About the Refugee Council

Founded in 1951, the Refugee Council exists to support people who come to the UK in need of safety and our purpose is to advocate with them for compassion, fairness and kindness. We achieve this by providing expert advice and casework, building the capacity of refugee community organisations, and working with allies across society to change government policy.

The Refugee Council is one of the leading organisations in the UK working with refugees and people seeking asylum.

Learn more about the Refugee Council here

About the Hotel Team

The Hotel Team forms part of the Asylum Directorate at Refugee Council and provides holistic support for clients seeking asylum in contingency accommodation, from practical support to assist them on their asylum journey, basic aid support, opportunities to learn English to advocating for their wellbeing through a number of different activities and mediums.

For nearly two years, Mears (the contract holder for delivery of asylum dispersal accommodation) have been placing newly arrived asylum seekers in a number of hotels across the Yorkshire and Humber region. This was initially in response to a shortage of dispersed accommodation at the turn of the year. Since the emergence of the COVID-19 crisis and the resulting pause on people being evicted from their asylum accommodation however, hotel use has continued to increase in the region due to a growing lack of available accommodation for new arrivals claiming asylum.

The ESOL project aims to develop a new ESOL programme bespoke to the needs of asylum seekers that will run in across two sites in Yorkshire. The project will deliver a commissioned engaging and relevant curriculum with resources. Classes will focus on practical topics such as using public transport, shopping, visiting a GP and more. In addition to this, there will be activities that explore popular culture such as music, films and art. The curriculum will be a six-month programme, as this is the average stay in hotels.

Volunteers in this role will support the ESOL coordinator in achieving the team’s aim of delivering an ESOL programme bespoke to the needs of asylum seekers.

About this role

Volunteers will have the opportunity to improve clients’ ability in English, to raise clients’ autonomy and self-esteem and to offer a friendly space for meeting and speaking English, by supporting and/or leading ESOL Conversation Clubs and activities.

What could I be doing?

• Supporting the teacher in delivering the lessons
• Encouraging clients to engage with the sessions and support students to get the most of their learning
• Helping students who need extra support to complete tasks
• Modelling examples of good English
• Organising and preparing materials for prompting conversation
• Monitoring and recording attendance and engagement
• Supporting other volunteers to engage with, and facilitate, the activities
• Attending monthly virtual peer support meetings
• Working with, and reporting back to, the Volunteer Coordinator
• Accompany clients and their families on occasional cultural and social outings
• Reporting any matters of concern about clients, staff or other volunteers to the Volunteer coordinator in a timely and professional manner

Useful skills and experience

• Experience teaching ESOL helpful but not essential
• Good level of spoken English
• Friendly and supportive manner
• Reliability
• Willingness to empathise and learn about refugee issues
• Ability to establish and maintain professional boundaries
• Good communication and interpersonal skills

Time commitment

Two hours per week on Tuesdays 12-2pm (Women’s Conversation Club) or Fridays 10-12pm (General Conversation Club).

Further planning time may occasionally be required.

You can learn more about this role by downloading our task description here [DOC].

You can apply for this role using this application form [DOC].

Interested? Contact Mohammad Juhar at mohammed.aman@refugeecouncil.org.uk for more information.