Page 11 - euroguidance-insight-newsletter-2015-autumn

Info4Migrants website launched

With the refugee crisis making headlines and demand for migrant services increasing, a new website aims to im-
prove access to information for migrants and career guidance professionals.

Over the last two years Aspire-inter- Easy to use, a timely resource most common spoken by migrants
national (based in the United King- The diverse needs of migrants cre- to the UK and so even non-English
dom) have been leading a project to ate various challenges for careers speakers can benefit from the infor-
develop a new online resource called advisors. How do you begin to offer mation on the website.
Info4Migrants. This work has been guidance to a person who doesn’t
funded by the EU’s Lifelong Learning speak your language? Whose skills The website was launched in Sep-
Programme and has involved part- are very different to those required tember at an event for professionals
ners in Austria, Bulgaria, Sweden, by the local labour market? Who and volunteers from across West
Finland and Spain. The purpose of comes from a country where careers Yorkshire. Attendees described the
the website is to provide up to date guidance doesn’t exist? website as ‘a much needed resource’
information for migrants in one on- that provides ‘easy access to all the
line platform. It soon became clear that the only right information’. One particular
way to address these problems community volunteer comment-
The project’s partners could never was to share specialist knowledge ed, ‘I’ve managed to make many
have imagined that the website’s and create a network of support. contacts to help me do my work
launch would coincide with the Therefore, the final website has better’ – a perfect summary of what
largest migration of people seen been designed for two main groups the Info4Migrants project set out to
since the Second World War. When - migrants and the professionals/vol- achieve.
the project started, the aim was unteers who support them. Migrants
to develop a resource for careers are signposted to the most up-to- The website is free to use.
advisers that would make their work date and reliable resources, whilst Visit www.info4migrants.com to find
with migrants more effective. The UK information on cultural backgrounds out more.
had slipped 10 places to 13th on the is provided for advisors. To make it
MIPEX ranking system that compares even easier for use, the website is Lauren Hendrie, Project Leader at
how well countries integrate mi- also available in 6 different languag- Aspire-Igen
grants. Since 2013, the UK has fallen es (English, Arabic, French, Romania, [email protected]
further and the situation for careers Polish and Urdu). These languages
advisers remains difficult. were chosen as they are some of the

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