Council, 2005; Rutter, 2003). This resource pack references community resources, namely refugee community organisations, which can partner with schools in their effort to provide inclusive education for this vulnerable student group. 3 The refugee experience Refugees and asylum seekers in education are distinct from other migrant groups. Refugees leave their countries because they are fleeing persecution and come to the UK seeking protection and sanctuary. On arrival, they have to go through the process of asylum determination which can mean they have little or no control over decision about where to live and send their children to school. They are forced to rely on limited financial support provided by the state because they are not allowed to work. The asylum determination process itself can take a long period of time, which results in people living for protracted periods in a state of uncertainty. These experiences are not shared by economic migrants. 8 Refugee Council 2008

11 Contextual issues In addition to this distinction between refugees and other migrants, there are also some differences between refugees and minority ethnic groups in England. The uniqueness of the refugee experiences can mean that young people face additional challenges to those who are in disadvantaged groups, but who have knowledge of the English language and a familiarity with the education system. We believe that this distinction is important, and while some initiatives aimed at supporting people from Black and Minority Ethnic groups in general may be useful in helping refugees, there are particular barriers faced by refugees, and these need to be addressed specifically. It is important to keep in mind the fact that refugees themselves are not a homogeneous group. There are many differences between different sections of the refugee community such as languages, religions, histories of settlement in the UK, and the characteristics of persecution and flight. There will also be differences within communities, with issues such as gender, age, length of settlement and experiences in their countries of origin. This means that there is not a one size fits all solution to some of the problems encountered. This underlines the importance of working with organisations who understand refugee communities (such as RCOs) as well as ensuring that any initiatives developed meet the needs of the target audience. 4 The Inclusive Secondary Schools Project research and project work identified many of the issues faced by refugees in secondary schools. The main barriers are summarised overleaf, followed by an overview of some of the ways that schools and RCOs have worked to try to address these issues. 4. Chapter: outlines how to conduct a needs assessment to help ensure work meets the specific needs of communities. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 9

12 Contextual issues Barriers to education for refugees The key barriers preventing the effective inclusion of refugee young people and their parents and carers in secondary education include: Difficulties in accessing school places, with many refugee children and young people waiting for many months before securing one Bullying and racism. Young refugees are often reluctant to identify themselves refugees or asylum seekers for fear of further stigmatisation Financial barriers to inclusion including support to young people for extracurricular activities, and difficulties in buying essentials such as uniforms and books The English language. This can be a problem for both young people and their parents/carers. Schools often have good language support in place for young people but provision for parents/carers is much more limited. This means that schools often face difficulties reporting pupil s progress and sometimes rely on young people to interpret The asylum determination process creates difficulties as asylum seekers can experience long periods of uncertainty about their futures. People have to rely upon temporary and dispersal accommodation which means that children are forced to relocate repeatedly to new schools, which further interrupts their education Experiences of trauma and flight can have a negative effect on some children s behaviour and their ability to integrate and relate to others Young people and their parents/carers can have a lack of familiarity with the school system which can put them at a disadvantage when compared to those who are not refugees 10 Refugee Council 2008

13 Contextual issues Meeting the needs of refugee communities 5. Some of these activities are described in more detail in other parts of the resource pack (see Section 2). 6. The extended schools initiative is a way for schools to provide additional support to young refugees and asylum seekers with help from the community (see page 13 of this resource pack for more information). Secondary schools and RCOs have developed specific ways to try to address some of the barriers outlined above in order to better support refugees in secondary education. Our research uncovered various activities and strategies, some of which are outlined below: 5 Some schools used their extended schools status to put on activities that involved refugee communities 6 RCOs ran education activities for their communities, including homework clubs, Mother Tongue classes and Saturday classes to improve their learning Some schools employed home-school link workers who can form crucial links between schools and the wider community Both schools and RCOs provided refugee mentors to support young people to engage with education In order to help young refugees who had histories of trauma, some schools developed links with external specialist psycho-social support services Schools and RCOs developed activities to provide language support for both young people and their parents/carers. For example, schools sometimes translated materials for parents/carers and provided interpreters at parent s evenings Some schools created tailored induction programmes for both refugee young people and their parents/carers Some schools developed on-going parental engagement activities (e.g. coffee mornings) to ensure that parents/carers continue to be involved in their children s schooling Some RCOs and schools created partnerships to deliver specific activities to improve the engagement and support of refugees It was four months until I got admission into my current school. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 11

14 The role of schools and local authorities in inclusive education This section briefly describes the English education system. It outlines the types of secondary schools and statutory obligations of local authorities in England. What do I need to know about secondary schools? 7a. This can be met by ensuring that children regulary attend school or through other means such as home education 7b. Refugee Council Information Service (November 2007) ISSN There are several types of secondary schools in England. For specific information on the education of 14 to 19 year olds, visit the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) s website: The British Council s website provides specific information on the types of secondary schools in England. You can find out more by following this link: All children aged five to 16 are entitled to free school education, regardless of their immigration status. Under the Education Act 1996, parents and carers have a duty to secure the education of children of compulsory school age. 7a Local authorities have a duty to provide every child with a school place. For more information on refugees education rights and entitlements, visit the Osfted website: There is no simple checklist of services that will meet the needs of all refugee children alike. Each refugee child has individual needs. However, the following issues should be considered for all refugee children, within and outside of the school environment: A warm welcome into school and a well-planned induction English language support Help maintaining and developing their home language skills Emotional and psychological support Parental involvement Homework clubs, after-school clubs and extended school activities (very beneficial to refugee children and others who live in temporary housing) Protection against any discrimination and prejudices other pupils may display as this can lead to isolation or bullying Good communication between school and parents and carers Translated written materials The school and local authority have a duty to help arrange interpreters for parents if necessary 7b 12 Refugee Council 2008

15 The role of schools and local authorities in inclusive education What about local authorities? Local authorities (formerly Local Education Authorities) play an important role in education. The local authority is the body where local policies are made regarding refugee education. Local authorities are also a source of funding for schools. They can vary greatly in terms of their size and provision to refugees and asylum seekers, often influenced by the characteristics of a given locality and its student population. Local authorities have a statutory duty to find a school place for every child Local authorities have a duty to promote racial equality and must not discriminate on account of a person s immigration status Local authorities have a duty to provide interpreters and translators EMAG (Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant) The Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG) supports raising the achievement of ethnic minorities in education. The Grant is also used to fund initiatives to support pupils with English as an additional language (EAL) as well as other ethnic minority pupils who have English as their first language and are at risk of underachieving. Many refugees and asylum seekers are grouped under the broad heading of ethnic minority or EAL pupils with respect to funding streams and therefore are also eligible for support. Schools in England which meet the requirements of the grant have high proportions of ethnic minority pupils and students who speak many languages. Funding for the EMAG will continue for another three years ( ) for every local authority in England. The amount of the grant will also increase incrementally over the next three years. Further details of the grant can be found on the following website: ovember2007emagcontinuation Local authority teams can also offer schools advice and guidance or provide specialist support such as language support through the use of centrally trained language instructors. Secondary schools can apply for the EMAG through their local authority. You may contact your local authority for specific information regarding the application process. Extended schools initiative The extended schools initiative is a key way for schools to deliver Every Child Matters outcomes which highlight the Government s aim to ensure that children and young people up to age 19 have the support they need to succeed in school and beyond, and that they have equal life chances. It also encourages schools to engage more with the community in an effort to help parents and families of refugees participate in family learning exercises such as language courses, for example. As a result, the extended schools initiative also promotes community cohesion. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 13

16 The role of schools and local authorities in inclusive education Extended schools work with the local authority and community organisations, as well as other schools, to provide educational opportunities outside of school hours. Some of these activities are listed below: After school support with homework Sports activities and after school clubs Support for refugee parents and families English for speakers of other language (ESOL) classes for young people and their parents Family learning exercises For more information about these extended schools services, visit: English language provision English language has been identified as one of the main barriers to raising the achievement of refugee pupils, and to engaging refugee parents and carers in their children s education. Many refugee parents arrive in the UK knowing little or no English. It is therefore very important that translators and interpreters are available to offer support so that refugees have a clear understanding of their rights and entitlements. Interpreters can also signpost refugee parents and carers to statutory and non-statutory bodies acting on their behalf. It is sometimes the case that refugee parents rely on their children to translate. Parents may need their children to interpret information from their doctor, teacher, legal representative or the Home Office. The resulting feeling for parents is one of disempowerment and can potentially lead to further isolation in their community. Local authorities will have more information about the availability of translators and interpreters in your local area. Refugee community organisations are also a very good source of information and often have staff who speak various refugee languages. The teacher can speak my language and she told me about everything at school. 14 Refugee Council 2008

17 The role of RCOs in inclusive education for refugees What do I need to know about Refugee Community Organisations? Refugee community organisations have existed in the UK for many years providing support to refugee communities fleeing persecution and in search of sanctuary. Most of these organisations were set up by refugees themselves who recognised the need to provide additional support to newly arrived refugee communities. The number of RCOs grew rapidly during the 1990s primarily because of the instability in Eastern Europe and the resulting rise in refugee numbers. The majority of these organisations provide grassroots support responding to the immediate needs and concerns of their clients. Research into the number of refugee community organisations in the UK suggests that there could be as many as 1000 different organisations in existence. 8 Some RCOs support broader needs of the refugee and asylum seeking population such as legal and health services, whilst others focus their support on specific ethnic groups or countries of origin. RCOs form part of the voluntary sector and come in many shapes and sizes. Some are large with paid staff providing professional services, others operate on a small scale basis with few or even no paid employees. They play a vital role in holding their communities together, supporting them and facilitating their positive integration into the wider community. For many individuals, they are the main source of advice and support. Most of these organisations will provide information and assistance on immigration, welfare benefits, housing, health, education, employment, and so on. Another type of organisation that you may come across within this sector is a refugee forum. This is generally the term used to describe an organisation which brings together different refugee stakeholders and representatives from refugee community organisations. Forums often represent a particular geographical area and can act as an umbrella for other agencies working within the same field. Joint working creates a stronger, more unified voice when advocating on behalf of their wider community. It also allows them an ability to create more effective partnerships within the sector and to ultimately be more influential. Refugee supporting organisation is another commonly used term to mean any voluntary sector organisation offering support to asylum seekers and refugees. These organisations may specialise in one area of support such as mental health, or employment, and not necessarily support to one particular community within the refugee sector or even limit their services to just refugees. 8. From the Refugee Council/Refugee Action Realising Potential research report from the BASIS Project. For more information visit: about/basis.htm For clarity purposes, we have grouped these different types of organisations and refer to them as RCOs as fundamentally they all provide services to refugees and asylum seekers. The activities and types of support an RCO will offer to its clients will vary depending on resources, geographical location and identified need. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 15

18 The role of RCOs in inclusive education for refugees Type of RCO support and potential for joint working The variety of services and support many RCOs offer to their clients will give you some idea of their level of involvement within their community. It also shows the scope for potential partnership working. The list below gives a broad range of possible activities that many RCOs can offer. Activities on offer Advice and guidance in areas around: Welfare benefits Immigration Housing Health Education and training Employment Legal Interpretation and translation services Health work Employment support initiatives Crèche support Volunteering activities Social events Conferences Wider advocacy and policy work Therapeutic services When working more specifically with young people, it is common to see RCOs engaging in activities like: After-school clubs Saturday schooling Sports related activities Cultural activities Mother tongue classes ESOL classes Other vocational courses Counselling services and much more. We run some classes, like supporting parents in their education. 16 Refugee Council 2008

19 Working in partnership 9 Working in partnership can bring with it many advantages but also requires additional work to ensure that the joint working is effective. The benefits of working together in such a way as to utilise the individual organisations skills, experiences and resources allows for an organisation to look into far wider selection of possible projects. Partnerships can be formal or informal depending on their circumstances around the nature of relationship. However, the common element is that it allows two or more organisations to achieve something together that would not be possible to achieve alone. This section outlines some of the key characteristics of partnerships, and some of the steps that should be taken to help ensure the partnership works well. What is a partnership? There is no single agreed definition of a partnership that will suit all circumstances. Different types of joint-working will require different levels of formality and organisation. Although all partnerships will not be the same, they will have the following characteristics: The partnership has the power to make its own decisions over an activity or area of responsibility Decisions are made jointly by the partners The partnership has control over some resources Decisions within the partnership are preferably made by consensus The characteristics above distinguish a partnership from a sub-contracting arrangement where one side has power to define the work and the other side purely delivers. There are, of course, circumstances where a sub-contracting arrangement is more suitable, but forming a partnership like the ones we describe here will help to ensure that both sides benefit fully from what the other one brings. Making partnerships work Working in a partnership adds an additional dynamic to activities organisations undertake on their own. They require a different way of working as there is likely to be differences in the ways that different partners work. Creating a successful partnership can take some hard work, but many of the problems that are encountered can be overcome by being clear about aims, roles and responsibilities from the outset. 9. The Basis Project, The Basis Project, Hand in Hand: a resource pack 17

20 Working in partnership When setting up a new partnership (or developing a new activity to be undertaken by an existing partnership), both partners should have a clear understanding of: What the activity is and what it is setting out to achieve (including any measurable outputs required by funders) The project or work plan Who will be responsible for monitoring progress What role each partner will play in delivering the project plan (including who will do what by when) The resources required by each partner and who will provide them (e.g. specialist staff, rooms, translated materials) When and how the partners will communicate, and who with The monitoring and evaluation systems that are in place It is important to be aware of the ways in which RCOs and schools work and consider the capacity they have. For example, RCOs that are staffed solely by volunteers may only be contactable during limited hours, so communication within partnerships may need to be scheduled carefully rather than trying to get in touch on an ad hoc basis. Similarly, classroom teachers will not be able available during teaching hours. It should also not be assumed that everybody has access to . Partnership agreements Even if a partnership is informal and for a short time, it is a good idea to have a written agreement. This agreement need not be long and complex and full of complicated legal terms (although this type of agreement may be suitable for some on-going partnerships with particular types of funding), but should be clear about the aims of the partnership and roles and responsibilities. These could be in the form of terms of reference that are agreed by partners at the outset, and are referred to regularly to ensure both parties are delivering what they agreed. How to find a partner To find out about your local schools, RCOs and other community groups working with refugees, the organisations below may be a source of information. The Basis Project Multikulti National Association for Voluntary and Community Action Your local authority. 18 Refugee Council 2008

21 What is a needs assessment? In order to assess the need for refugee and asylum seeker services, you will want to gain a better insight into the sorts of issues that are affecting the performance and attainment of young people within secondary schools. Some of these issues will require interventions or activities that are directly focused on young people themselves but others may require a more indirect approach to overcome related issues such as the level of participation of parents and carers. A needs assessment will not only help you to define what it is you need to achieve but it will also provide you with a rationale and justification which you can present to prospective funders and other interested stakeholders. Without this assessment it will prove difficult to know if you are focusing your efforts appropriately. Evidence gathering at the early stages of planning an education activity will help you to monitor and evaluate your activity. In developing a needs assessment, look to develop clear questions that help you answer who you are looking to support and why. We offer the following sets of questions as guidance: Who are your target population or client group? Gain a better understanding of who you are trying to help. What are the countries of origin of children and families in the community and within the school? What are the numbers of people are you attempting to support? Where do they live? How many unaccompanied children are there? What languages are spoken? What are the issues? What sorts of problems are being experienced? We have previously outlined some of the issues that young people and their parents can experience earlier in this document (see page 10, barriers to education for refugees ). Does this ring true? Are there additional issues you are encountering through your respective work? Do you have communication issues with parents? Are their problems around student attendance? Are students talking to you about their problems, issues or concerns? Do you know a child s parents or carers? How engaged are parents and carers with school or RCO activities? Are refugee students underachieving at school in comparison to other students? Are parents and carers having problems accessing school places? Are parents aware of what their child is learning and how they are performing? Are services being offered in schools and RCOs complementing each other? Hand in Hand: a resource pack 19

22 What is a needs assessment? Why are these problems being encountered? Once you have identified the issues, you need to be asking ourselves why. Some of these questions you may already know the answers to. It could be that you are experiencing ongoing issues or have identified problems through previous work, research or experience. Use everything you can to build up a bigger, clearer picture. Ask yourself some of the example questions listed below. Are students being bullied or racially harassed? Is there evidence of any factors that may make it difficult for refugee students to attend classes? Do parents have language issues that prevent them from engaging with school activities or help their children with homework? Is the lack of available translated materials or interpreters causing an issue with the levels of understanding between parents and children? Are specific children suffering from trauma related to their refugee status that may be affecting their schooling? Are you talking to the right people? When trying to understand why problems are being encountered and what should be done about them, consultation is key. Talk to the people who know and are affected by the issues. Get feedback through questionnaires, parents evenings, student forums etc. Consult with local agencies, other community organisations and schools Meet and talk to teachers, students and parents What s already out there and happening? It s important to avoid duplication of effort where possible. You may have identified a need within your school or community that is already being addressed elsewhere in your community. Try mapping what other services already exist in your local area to understand how they might relate to the issues you are seeking to address. Even if these activities are not directly relevant, maybe there are lessons to be learnt which will prove useful. The following groups might already provide some of the services you are after: Other refugee community organisations Community groups Other schools Your local authority Leisure services or community activities (e.g. youth clubs) Social work services Medical services Legal services (e.g. Refugee Legal Centre) 20 Refugee Council 2008

23 Activities to engage refugees Hand in Hand: a resource pack 21

24 Activities to engage refugees This section outlines activities which can engage parents and carers of refugees with the school, and ways in which parents can work with and support their children in their education. It also highlights partnership working between the school and the community as a means of increasing refugee student and parent participation in school and out-of-school activities. The overall aim of these activities is to increase refugee student achievement by fostering more effective participation among refugee students and their parents, and the wider community. Many of the following activities emphasise the role of refugee community organisations in lending specialist support to schools. While many of the following activities are already present in most schools, they are not always tailored to the educational needs of refugees and asylum seekers. In order to make sure activities are truly inclusive of this student group, we offer the following activity ideas. 22 Refugee Council 2008

25 Refugee inductions Many schools conduct initial and ongoing inductions for refugee students. Newly arrived refugee students cannot always access school inductions for reasons such as delays in getting school places or difficulty with the English language. They may also have different needs and expectations having never previously experienced the education system in England. This section suggests ways in which school inductions can better engage refugee students and their parents or carers. Newly arrived refugees and asylum seekers are not a homogenous group and do not necessarily have a common set of educational needs. New school inductions should bear in mind their diverse needs by providing a range of information on new arrivals to the UK, basic information about the UK education system, and relevant signposting to important community resources. Inductions should also bear in mind that many refugee and asylum seeker families arrive mid-year and therefore miss out on initial inductions. It is also important to present this information in common refugee languages so that these individuals can fully access services and opportunities to engage with schools. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 23

26 Refugee inductions The following list presents specific things to consider to help tailor school inductions to refugee students and their parents and carers. You may wish to have initial and ongoing inductions bearing in mind the need to induct mid-year arrivals which characterise the experience of many refugees. The induction process should make new arrivals aware of: Translated materials containing school policies and procedures School opening and closing times as well as other important school calendar events such as Refugee Week School contacts (during and out of school hours) Activities to bring parents into the school or bring the school to parents, e.g. the use of a home-school link worker, coffee mornings and newsletters sent home Buddying and mentoring schemes for both students and parents The importance of homework (and the role of parents in helping their children with homework) The importance of pupil attendance Relevant information about school culture in England e.g. wearing school uniforms, mixed gender education, exam preparation and the expectation of parental participation in their child s learning Information about transportation, school meals and school uniforms (also cost information about school field trips so that families can budget this into their school involvement) Agencies that can support them including the local authority and refugee community organisations Extra curricular, extended school activities, Saturday schools and/or RCOled activities in your area Key phases and school events during academic year Key examinations (include information on opportunities to take GCSEs in a refugee s first language) School counselling services The following section offers some practical ideas that allow you to select the type of induction that is most appropriate to your school. Inductions take many forms. You can cover some of these issues using different methods. Some schools may want to try one or more options for inductions suggested here. 24 Refugee Council 2008

27 Induction resource 1 Induction pack (written and translated) Every induction pack should take into consideration the particular needs and experiences of refugee pupils. Induction packs are helpful written resources that provide useful guidance to refugee pupils and their parents. This helps them prepare for the academic year ahead. This can include information such as contact numbers of relevant staff members, important dates in the school calendar, information on a typical school day (including lunch times), information on English for speakers of other languages (ESOL), and useful maps signposting parents to key places in your community. You should consider having someone on the school staff, or from the local community, translate induction materials into common refugee languages at your school. There may well be willing and able members of refugee communities who can assist with the production and dissemination of your induction pack. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 25

28 Induction resource 1 Induction pack checklist A sample checklist of things to remember when creating an induction pack is listed below. Explain school rules, policies and procedures Explain your school s anti-bullying procedures Indicate key dates during the school year, examination periods, and holidays Present useful information based on the experiences of previous refugee students at your school, such as helpful orientation information Provide school contacts for parents, such as the learning mentor and school counsellor Outline refugee educational rights and entitlements in the UK Explain the school system in England Publicise mentoring or buddying schemes Outline the school curriculum, especially opportunities to engage with the mainstream curriculum in their home language Publise English classes for young people Publicise ESOL classes for parents Provide information about Saturday schools, extended school activities and school fieldtrips (and opportunities for parents to engage in these activities) The above information will help refugee young people and their parents settle in to their new school and its routines. The induction pack can also include pictures of key staff members such as the EAL team or school administrators. Maps of the school s location and site information are also helpful. The language used in the text should be accessible to refugees with English as an additional language SecondaryEducation/docs/ 04341Inductionsupportandmen toring.pdf 26 Refugee Council 2008

29 Induction resource 2 Meetings with induction mentors This section focuses on induction meetings between the school (usually the induction mentor) and refugees. It contains a checklist of things to consider for your induction meeting, indicating certain factors which can help communicate with newly arrived refugees more effectively. The induction pack (Induction Resource 1) can also serve as a useful resource to send home ahead of your meeting or to explain during your meeting. Induction mentors may want to be trained up and aware of the challenges faced by refugees and asylum seekers which can impact upon their ability to settle into their new school. If your school does not have an induction mentor, it would be useful to partner with someone in the community who can perform this function, e.g. a local RCO. Induction mentors can find additional support through the learning mentor or other staff who have command of refugee languages. The help of staff who support new arrivals such as refugees and asylum seekers can assist induction mentors in understanding which issues in education are most relevant to refugee families. Newly arrived refugees can feel anxious about starting at a new school in a new country, so the more induction mentors understand about them, the better their school induction will be. It is common for them to feel isolated, particularly because of a lack of English, so if the information is written or presented in languages they understand, then this will improve their chances of intergrating more quickly. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 27

30 Induction resource 2 Checklist for induction meetings Explain the education system in England and your school s expectations of refugee parent and student involvement in education. Explain the purpose of homework assignments and their importance in terms of student achievement. Encourage refugee parents to engage with their children s homework. Tell them about teacher expectations in terms of school performance and educational achievement. Emphasise the importance of attendance. Ask students for convenient times to reach their parents at home. Ask students whether or not they play any sport or participate in extra curricular activities. Ask them about their living conditions. Often, young asylum seekers are placed in uncomfortable living arrangements, which makes tasks like doing homework more difficult for these students. Explain that a good alternative might be to join a homework club. When explaining opportunities to engage with school activities, bear in mind that some asylum seeker young people lack the necessary funds to pay for things such as school uniforms or class field trips. Try to offer alternatives or explain options such as free transportation. You may encounter a need to discuss legal services. This may vary from individual to individual. Some asylum seeker young people are in the midst of ongoing decisions regarding their legal status when entering school. In the worst cases, some are at risk of removal from the UK to another country. It is important that the school and induction mentor be aware of these issues and understand the implications surrounding enforced removals. Although refugees and asylum seekers have faced many challenges, most are excited about their school and the life chances associated with education. Therefore be sure to inform them of opportunities for them and their parents and carers to engage with the school and with after school activities. 28 Refugee Council 2008

31 Induction resource 3 Induction DVD Checklist of DVD components: DVDs are a creative way to help newly arrived refugees and asylum seekers settle into their new school. This section contains a checklist of things to consider when developing an induction DVD. Visual aids such as DVDs can also raise awareness about refugee experiences in a sensitive way, and help these students feel a part of a wider refugee school community. Consider young people s involvement and ways in which creating the DVD can become their responsibility, with wide school participation across the school community Decide what information can be effectively shown in a visual format, such as multicultural classrooms, important school locations, places in the community, a lesson in a foreign language, or spoken testimony from longer settled refugee and asylum seeker pupils Carefully consider the overall aims of the DVD and then tailor the script to reflect this: what roles are there for refugee and asylum seeker students? Their parents and carers? School staff, e.g. induction mentors, learning mentors, teaching assistants, EAL teachers or head of school? Have subtitles in different refugee languages Some families may not have DVD players at home. Your school or community organisation may want to consider hosting a school assembly or some other way of bringing refugee parents into the school to benefit from the induction DVD. The Refugee Education website was set up by Bill Bolloten and Tim Spafford to help education practitioners and RCOs find recent policy, research and practice relating to refugees in education including useful induction materials. For more information, follow this link: Hand in Hand: a resource pack 29

32 Engaging refugee parents and carers Introduction It is important for schools to regularly engage parents and carers, not just to feed back on students progress, but also to make them feel a part of the school community. There are several core activities that many schools already engage in to harness parents and carers participation. Refugee and asylum seeker parents and carers, however, may have come from countries where participation is not the norm, and may find the school itself intimidating, especially if they have limited English language skills. Ideas for meaningful engagement This section presents different ideas focusing on engaging refugee young people, and their parents and carers, in core school activities. Many of the suggestions below can enhance ongoing activities in your school which engage refugees and asylum seekers. The following ideas are designed specifically to meet the needs of this particular student group. Research shows that where you can get parents actively involved in supporting their child s education then that s where children do best. 30 Refugee Council 2008

33 Idea 1 Refugee parents evenings The focus of parents evenings is to introduce parents to the school and inform them of important information about their child s education. Parents need to be aware of school policies and procedures affecting things like children s attendance, achievement and progress in school. It should also flag up important dates for parents to remember such as exam periods and GCSEs. Finally, the evenings should also introduce parents and carers to other opportunities to engage with the school such as after school activities, field trips, and Saturday schools and extended school activities. Interpreters and translators should always be present at these events to assist those who lack a proficiency in English. Below is a checklist of some important things to remember when planning a parents evening: Have you sent letters home to parents well in advance of the parents evening? And have the letters been translated into refugee languages? Have you ensured that the parents know where they are meeting? Is this meeting space comfortable and welcoming? Have you asked parents or carers if they require an interpreter in advance of the meeting? How will you identify interpreters if they are not on school staff (e.g. do you have community speakers or networks in the community who speak different languages)? Aims To ensure that your school has a welcoming ethos and this is reflected at parents evenings, involve parents in decision making about their child s education. Empower parents and carers to engage with the school by giving them a follow-up contact at the school in order to track their child s progress in school or feed back to staff on any problems or concerns about their child. Encourage parents to be in touch with the school and arrange a time to talk to their child s teacher. Reduce feelings of isolation. Refugee parents may not realise that they have a community of other refugee parents at the school. Help these parents understand that the school values young people who continue reading and writing in their home language. Encourage parents and young people to retain their own language in addition to learning English. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 31

34 Idea 1 What to do Take a while to prepare your introduction to the evening. Have an interpreter (or more than one) present to translate the information you deliver to parents. Introduce yourself and what role you play in the school. Explain how you and/or other staff members will be accessible to parents during the school year. Consider passing out flyers or booklets containing this information in different languages. Some ideas Present photos of relevant staff members. Explain the transition from primary to secondary school in England (if applicable to their child s year in school). Tell parents what to expect from the secondary school experience. Give parents an example of a typical school day including starting times, lunch breaks and ending times. Ensure that parents understand the importance of school attendance and ensure that they have transportation to and from school. Explain lunch options ensure that cultural and dietary needs of certain families are considered e.g. halal or vegetarian options. Also be sure to explain cost of school meals. Introduce parents to the school nurse and counsellor, if there is one, who can assist with special health needs of their children. Tell parents what to do in case their child cannot attend school (make sure that school policies and procedures are explained in languages they understand). Provide information on school uniforms. Provide information on school field trips and out of school opportunities for parents to engage with the school. Explain your school s ethos and school values. Emphasise that your school values diversity. This may be reflected in your school staff, governing board and school activities (e.g. Refugee Week, student assemblies, etc). Make sure parents and carers are invited to these special events. Explain curricular subjects and exam preparation. Most parents and young people are keen to know of opportunities to learn English. Inform them of English classes available to parents and young people outside of school. Give them relevant information about how to contact their local authority or community groups in order to enrol in ESOL classes. 32 Refugee Council 2008

35 Idea 1 Invitation letters When drafting letters to send home to refugee parents and carers, you may want to consider the following points. Letters sent home may need to be followed up by phone calls. Letters should explain the importance of parent-teacher meeting, what kind of information they will access, how this will benefit their child s education. Will you be able to provide written translations in other languages? Be careful of using jargon. Do you know if parents read and understand the content of letters sent home? You may wish to make follow-up phone calls to confirm that they understand the point of this meeting and can attend. Do you send letters to parents using as a means of communication? You might want to consider that not all parents/young people have internet access in the home. Do you know anything about the refugee families background prior to sending out the letter holding a meeting with the parents? Understanding aspects of a person s culture and background will make communication between the school and parents better and more effective. Other things to consider Parent feedback forms. Ongoing parent evenings during the school year. Give parents and carers a booklet of written information to take home with them in case they need to refer to this information in the future. Ongoing opportunities for parents and carers to engage with their child s school and school work. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 33

36 Idea 2 Consultation events Whereas parents evenings are focused on the individual needs of refugee parents and their student s education, consultation events are useful in terms of disseminating information on broader school issues. Below is a checklist of questions to consider when holding consultation events with parents and carers of refugees and asylum seekers. When during the school year should a consultation event be held (e.g. beginning of the school year, any follow-up consultation events during the school year)? Where will the consultation event be held? On the school premises? At a community location? Will the consultation events be comprised of big or small groups? What has worked in the past and what has not worked? Do you want groups of mixed parents or just refugee and asylum seeker parents? Who else from the school or community will you involve in the consultation event? Can you provide interpreters/translators on the day of the consultation? Will any information be sent home with parents in written form (and if so, does this information need to be translated)? Will any procedures be put in place to ensure that parents and carers have benefited from the consultation, such as feedback forms? 34 Refugee Council 2008

37 Idea 3 Coffee mornings for refugee parents Informal events, such as coffee mornings, are a means of encouraging parents and carers to visit secondary schools and meet their children s teachers. These events can be a way of making newly arrived parents and carers feel safe and welcome in their children s new school environment. They can also provide ongoing opportunities for refugee parents and carers to engage with the school. Informal events such as coffee mornings can also provide a comfortable forum in which parents can ask questions about their child s education and voice any concerns. Aims To engage parents who are harder to reach or hesitant to approach the school because they lack proficiency in English. To explain ways of supporting their child s education during the school year, checking on their progress in school, and ways of getting more support at home, if necessary. To inform parents on how to support their children s learning (e.g. homework lessons) throughout the school year. To signpost parents to helpful school staff if they feel, for example, that their child is experiencing trouble in the school socially, such as bullying or racism. To offer ways of supporting parents, such as mentors for parents. To highlight opportunities for parents to engage with school, the school staff and other parents and carers, e.g. school field trips and Saturday classes, and extended school opportunities. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 35

38 Idea 3 What to do The following checklist contains things to consider when creating a plan for your coffee morning: Have you sent letters home to parents well in advance of the coffee morning? Have the letters been translated into refugee languages? Identify an appropriate staff member to lead the coffee morning, e.g. learning mentor, EAL staff member, admissions tutor, etc. Will the coffee morning be team led, using the assistance of interpreters? Have you considered idea topics for the coffee morning, e.g. orientation with school, information about home work and school attendance, engaging with their child s homework? Have you invited anyone from the community, e.g. RCO or community organisation who has experience signposting refugees to resources in the community? Are there any RCOs who can assist with coffee morning activities, such as interpreting or co-hosting? Have you considered getting transportation for parents to and from coffee mornings, and a convenient time to hold the meeting? How do you plan to follow up with refugee parents after the coffee morning about their needs and concerns? Do you plan on distributing feedback forms for parents to gauge how to improve coffee mornings in the future, or how often to hold coffee mornings? 36 Refugee Council 2008

39 Idea 4 Home-school link worker for refugees Teachers and school staff often make contact with parents and carers using a number of methods: newsletters sent home, phone calls, and even home visits. However, these attempts do not always reach parents and carers of refugees and asylum seekers, especially those without a strong command of English. New arrivals to the country often experience difficulties upon entering the UK, including a lack of English and a lack of knowledge about their local area. Refugee parents might be unable to visit the school to find out about school policies and procedures, or to follow up their child s progress in school. For these reasons, some schools have a practice of employing a home-school link worker. The function of the home-school link worker is implied by their title, as they literally serve to bridge the gap between secondary schools and refugee and asylum seeker families and their communities. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 37

40 Idea 4 Checklist The following list outlines factors that schools should consider when thinking about establishing the role of home-school link worker. Does your local community or an RCO in your area have a way of helping with the recruitment of home-school link workers? Ensure that those recruited have command of one (or more) refugee languages. Ensure that the home-school link worker is able to travel to make several parent visits, depending on the needs of parents/carers and follow up these visits with phone calls, letters or follow-up meetings. Ensure that the worker receives proper training (by an RCO and/or the school) on issues relating to the school so that they can answer any questions parents/carers may have. Make sure the home-school link worker knows where to signpost refugees with particular needs, such as social services or legal services. For more information about activities to engage parents and carers in your school and/or community activities, visit the DCSF standards website: The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority s website also has information on supporting refugee parents and carers in engaging with their children s education. For more information, visit: 38 Refugee Council 2008

41 Idea 5 International days International days or smaller scale cultural events are a great way to celebrate diversity in your school. It is a chance for the student population to learn more about other cultures and countries. It is also an important way of helping your community to get directly involved in planning and participating in cultural events, which can be held at the school or somewhere else in the community. International days are also important in that they encourage refugee parents and carers to engage with the school. They are a way to welcome parents and way for the school to communicate that they value refugee parents and the richness and diversity they bring to their school and community. There are several ways in which schools and refugee community organisations can participate together to celebrate international days. For example, they can include international food days, international celebration of different cultures using music and dance, or school performances led by young people. Aims To celebrate cultural diversity. To encourage young people, and their parents, carers and families, to take part in school international celebrations. To generate wider school appreciation and awareness about refugee experiences. To encourage wider community participation in school or community led cultural events. To foster community cohesion. Things to consider To celebrate the diversity in your school community, have students of various backgrounds (e.g. from different countries, who speak many languages, who have lived in other countries) talk about their experiences. Students can share their experience through another medium, such as song, dance, play, written forms such as poetry. Find an appropriate forum for the scale of the international day, e.g. the school assembly or a local community hall. Consider a wide list of people to invite: individuals from the community, volunteers who work with school, school staff, parents and carers, other family members. There are many ways to communicate cultural awareness be creative. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 39

42 Idea 5 Checklist While international days do not directly celebrate refugees, they are a way to bring attention to their countries food, song, dance and cultural traditions. The following list presents some ideas to think about how to highlight refugee specific issues when devising a plan for an international day. Does the event communicate stories about refugees experiences? Why they flee their home country? How they experience the transition to the UK? The challenges and/or experiences when they first arrive in the UK? The importance of making friends? Having a community? Does the international day include information or activities about any countries from which refugees have fled? How can young people from these countries incorporate their ideas/ communicate their experiences by way of the international day? Are you involving members of your local refugee community e.g. refugee student mentors? What role do young people play in taking ownership of the event or activity does it include refugee/asylum seeker pupils? There is great room for flexibility why not ask students to get their views on how to lead an international day? Did you know? June 20 is World Refugee Day. For more information on how to include Refugee Day activities in the secondary curriculum or how to support community activities celebrating refugees in this country, visit the Amnesty International UK s website: We celebrate Refugee Week every year which is informing and raising the profile of refugees parents, teachers, students. 40 Refugee Council 2008

43 Support for young refugee people in secondary school Hand in Hand: a resource pack 41

44 Support for young refugee people in secondary school Introduction Refugee young people can benefit and succeed in education as a result of additional support. Additional support can take many forms, such as English classes, specialist teacher training, and mentoring schemes. This section will offer some ideas on ways in which your school or community can offer additional support to refugees in secondary school. This section contains some suggestions for schools and community organisations to work in partnership towards better and more effective support to improve refugee student achievement. They also aim to increase levels of refugee parent/carer involvement in their education and, where possible, under community engagement. Workforce diversity Bilingual teachers and teaching assistants It is important that a school s teaching staff reflects the diversity in terms of the student population. Bilingual or multilingual teachers are becoming a common feature in schools across England. These teachers are important resources and can often assist refugee students in mainstream curricular subjects. Bilingual teaching staff are also valuable resources because they can help with translating written materials and interpreting for parents with lower levels of literacy at school and community events. Refugees into Teaching (RiT) Refugee teachers bring not only valuable teaching experience, but also knowledge of refugee languages. They can also be mentors to newly arrived and existing refugee students, helping them to settle into their new school and increase their confidence levels. Refugee teachers are, however, underrepresented in the teaching workforce. In order to help qualified refugee teachers get work in the UK, the Refugee Council began a project called Refugees into Teaching (RiT) to help qualified refugee teachers enter the teaching workforce in mainstream schools. Many refugees have problems accessing information, advice and guidance, and refugee teachers in particular face additional barriers to employment in the UK. Improving opportunities for refugees to enter employment will also contribute to greater community cohesion. For more information about RiT, please visit: 42 Refugee Council 2008

45 Support for young refugee people in secondary school Learning English The Refugee Council believes that knowledge of English is fundamental to living in the UK and to having equality of opportunity. We take the position that adult asylum seekers should be eligible for ESOL provision from day one of entering the UK. It is also important that young people can learn English quickly as this will drastically improve their life chances in the UK and in secondary school. In-class tutorials are one way of teaching English to newly arrived refugee students in order to get them up to a level where they can access the mainstream curriculum. These students should continue to learn English even after they have been fully mainstreamed, as this will continue to help them succeed. English language support for young people Knowledge of English can make the difference between educational inclusion and exclusion. There is a very good chance that refugees may have studied similar subjects in their home country. A lack of proficiency in English does not indicate a weakness in other subject areas. In order to avoid placing refugee students in classes below their ability level, it is essential to offer support to them with English language acquisition. Many schools have developed excellent ways to support young people with language needs which have helped refugees learn English more quickly. For those schools who are just beginning to develop provision because the profile of their school population is changing, the list below highlights some issues that may need consideration. Checklist Will language classes be held during school hours? If so, have you thought of an appropriate time to have the lesson? Are the activities age-appropriate? For example, if you are giving the young person reading material, make sure it is not a children s book containing material that they will not relate to. Make learning English fun. Are there interesting activities such as online resources to engage them? Will students practice English at home with their parents and encourage family learning? Can you provide opportunities for them to learn together? Does your school library contain interesting reading material for your students, such as books and magazines that may capture their interest? Do you know if any local community organisations run weekend classes so that these young people can continue learning English outside of school? Hand in Hand: a resource pack 43

46 ESOL activity ESOL for refugee parents and carers It is important for parents and carers of refugees to learn English so that they can also increase their opportunities to engage with the community and with their children s education. Refugee children tend to learn English more quickly than their parents. Many schools report that the young people translate for their parents, and regularly take on additional roles such as of scheduling doctor s visits and meetings with the Home Office. ESOL classes for refugee parents can help empower them to perform some of these tasks alongside their children, and improve their chances at better communication. Aims To improve refugee parents ability to speak English and thereby engage with their children s education and with the wider community. To empower refugee parents to be in charge of decision-making. To improve confidence levels among refugee parents. Things to consider When developing new ESOL classes for parents and carers, you should consider the following points: How will you alert parents to opportunities to study ESOL at the school (e.g. through an extended schools initiative), the community or the local authority? Is information about the course available in different refugee languages? Are ESOL classes tailored to subjects relevant to parents needs? Is the location of the ESOL lesson convenient for refugee parents to travel to? Have you made arrangements for a crèche so that mothers, in particular, can attend ESOL classes? In order to generate good attendance, it is vital to consider child care options for parents, especially mothers. Be aware that this can also impose an extra cost on refugee parents which is difficult for many to cope with. Topics to consider for ESOL classes: Information about the child s school Signposting to helpful community resources Important cultural events Cultural information about life in the UK Rights and entitlements of refugees and asylum seekers The following page outlines a case study from one of the Inclusive Secondary Schools Project partnerships in Birmingham. 44 Refugee Council 2008

47 Case Study Saturday ESOL classes for parents and carers The Partnership: Heartlands High School and Nechells Regeneration Project Location: Birmingham Duration: August 2007 July 2008 Activity: ESOL classes aimed at increasing levels of English among refugee parents in Birmingham Background Community organisations often have qualified staff or know of people in the community who have command of refugee languages and therefore can be an indispensable resource not only in the community, but also in the classroom. Volunteers from the community and/or RCO staff can run ESOL classes for young people and parents and carers of refugees, to take place out of school hours and at the weekend. This type of support is invaluable for both young people and their parents who are trying to get up to speed in English to help them settle in. The Heartlands High School is a very diverse and multicultural school located in Birmingham. Although the school already ran English classes for young people, the school identified a need to provide ESOL classes for refugee parents in their local community, particularly from the Somali community. The school formed a partnership with Nechells Regeneration Project and they ran English classes for Somali mothers. The project worked with a member of the local Somali community to encourage women to attend the classes. The lessons were designed to give these parents more information about the school and their local community. They learned useful phrases to help them access local services and improve their engagement with the community. The courses were popular but it was found that some women could not attend every class because they could not access child care. Although the local community tried to organise a crèche, the ESOL class facilitator concluded that it might have helped to hold the ESOL classes on the school premises because this was an easier location for parents to find and in which to organise child care. Lessons learned from this experience helped the school and community organisation to adjust their lessons to accommodate the practical needs of refugee parents. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 45

48 Mentoring/befriending Mentoring can be described as the process by which a mentor serves as a role model, trusted counsellor, or teacher in the provision of opportunities for development, growth, and support to less experienced individuals. Befriending is another term commonly used to refer to a form of mentoring. Despite having the same generic purpose of creating a one-to-one relationship based on support, the difference is where the emphasis of this support is placed and the nature of the relationship between the two people. Mentoring tends to have more focus on goals and outcomes within a given timeframe. Befriending is a more informal, friendly relationship based on a wider set of social and non-social achievements. Mentoring has become increasingly popular in recent years and can be used in isolation or in support for other activities e.g. employment support. In relation to the attainment and performance of young refugee and asylum seeking students, mentoring is a useful activity for both the children and their parents. When used with children, mentoring is a useful intervention to support the sometimes difficult transition from adolescence to adulthood. This transition can be especially difficult when these young people are dealing with additional issues relating to their asylum claims, adapting to a new country, and dealing with a traumatic past. For parents, mentors can offer additional language support, act as an advocate for issues as they arise, support their integration into a new community and improve their understanding of their new host society and the school system. Mentors can also address: Specific problems and issues that they may feel awkward talking to teachers or family members about Emotional or mental health problems, such as loneliness or depression Social isolation Poor English language skills Issues around bullying and racism Difficulties in accessing mainstream services such as GPs or school and college places Separation from family and friends Living with parents or carers who may be experiencing emotional problems themselves, which could increase the risk of family breakdown Taking on adult responsibilities such as young people translating for parents in their contact with services and authorities 46 Refugee Council 2008

49 Guidelines for mentoring Mentoring relationships are normally based on a voluntary commitment between the individuals involved. It is important that the relationships should be well structured with clearly understood goals, boundaries, confidentiality and levels of support. Mentoring should be based on trust, a commitment to confidentiality and equality between mentor and mentee. Recruiting mentors The careful selection of suitable volunteer mentors is essential for the success of any mentoring project. The staff involved in the mentor recruitment process should be clear about the types of people they wish to involve and the skills and characteristics they should possess. The suitability of mentors will usually be based on the client group they will be mentoring and the requirements they are likely to have. The selection process may in part be based on age, ethnic background, religion, and specific skills and experiences. Mentors should go through an application and interview process to asses their suitability. Characteristics of potential mentors Mentors should be able to demonstrate an ability to empathise with the situations and perspectives of those they are supporting. They need to be non-judgemental, friendly and a good listener. They need to be supportive, sympathetic, positive and capable of ensuring confidentiality. Mentors should be capable of developing a structured path to overcome problems and achieve goals. They should be happy and comfortable to request external help when necessary. They should ideally have benefitted from a wide range of situations and experiences which can inform their support. Finding potential mentors It may be appropriate to approach commercial organisations (especially those with corporate social responsibility schemes) with a view to using employees as a source of potential mentors. Recruitment of mentors should be led by the goals of the mentoring relationship, e.g. employment, friendship, education, etc. Mentors should come from a wide cross section of the community to reflect the local population. Recruitment should focus on how mentoring can help those who need support but should also point out what the mentors can gain from their involvement (such as furthering their own CV, experience of working with others, learning new skills, etc.). When recruiting mentors, consider advertising the project in community locations, local newspapers, businesses, colleges, volunteer bureaus, churches and via other refugee community organisations not directly involved in the scheme. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 47

50 Guidelines for mentoring Training for mentors Appropriate training for mentors ahead of the matching process is important. Mentors should have an awareness of the asylum process and the sorts of barriers and issues faced by asylum seekers and refugees. Ideally, training should discuss many of the facts around asylum and dispel popular myths. Mentors should be aware of the cultural differences that they may encounter and understand how to deal with these sensitively and appropriately. They should receive training in how to identify issues as they arise, recognise which issues are beyond their remit and understand how and to whom they should refer to in these cases. Matching mentors and mentees When matching mentors with mentees it is important to get the fit right. Sometimes the matching process will need to take into account the mentee s gender, age, religion, or background. It is important to find someone the mentee can relate to and feel more comfortable with. When matching it is also worth considering: Closeness of home or work addresses for ease of meeting Employment skills and experiences Language Knowledge of or interest in a particular country or region Hobbies and interests The mentor s application form and subsequent interview should provide you with enough information to identify a good match. Ensure you talk to both mentors and mentees to get a view of what sort of person they would like to be matched to. They will often have a clearer idea about who they would feel more comfortable with. Be prepared to encounter and deal with problems during the mentoring relationship. Even the best thought out match may not work out for a variety of unforeseen reasons. It is worth mediating between the mentor and mentee to see if this is something that can be easily resolved. However, it is important that the relationship is a good one and in some situations it may therefore be necessary to find a new mentor. Setting boundaries Setting and understanding boundaries around the mentoring relationship is very important. Without boundaries, the mentee can find themselves getting involved with a broad cross section of problems or issues which they are not equipped to support. 48 Refugee Council 2008

51 Guidelines for mentoring What you should be considering A mentoring co-ordinator will be required for schemes dealing with a number of relationships. Child mentoring will require criminal record bureau (CRB) checks. A budget may be required for advertising and the application and recruitment process for mentors. The mentoring scheme may require a suitable space to meet, possibly with access to a computer. Travel (and possibly childcare) expenses for training sessions and mentoring meetings may be required. Identify the need and target audience for the scheme. Create a model for the scheme which will meet these needs best, e.g. informal befriending through to formal goal driven mentoring, and proposed length of mentoring relationship. Select mentors carefully who meet the needs of the model and ensure they understand what their focus should be, e.g. when mentoring young people, the mentors could be a similar age or an adult. Carry out mentor training around areas such as cultural awareness, refugee issues and possible issues that may arise. Match mentors and mentees carefully. Ensure mentors know their boundaries and are well supported through their relationship. Ensure both sides know what they are trying to achieve. Set goals. Ensure you monitor and evaluate regularly throughout the project and change the focus and delivery if required. Evaluation A sound mentoring programme should have an evaluation process built into it from the beginning and should detail the ways in which it reflects specific project objectives. Effective evaluations also critique the challenges and successes of the project. More information about evaluation can be found on page 64. Remember Informal relationships can often work better when trying to engage young people in mentoring. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 49

52 Case Study Abbeydale Grange Specialist Media Arts School and Northern Refugee Centre (NRC) In Sheffield, the Northern Refugee Centre (NRC) and Abbeydale Grange Specialist Media Arts School came together to create a partnership in support of refugee parents of young people within their secondary school. They worked with Time Together and used their model to match refugees with local people, in one-to-one mentoring relationships. 11 Time Together mentors spend around five hours a month with their mentee, supporting and encouraging them, as they seek to achieve their goals in integration, education and employment. The main aim was to bring together the work and good practice in Sheffield, by enabling the Northern Refugee Centre and Abbeydale Grange School to work together to achieve the following objectives: Enable parents/carers to feel part of British society when they are new to the country and to have a better understanding of the English education system Ensure that students and families who have suffered trauma or who are having difficulty settling, feel able to access all aspects of the English education system Ensure that all refugee and asylum seeker students achieve their potential, especially post 16 Promote social cohesion across different ethnic groups 11. TimeBank runs the Time Together mentoring programme. For more information, visit: NRC matched twelve mentees, parents of children at Abbeydale Grange School, with host community mentors. Feedback from mentees about their mentoring relationships has been positive and includes the following: Refugee parents gained better knowledge about how the school system works, subjects studied by their children, and the opportunity to share experiences with local people of school age Mentees noted improved English language ability which aided their interaction with the school or helping children with homework one parent described feeling shameful about not being able to do this before. Poor English was cited as a major reason for not meeting teachers Some mentees reported improvements in confidence and ability to communicate as a result of frequent meetings with their mentor Through mentor encouragement, some parents started doing more than just collecting their children from school, e.g. attending parents evenings Some parents gained or moved closer to employment where that was a set objective 50 Refugee Council 2008

53 Case Study The mentees also attended a range of activities organised by NRC, which provided the chance for making social contacts, exploring new places (e.g. mentoring outing to Chatsworth House and Gardens), playing sport (weekly five-a-side football sessions for mentees, Abbeydale Grange students and local people), cross-cultural exchange (meetings between refugee mentees and their host community mentors/nrc staff and volunteers, e.g. at NRC Christmas party). These mentoring relationships work towards the goals agreed in the mentee s regularly reviewed action plan. More information on Time Together mentoring can be found at: More information on Northern Refugee Centre can be found at: and Abbeydale Grange Specialist Media Arts School at: Hand in Hand: a resource pack 51

54 Counselling services Many newly arrived refugees in your school may have witnessed and experienced a great deal of trauma in their home country. This has a profound impact on their ability to settle into their new community and engage with their peers. These experiences can also lead to increased feelings of loneliness and isolation. Schools which have appropriate counselling services are able to better meet the needs of these vulnerable students and support them with the additional challenges they face. Aim To make young refugee and asylum seeker students feel safe and welcome in their school To empower young people by giving them a safe haven in which to voice their concerns, problems at home and fears To deal directly with issues affecting the young person s education and life chances Things to consider Identify a counsellor in the community and ensure that the school/rco has the resources to carry out the service on a long-term basis. Ensure that there is an appropriate room in the school to hold the counselling service. Give counsellor/rco a detailed orientation of the school (including the school premises and important phone numbers). If funding is lacking from the school or community, check with an RCO or the local authority or other (refugee) agencies about developing funding for these activities. Ensure that issues that go beyond school matters/staff are dealt with directly and taken up with the proper authority. Make plans for the future how will you sustain counselling services? Get feedback ensure that young people themselves have a chance to comment on the service and improve it. Ensure that other school staff members (including the head teacher) are aware of the necessity of this type of support, especially for the most vulnerable in education. Refugee Resource is one organisation working to offer therapeutic and counselling support to refugees and asylum seekers. For more information about their specific types of support, visit: 52 Refugee Council 2008

55 Case Study The Partnership: Refugee and Migrant Forum of East London (RAMFEL) and Valentines High School Location: Ilford, East London Duration: August 2007 July 2008 Activity: Action research aimed at providing counselling services to young refugee and asylum seeker pupils who had experienced learning difficulties, behavioural difficulties, or trauma as a result of fleeing conflict in their home country. The Valentines High School in East London is a highly diverse community. With over 100 languages and dialects spoken throughout the school, Valentines has a rich student population including many refugees and asylum seekers. The school identified a need to assist some of these pupils with behavioural difficulties arising from living in temporary housing arrangements, uncertain futures owing to their immigration status, the loss of family members, or trauma resulting from experiences in their home countries. As a result, Valentines school partnered with a local refugee forum called the Refugee and Migrant Forum of East London (RAMFEL, formerly called Redbridge Refugee Forum ) to provide targeted support in the form of counselling services to its most vulnerable pupils. RAMFEL provided a qualified counsellor one day a week who visited the school to meet with selected refugee and asylum seeker students individually. The one-to-one meetings took place in a designated location within the school and with total confidentiality. Many of the issues discussed were sensitive and involved their parents, and as a result it was important for these young people to know they had an objective third party in the school with whom to share their concerns. The feedback received from students and parents was overwhelmingly positive. At the end of the year, the school and RAMFEL conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the counselling services. The demand from the school staff and student population was so high, they decided to try to continue the partnership working and apply for additional funding to support their endeavour. They re all under pressure of being returned to their home countries. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 53

56 Continuing Professional Development This resource pack aims to also raise awareness about educational issues facing refugee and asylum seeker students through training of teaching staff, as well as the community. There are several ways in which teachers and school staff can receive training in awareness raising about the educational needs of this student group. Talks Team, Refugee Week, and informational DVDs for refugee students and parents (see resources section at the of this pack). Specialist training for teacher such as RCO training and INSETS. Awareness raising DVD about refugee experiences Awareness raising exercises are an important means of communicating refugee experiences to the rest of the school community. Assemblies containing awareness raising seminars or Refugee Week celebrations at school can all contribute towards better overall understanding and mindfulness of refugee experiences. There are many ways to raise awareness about refugees. This activity suggest that schools partner with their local community and possibly with RCOs to create a DVD which highlight particular issues facing young unaccompanied refugees as well as those who arrive with their families. Aims of the activity Generate community-wide awareness of refugee experiences. To create awareness that refugee experiences are unique and individual refugees are not one homogenous group. To celebrate the positive things that refugees contribute to their community and new school. To allow young people themselves participate in awareness raising give them a voice. We have INSET sessions for the whole staff about different cultural, linguistic, and ethnic considerations 54 Refugee Council 2008

57 Case Study Harwich School and SMYLE In the East of England the Harwich secondary school and refugee supporting organisation called SMYLE (an organisation that works with refugee children) partnered to create an awareness-raising DVD about the experiences of new arrivals in their community. The collaboration led to the production of a fifteen minute DVD driven by the ideas and experiences of refugee young people themselves. Harwich is an area with relatively few refugees and asylum seekers as compared with other areas of England. Although the school s refugee student population was lower than that of many other schools, the school nonetheless emphasised the need to bring awareness to their parents and student population about refugee experiences of settling in the UK and starting at a new school in England. Students from a range of backgrounds made a film that depicted the experiences of young people new to Harwich from their own perspectives. This information was presented in several languages (the voices of students). The DVD highlighted the feelings of isolation newly-arrived young people can experience, including the impact of not being able to communicate and being bullied. The partnership held a premiere to launch the DVD, and the film is being used as a starting point for discussions within the school on the experiences of new arrivals. Hand in Hand: a resource pack 55

58 Case Study Abbeydale Grange Specialist Media Arts School and Northern Refugee Centre (NRC) In contrast to the previous case study, the Abbeydale Grange Specialist Media Arts School in Sheffield is a school community which is characterised by high levels of diversity, in terms of ethnicities, cultures and languages spoken. As the needs of the community changed over the years, Abbeydale Grange came to cater for a richly diverse student population with over 140 languages and dialects spoken in the school. The school also diversified the curriculum to offer a range of mainstream classroom activities celebrating the school s diversity. The Northern Refugee Centre (NRC) is a local refugee supporting organisation in Sheffield offering a number of useful services to refugees including ESOL classes, mentoring programmes and signposting to local services. The NRC partnered with Abbeydale Grange to create an awareness-raising DVD to show at school assemblies. This activity was to coincide with ongoing school activities to engage refugee students. The young people helped film the DVD with help from the NRC. Several refugee students in the school volunteered to participate in the project, some of which even gave personal testimony about their experiences leaving their home country and coming to live in England. They spoke openly about their fears coming to England and starting a new school, but they also commented on the factors which helped them to settle in, such as learning English. The DVD communicated these messages in a clear and personal manner. The project evaluation revealed that the school and the NRC both benefited from this experience. The DVD proved to be a useful resource available to the entire community. Abbeydale Grange and NRC came together to launch the DVD in Sheffield, an event at which refugee students and school staff, as well as other members of the community, were invited to participate. 56 Refugee Council 2008

59 Funding, monitoring and evaluating your activities Hand in Hand: a resource pack 57

60 Funding, monitoring and evaluating your activities How to fund your activities Most of the activities outlined in this book will require additional resources to undertake them successfully. In some circumstances, new work can be done with existing resources (e.g. school budget or EMAG), but other activities will require extra financial resources. It is important that schools do not see working with RCOs as acquiring a free resource and organisations should be appropriately rewarded. RCOs are providing expertise and contacts which schools will pay for in most other circumstances, so the same principle should apply in this case. Increasingly schools have access to a far wider source of funding than was previously possible. Over recent years, cuts in local authority funding have put pressure on schools to search out new avenues of funding to support the delivery of activities and the purchase of resources. However, all too often schools are not taking advantage of these larger, more diverse funding streams relying instead on traditional activities like school fetes and car boot sales which often bring in only small sums of money. Similarly, RCOs are feeling the effects of cuts in central government spending and the changing priorities of grant making organisations in general. With increased competition within fundraising generally, both schools and RCOs need to be more businesslike in their approach. Funding has become increasingly project focused and funders are looking for new and innovative approaches to deal with old problems. Gaining support from local businesses has also become a way of attracting new money through sponsorships and corporate social responsibility schemes. Investing time and effort in fundraising can bring with it rewards which compensate for the initial resource investment. 58 Refugee Council 2008

61 Funding, monitoring and evaluating your activities Previous research has identified 10 steps to successful school fundraising. 12 These steps can also be adapted for those RCOs looking to engage with schools to deal with educational issues and activities. 10 steps to successful fundraising 1. Appoint somebody to coordinate your fundraising. 2. Audit existing practice. 3. Establish your school s current development priorities. 4. Identify which school priorities need additional funding. 5. Establish how much money is needed and over what timescale. 6. Write a fundraising development plan. 7. Prepare summary proposals for each individual project. 8. Match the funds required for each project to the most appropriate sources. 9. Review your fundraising efforts at regular intervals. 10. Celebrate your successes along the way. Developing a strategy Regardless of size, or the nature of their work, all organisations looking to secure new funding will need to develop some sort of strategy or pathway which identifies key activities and appropriate fundraising opportunities. This is equally important when two organisations are coming together (i.e. schools and RCOs) to develop joint activities and secure new funding. Identifying priority areas will be an essential element in the development of a strategy. Creating and carrying out a needs assessment will help you to understand what these priority areas are and where you should concentrate your efforts. At this stage, it is very important that the key decision makers within the school and RCO come together to develop and agree on a joint strategy. The strategy needs to be carefully planned with key milestones and responsibilities identified. To ensure the best chance of success, both parties need to be comfortable that any proposal for joint working fits with their individual organisation s aims and objectives and their clients needs. To facilitate this partnership approach, many organisations find it useful to create a contract (either formal or informal), a memorandum of understanding, or even just a list of agreed duties. In some cases, partnerships may wish to look at the Compact agreement for ideas on how to formulate this joint working. The Compact is increasingly used to support partnership working between the voluntary/community sector and government but elements could be used where appropriate. More information can be found at: articles/fundraising-a-force-forchange-1719 Hand in Hand: a resource pack 59

62 Funding, monitoring and evaluating your activities Identifying the need You will need to show prospective funders that your proposed activities are responding to a real need and provide them with some supporting evidence. You will also need to demonstrate how your activities will respond to these needs and have a clear outcome. Hopefully the needs assessment will have helped you to identify these needs. Consultation is a key exercise that can support your efforts in successfully identifying the need. This approach will not only allow you to engage with your prospective beneficiaries and allow them to feel involved but will also help to identify issues, problems or opportunities that may not have been highlighted before. Remember that projects are more likely to succeed when you have involved key stakeholders. Possible consultation methods: Questionnaires Focus Groups Outreach work Consultation events Inviting comments (e.g. through newsletters) It is important to remember that most funders are becoming increasingly project focused. This means they will be keen to identify proposals from organisations or partnerships that have clear activities, outcomes and purpose. Where to find the funds? Once you have identified what you would like to achieve through joint working, evidenced the need and come up an agreement on how to work together, you are in a good position to begin your fundraising. The next challenge is to identify where to find the funds. Often that will depend on what it is you are looking to raise funds for. Hopefully, having completed the needs assessment and with the support of some of the suggestions we have made within this Resource Pack, you will have now identified what activities you are looking to undertake and to present to the grant makers. When identifying possible funders, there are some specific funders that are traditionally more likely to support RCOs or schools. However, these days there is also a lot of overlap between potential funders that both schools and RCOs can approach. Your decisions on which funder to approach will usually depend on how much money you are looking for and what activities that funding is looking to support. Local authorities will often be keen to support schools and their partners in the search for new sources of funding and will usually be able to help and advise you. It is worth contacting them to discuss this. 60 Refugee Council 2008

63 Funding, monitoring and evaluating your activities Government grants The government is the main source of funding in the UK and offers a variety of targeted funding through government departments, agencies and a range of other non-governmental organisations to which governments have devolved power. In general, government grants tend to be available for larger sums of money and, as a result, will often expect you to achieve a larger volume of outputs and outcomes. You will also usually be expected to provide higher levels of monitoring and accounting for these larger funds. On a positive note, the grants will often recognise your need to cover your organisation s overheads and other indirect costs which other funders may be less willing to fund. The website is an excellent source of all current and upcoming government grants. Local authority funding Charitable Trusts and Foundations European funding is also another option available to partnerships and the following link provides you will information of over 500 EU grants and loans. Your local authority runs many grant giving programmes like the Ethnic Minority Achievement Grant (EMAG). This is discussed in more detail on page 13. There are a large number of trusts and foundations operating in the UK with the purpose of supporting the charitable activities of other organisations. The majority of foundations do not engage directly in operational activities themselves but focus predominantly on offering grants which can be used to support the voluntary and community sector. Many trusts and foundations will focus on specific areas of interest and in turn, will have identified their individual funding priorities. Some may wish to support activities which will benefit a particular group (e.g. older people, ex-offenders, refugees, etc.). Others will support campaigning, awareness raising, research and so on. You will need to do your own research to better understand these funding priorities. It is important to carefully target applications to such funding bodies. Charitable trusts and foundations tend to be more flexible and more willing to negotiate on proposals but the funding available can often be limited to smaller grants. Below are some good resources for helping you to identify what trusts and foundations exist: Funder Finder is a charity supporting organisations to identify and secure funding. You can find out more information on their website: Directory of Social Change s trust funding website: Association of Charitable Foundations: Hand in Hand: a resource pack 61

64 Main sources of funding Private Sector Organisations Commercial sector companies in the UK are increasingly recognising that ethical business practices and support for the wider community can be good for business. Types and levels of support vary but many larger companies are establishing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) schemes within their organisations. These schemes aim to promote their business ethical behaviour and social awareness, often by contributing to the wider community. Community support and contributions may take on a variety of forms. Examples that might be particularly relevant for schools and RCOs could be employee volunteering days, charitable financial contributions, donation of resources, or sponsorship. Corporate Social Responsibility is still a relatively new concept and is often limited to the larger, multinational corporations. CSR can bring many benefits to the business, including increased awareness and value of their brand through positive publicity, improved employee retention and motivation, and so on. For the recipient of the support it can mean a new and potentially lucrative source of assistance. There are two main suggestions for developing links with business. Firstly, having carried out your needs assessment and having hopefully identified a few strong project ideas, it is worth researching some of the larger employers in your local area. Understand who they are, what they do, and why they might be interested in supporting your suggested activities. Think about what you can offer the business in return for their support (e.g. mention in the local press) but also make sure you are comfortable with their business activities and your association with them. The other suggestion would be to research larger, corporate organisation with established CSR schemes and understand how your activities may gain the support you need. Appeals and events There are a number of more informal ways in which schools and RCOs can fundraise together. These can be carried out in a variety of ways from specific appeals for donations to raffles, sponsored walks, fetes, and so on. These methods of fundraising can cost very little to setup, can promote your causes, and bring in money relatively quickly but can be a lot of hard work for often a minimal return. Try and be innovative in your approach to developing these appeals and events and think about encouraging wider involvement from businesses. 62 Refugee Council 2008

65 Main sources of funding National Lottery Funding The National Lottery provides a great source of funding for both schools and RCOs but be aware that, as with most grants, the application process can be highly competitive. Certainly don not let that put you off though as since it began, the Lottery has provided over 10 billion in funding to projects that benefit children and young people. The Lottery encourages applicants to call and discuss their proposal which is a very good idea if you are unsure if your activities are appropriate for the funding stream. As always, ensure you have a solid and well thought through project idea with a clearly identified need. There are a range of organisations distributing the funds for the Lottery. Links to two of the grant making bodies are listed below but it is also worth researching some of the other sources of lottery funding. Awards for All is a Lottery grants programme aimed at local communities. Information can be found at: Big Lottery Fund is committed to improving communities and the lives of people most in need. Information can be found at: Main Lottery funding website can be found at: Hand in Hand: a resource pack 63

66 Monitoring and evaluation of your activities Monitoring and evaluation Monitoring and evaluation are an important part in assessing the impact of any project. You may have carried out a thorough needs assessment and consulted all the right people, but how will you know if you have achieved what you set out to achieve? How will you know if it has helped the people it was designed to help and in the ways you expected? Monitoring and evaluation are important mechanisms for helping you to assess the effectiveness of your activities and lessons learned from them. Funders and other interested stakeholders will also be keen to see what you have achieved. Funders will be especially keen to ensure that you have spent money wisely and have made an impact on those you highlighted during the application process. Similarly, stakeholders will be keen to ensure that you have delivered a high quality, sensitive and appropriate service. What is monitoring? Monitoring is about keeping track of your project throughout its life and is usually carried out at regular or defined periods of time (e.g. daily, monthly or quarterly). It ensures that you are collecting all the information you need to help you carry out a useful evaluation that is supported by evidence. Monitoring can be quantitative or qualitative but ideally both. For example, depending on the nature of your project, quantitative monitoring may mean you are collecting information on the numbers of participants, how many were male/female, number of qualifications they gained, numbers of hours they participated on the project, and so on. Qualitative monitoring is about showing the effects the project has had on its participants. For example, it should reveal the levels of confidence people had reached, or satisfaction levels in relation to the activities. What is evaluation? Evaluation is about using the information you have captured during the monitoring phase to help you understand what your project activities have achieved and the impact they have made. Evaluation will often be a requirement of most funders but should be included regardless. Many people think of evaluation as something that happens at the end of the project but evaluating during the project is, in many ways, more useful as it offers you the chance to see if activities are working and if changes are necessary. 64 Refugee Council 2008

67 Monitoring and evaluation of your activities It is important to ask yourself the right questions during evaluation. Make sure you probe further into the answers you receive. Ask yourself why things are the way they are. Examples of questions might be: What are the levels of participation? Is that what you were expecting? If not, why? Is the project achieving what you expected? Why? What is working particularly well? Why? What elements of the project are problematic or unsuccessful? Why? What would you like to do differently? Why? Are you making or have you made the impact you were hoping to? If not, why? It is important to remember that evaluation is not just about showing what has worked well but also about highlighting what has not. Successful evaluation should inform, expand learning and promote good practice. You may wish to add life to your evaluation by carrying out case studies. For example, by identifying an individual who participated in your activities and show what impact it has had on their life. For more information about monitoring and evaluating your activities, you can visit the Charities Evaluation Services website: Hand in Hand: a resource pack 65

68

69 Resources Hand in Hand: a resource pack 67