Helping the integration of asylum seekers

Theme I summary

Helping the integration of asylum seekers. Depending on the official status of the asylum seeker—an extremely complex area, with variations between Member States—assistance may be for new ways of helping to access the labour market, or to provide training for unsuccessful asylum seekers prior to their leaving the country.

Strategic objectives

To develop an employment strategy which is appropriate to the needs of asylum seekers in the UK

Any activity to be supported under Equal must add to rather than duplicate the work funded by the European Refugee Fund and will focus on the NASS dispersal areas.

The British Equal Community Initiative Plan stresses the need to ensure that tailored provision is made available along the continuum from asylum seeker to refugee. It is important that any activities funded through Equal are developed as a means to enable asylum seekers to play a more active role in society and to enable those who become refugees to gain more rapid transition to the labour market.

Equal priority

Asylum seekers

Development Partnerships

There were 3 DPs working within Theme I in Round 1, and there are now 4 DPs in Round 2.

Resources for Theme I DPs

Theme I diary

The Equal diary lists details of current events and activities being organised by Equal Development Partnerships and the Equal Support Unit.

There are no entries in the diary at this time.

Theme I documentation

Theme I-specific resources
Description	Date	Download
All Equal resources…
Thematic update paper
This policy context update gives an overview of policy developments in relation to Theme I of Equal which have occurred since the publication of the initial Community Initiative Policy (CIP) Guidance in May 2001.	22 May ’06	158kb
Event report summary
An Equal Future for Asylum Seekers: Investing in Inclusive Communities. Theme I Good Practice and Awareness Raising Event, 30 September 2005, London.	23 Jan ’06	1.54mb
Mainstreaming Strategy
Theme I Mainstreaming Strategy Thematic Mainstreaming Strategies summarise the proposed outcomes of Equal DPs in a particular theme and show how these are targeted at policy-makers. The strategies underpin the dissemination and mainstreaming work of the individual DPs as well as their Thematic Networking Group (TNG). The strategies are presented as ‘living documents’ to be revised and updated at TNG meetings.	16 May ’05	412kb
DP/TNG meeting notes (15 Oct 2003)
Notes from Theme I DP/TNG meeting	5 Dec ’03	61kb
Inclusion Strategies for Asylum Seekers: Taking Forward Lessons from Equal
This key event took place in London on 20 May 2003 to demonstrate the innovative work being undertaken by Development Partnerships in Theme I to support asylum seekers across the UK on arrival and beyond (if they gain refugee status). The event also linked up the work of Equal DPs with local, regional and national policymakers, exploring ideas for future collaboration and mainstreaming of DPs’ outcomes.	24 Jun ’03	3.77mb
	24 Jun ’03	2.87mb
Workshop notes from Action 3 seminars (Nov 2002)
Theme I workshop notes	18 Dec ’02	45kb
DP/TNG meeting notes (April 2002)
Notes of the Theme I DP/TNG meeting	10 Dec ’02	42kb
DP/TNG meeting notes (Jan-Feb 2002)
Notes of the Theme I DP/TNG meeting	14 Mar ’02	36kb

Thematic Networking Group

Chair: Unus Goga, Deputy Director, Equal Support Unit.

European Thematic Groups

European Thematic Groups are the mechanism by which outcomes from Equal DPs are shared across all the participating countries. ETGs have been set up for each pillar of Equal, covering each GB theme as follows:

Details of the five ETGs
ETG	Covers GB themes
1. Employability	A and B
2. Entrepreneurship	C and D
3. Adaptability	E and F
4. Equal Opportunities	G* and H
5. Asylum Seekers	I

* The UK is not participating in theme G (which focuses on work-life balance issues), although a number of DPs from other themes cover this area.

Key documents on the work undertaken by each ETG so far are available for download.