What’s happening in Afghanistan, how we’re responding and how you can help
A message from Matt Powell, CEO of Breaking Barriers
We know that many of you will be following what’s happening in Afghanistan and feeling confused, overwhelmed, and wondering the same as us, how can we help?
If you don’t know where to start, hopefully this blog helps you navigate the situation, understand how Breaking Barriers are responding and ways you can get involved.
The situation as it stands and the UK Government response
In the wake of the withdrawal of international troops from Afghanistan, there has been a rapid deterioration in the human rights of many Afghan people as the Taliban have seized power.
In response to this crisis, the UK Government announced a new resettlement scheme to welcome 20,000 Afghans to the UK – the Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme (ACRS). In the first year alone it is expected to welcome up to 5,000 Afghans who are forced to flee the country, with priority given to women and girls, and religious and other minorities, who are most at risk of human rights abuses and dehumanising treatment by the Taliban.
In addition to this approximately 15,000 people have already been evacuated from Afghanistan, with over 8000 of these being Afghan nationals who worked alongside the British Government and are eligible to remain in the UK indefinitely through what is known as the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (Arap).
Many Afghan refugees are still processing the trauma of leaving their families and lives behind, and looking for ways to integrate into their new country. Breaking Barriers wants to be ready to support them, and we need your support too.
What are Breaking Barriers’ doing and how can you help?
We’re upskilling our team
We are prioritising raising funds for and hiring a Pashto/Dari speaking Employment and Integration Adviser to support newly arrived Afghan refugees.
As the native languages of Afghanistan, this will allow these advisers to deliver 1:1 bespoke guidance, support and training to any Afghan citizens arriving without English language skills.
Shared language and culture can be critical to helping our refugee clients to feel welcomed and supported on their employment journey.
With your help we can ensure that Breaking Barriers is equipped to offer our award-winning employment support to any and all Afghan citizens who arrive in the UK and want to find work.
We are also actively seeking to increase the number of Pashto, Dari and Farsi speaking volunteers who support our work. So please do get in touch with volunteer@breaking-barriers.co.uk
We’re working with businesses
We’re calling on the business community to hire and support refugees in the UK.
At Breaking Barriers we give a central role to businesses in the UK, involving them directly in finding employment solutions and providing support that gets refugees into work.
With the crisis in Afghanistan unfolding and refugees arriving in the UK, there has never been a greater need to support these communities into employment and education.
We know refugees can make a valuable contribution to society and finding a stable job is a crucial step to ensuring they can rebuild their lives.
We’re currently partnering with over 20 business across a range of sectors from finance to retail to provide job opportunities and support for our refugee clients.
We recognise that navigating the support and hiring of refugees can be complex – so we’re here to help. Any business, big or small can help, so get in touch to find out about our hiring programmes.
Contact Jessica Ridgewell on [email protected] to find out more.
We want to thank all the people who’ve already stepped forward and offered their support and we hope in the coming weeks, months and years we’re able to offer Afghan refugees the welcome and support they deserve.
Matthew Powell, Founder and CEO, Breaking Barriers