Settlement Process

Guiding Settlement Principle:

To create and maintain a respectful, caring, and comfortable atmosphere in the Clinic where clients receive comprehensive assistance with settlement needs that fosters self-sufficiency and community integration.

Since refugee claimants are not eligible for federal or provincial immigration funded settlement services, the Clinic has become a means to provide comprehensive settlement (social and cultural) support to those in our community. While refugee claimants arrive in Canada with the long-term objective of protection, they also arrive with a number of immediate needs. This past year the Settlement Coordinator, Gillian Zubizarreta, continued to expand community partnerships, student, and volunteer involvement to better meet the settlement needs of our clients. The service model remains needs-based. This means the work of the settlement team is driven by the type of assistance clients require.

The standard and recurring Clinic programs are the English language learning classes (held at the Clinic during weeknights), educational workshops/presentations on various topics (such as tenant rights and responsibilities, working in Nova Scotia, stress management, recycling and composting, sexual health, etc.) delivered by community members who volunteer their time, and the Financial Literacy for Newcomers workshop (delivered through a partnership with the YWCA Halifax).

The fundamental aspect of the settlement services is the personalized assistance which is offered to every client. The services are provided throughout the entire refugee determination procedure (including pre and post claim) and ensure basic needs are met (food, clothing, shelter, health needs), along with providing health care brokerage, assistance with work/study/health coverage applications, income assistance brokerage and advocacy, housing support, banking support, employment counseling, tutoring services, community tours and assistance leaning how to use public transportation, referrals, and much more. These services continue to have a positive impact on the ability of our clients to secure long-term housing, employment, to access health care services, and to experience a less difficult settlement process overall.

An increasing number of refugee families, women, and children have accessed the Clinic’s services in the past year which has resulted in the need for more family focused supports. This response has included accompaniment to school registration, assistance with accessing daycare, child minding by volunteers during legal appointments, onsite family counseling provided by volunteers, and home visits to pregnant clients and families with new babies and/or young children.

We have also seen an increase in the number of clients with severe mental health challenges, which has required strengthening capacity to support these individuals through professional development and stronger relationships with mental health services in the community.

As always, the involvement of volunteers and placement students has been crucial in enabling our settlement services to respond and adapt to emerging needs resulting from fluid client demographics.

The settlement process is never exactly the same with each client as different needs arise due to the wide spectrum of refugee claimants (individuals differ in terms of  language abilities, education and knowledge, physical health, psychological state, age, perceived abilities and self-confidence, etc.). For example, a claimant may have already been living in Canada for some time and be quite settled, comfortable, and self-sufficient, while another claimant may be completely unfamiliar with life in Canada, and require assistance in many different areas.

The following questions and procedures may not apply to all clients, as explained above:

1) Initial meeting with client to assess basic needs:

• Is the client hungry? Does he or she have any urgent needs, such as a medical need, or a need for warm clothing?
• Does the client have adequate shelter for the short-term?
• Does the client know where he or she can access various services, such as free meals?
• Does the client need personal hygiene items?
• Does the client require income assistance? Does the client need to open a bank account?
• Does the client have any other support?
• Are there any other urgent needs?

Some examples of settlement assistance (including volunteer roles) at this stage:

• Connecting client with a shelter and any available free community resources
• Assisting and advocating on behalf of client throughout provincial income assistance application process
• Showing client around Halifax (for example, going through Community Help Map with client and giving a walking or public transit tour)
• Helping client navigate public transit system
• Helping client to search for apartments and/or accompanying client to apartment viewings
• Helping to set up utilities (for example, calling NS power on behalf of a client)
• Finding free or inexpensive furniture and household items
• Helping client move (transporting furniture and household items)
• Helping client access health care
• Accompanying client to medical appointments
• Accompanying client to open bank account and ensuring client understands how to use account
• Language interpreting
• Mental health Counseling

2) After basic needs of client are satisfied:

• Are family oriented services needed?
• Does the client need/want ESL (or in many cases English as a third, fourth, or fifth language) training?
• Does the client need/want a personal English tutor?
• Does the client need/want to apply for a work/study permit?
• Does the client need/want employment counselling (resume and cover letter writing, job searching, interview skills, etc.)?
• Does the client need/want training of any type?
• How is the client feeling in general? Is he or she experiencing any problems?
• Does the client need/want any other household items?
• Invite client to participate in presentations, workshops, and recreational activities organized by the Clinic
• Refer client to other service providing organizations that offer services to refugee claimants (for example, to free computer courses at the public libraries, employment counselling at the YMCA, etc.)

Some examples of settlement assistance (including volunteer roles) at this stage:

• Setting up English lessons
• Helping client to register children for school or daycare
• Assisting with job searches
• Providing presentations and workshops
• Teaching computer skills
• Organizing recreational activities
• Helping clients move (transporting furniture and household items)
• Language interpreting
• Mental health counseling

General breakdown of settlement services provided by the Halifax Refugee Clinic:

• Assisting with long-term housing
• Setting up utilities
• Registering with food bank, locating soup kitchens and clothing bank (giving community help maps to clients)
• Finding basic household items and furniture
• Setting up bank accounts
• Providing ESL classes, matching individual ESL tutors to clients
• Preparing work/study permit applications
• Providing employment counselling: creating resumes, job hunting, interview preparation
• Setting up educational presentations and workshops for clients (for example: resume writing workshop, tenant rights and responsibilities workshop)
• Promoting free or low-cost educational opportunities (for example, computer courses or lectures at the public libraries)
• Assisting with accessing health care services
• Making referrals for psychological counselling and offering in-house counselling through volunteers
• Providing interpretation services
• Making referrals to cultural societies
• Making referrals to other service providing organizations
• Organizing social/recreational activities (for example: indoor soccer team, Clinic parties, community garden program)
• Assisting clients in securing immediate/temporary shelter
• Advocating on behalf of clients in various capacities
• Assisting clients in accessing income assistance with the Department of Community Services

If you are interested in learning more about the Settlement services offered at the Halifax Refugee Clinic and/or the settlement challenges and barriers faced by refugee claimants in our community, please call Gillian Zubizarreta (Settlement Coordinator) at 422-6736.