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Women's Development Project
What was the Women’s Development Project?
What did the project do?
Why only women?
Who can access the project?
Sara's story
Women's Resource Centre
If you are interested…
What is the Women’s Development Project?
The Women’s Development Project started in July 2005, was based in Leicester and Nottingham and ended in August 2008.
The aim of the project was to work in partnership with other service providers, refugee groups and voluntary organisations in these cities to improve access to services for female asylum seekers and refugees. In addition to looking at the generic needs of refugee women throughout this three year project, there will be a special emphasis on Education provision (year one), Healthcare provision (year two) and Maternity provision (year three) in both areas. The project also aims to provide peer-mentoring support in women’s groups through a team of volunteers.
What did the project do?
The Women’s Development Project worked in a number of different areas, including:
- Together with local partners, developing new opportunities that empower women to use their existing skills and develop new competencies.
- Working with service providers to ensure that existing services and opportunities are fully accessible to female refugees and asylum seekers.
- Offering appropriate training on asylum seekers, refugees and the experiences of women to partner organisations, especially education providers and midwives and other health professionals.
- Assisting with the development of self-help and support networks for women refugees and asylum seekers.
- Providing women’s groups and other organisations who work with asylum seekers and refugees, with information on the range of services and opportunities available to female clients.
- Working directly with new and existing women’s groups, to ensure women asylum seekers and refugees can access accurate information on their rights and entitlements.
- Mentoring women within a volunteer network to empower them to achieve new skills and improve their competencies.
- Developing good referral processes into existing networks that support women with specialist needs, so that organisations working with asylum seekers and refugees can easily access them when required.
Why only women?
Refugee Action’s work with women is informed by the particular problems they face: from gender-based persecution in their country of origin, to male-biased asylum procedures in the UK, inadequate housing, child care needs and healthcare that is not culturally or gender sensitive.
Women refugees and asylum seekers are some of the most vulnerable members of our society. Many have suffered traumatic experiences and become lonely and isolated, separated from family members. Our experience has shown that many female asylum seekers and refugees are unable to access existing opportunities locally, often because of childcare or family responsibility, cultural differences or other factors.
For more information on Refugee Action’s work with refugee women and related resources, visit: campaigns > women
Who could access the project?
This was a project working with organisations and service users. Any organisation that worked with refugees and asylum seekers was able to access training and work in partnership to widen access for this group. New developments, such as information points, groups or classes, would then be accessible to all asylum seekers or refugee women and will be free, confidential and fully sensitive to their cultural needs.
Sara's story
Sara fled from Iran after religious persecution and claimed asylum in Leicester. She was helped by Refugee Action with finding emergency accommodation and through the Women's Development Project but her life has been far from easy.
Women's Resource Centre
The Women’s Resource Centre was part of the Refugee Action Project based in Leicester and Nottingham. It sought to provide a confidential support service for female asylum seekers and refugees through our team of on-site volunteer befrienders.
We provided access to courses such as ESOL (learning English) or IT (using a computer), with childcare provisions on site, and provided other events and activities throughout the year.
If you are interested…
If you want to find out more about the project/discuss the learning from it you can contact our Nottingham or Leicester office.
Nooshin Paydar, Refugee Action > Nottingham
nooshinp@refugee-action.org.uk
Nina Smith, Refugee Action > Leicester
ninas@refugee-action.org.uk
Project details
Funders
The Big Lottery Fund
Lloyds TSB Foundation for England and Wales
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Women's Development Project:
Refugee Action > Nottingham
Refugee Action > Leicester