Refugee Employment Support Clinic

Workshops every Friday
(At the Institute of Management,
Great Moor Street)
29^th April - 1^st July
12:30 to 14:30

While we want to provide valuable development opportunities for people with refugee status, we also want to educate our students and our local community on the barriers to employment within refugee communities and to raise awareness about the gap that exists in terms of support (or lack of support) for refugees entering the labour market. ​ 

We also want to raise awareness of the skills, capabilities and talents within the refugee community that often go unrecognised, and provide the opportunity for this group to share their stories and previous employment and life experience. 

Project aims 

• To provide valuable skills development for people with asylum or refugee status. 
• To provide a space for people with refugee status to discuss their future career aspirations and work towards feeling ready to secure paid work when they have the rights to. 
• To enhance self-esteem and self-efficacy in bringing people together with shared interest and working on soft skills. 
• To support with key professional skills that can enhance employment opportunities. 
• To support the development of a digital professional profile, and CV. 
• To educate students on a) the barriers to employment within refugee communities b) to raise awareness in Bolton and surrounding areas of the gaps that exists in terms of support for refugees entering the labour market c) the challenges that people with refugee status face in terms of gaining paid work. 
• To gather local employers to show case the talents and skills of people with refugee status and shine a spotlight on their talent and their journey.
• To work with other refugees agencies to enhance improve refugees career  or job opportunities 

We hope that the success of this pilot project will enable us to continue to work with local organisations and people in our communities with refugee status, to continue to develop the clinic and deliver a series of workshops and events throughout the coming years.  

Registration

 What it is

The employment support clinics will focus on delivering a series of specially designed skills development workshops and events to increase the opportunities of securing paid work for people with refugee status. 

The clinic will run for ten weeks and will start Friday from 29^th April and will run until and including Friday 1^st July, at 12.30- 2.30pm. The sessions will be classroom based but informal. 

We ask that clinic users have a good level of conversational English and that they are all able to attend the clinics regularly. 

The facilities at the Institute of management will allow us to deliver practical sessions with a focus on improving computer skills, digital skills, communicating online and networking. 

Students will work alongside the team to assist with the delivery of the workshops, to act as a ‘work mentor’ to support our clinic users with technical queries and to provide an opportunity for 121 support throughout the duration of the clinic.

The workshops will cover topics such as: 

• Confidence building ​ 
• Interpersonal skills  
• Identifying personal skills gaps ​ 
• Presentation skills  
• Computer skills ​ 
• Building digital profile (LinkedIn) ​ 
• CV writing ​and cover letters 
• Mock interviews ​ 
• Building social networks ​ 
• Engaging with employers 

To book or for more information email Kim Kershaw: k.kershaw@bolton.ac.uk