Notice about Coronavirus, March 2021

Our services are still running remotely, and you can get in touch with us by phone and email. We continue to offer virtual (phone/online) appointments, and with appropriate social distancing and cleaning measures, limited face-to-face appointments in our offices. You must have an appointment before coming to our offices. We will continue to provide remote support to clients, volunteers and other local agencies. If you find that you cannot reach us by phone, please follow up with an email to info@refugeeresource.org

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Please note that, due to the unprecedented demand for our services and since the start of COVID, we are going to implement a 3-month pause on new referrals, starting on Monday 22nd of February. The exception is for those 20 years or younger. This means that we will potentially begin taking new referrals again in mid-May.

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During this time, our priority is the safety and wellbeing of our clients and their families, particularly those most at risk, as well as our staff and volunteers. Our services team have created some updated information about support available from both Refugee Resource and our partner charity Asylum Welcome here. You will also find information in other languages and other helpful links on our Resources page.

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NEW: Notice about the COVID vaccine: Asylum Welcome and Refugee Resource are working together as both organisations are concerned about people who are known as non/un-documented and their access to the COVID-19 vaccination. We are working closely with local healthcare providers to ensure the concerns of non/un-documented people are addressed and that they are able to come forward for vaccinations without fear. If you know someone in this category or are someone who is concerned about people you know,  please contact Lucy at Refugee Resource or Navid at Asylum Welcome

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The Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (OCCG) have provided a FAQ document about the COVID-19 vaccine, including common concerns such as safety, priority and other practical questions.

What we do

Refugee Resource provides psychological, social and practical support for refugees, asylum seekers and vulnerable migrants to help them heal from trauma and suffering, and to build new lives as part of Oxfordshire’s diverse community.  

How we do it

A holistic approach:  Our range of therapeutic services work holistically together to relieve mental and emotional distress, improve well-being and empower people to connect with the local community.  Our services include counselling and psychotherapy, mentoring, specialist services for women and men, advice and advocacy support, a hardship fund for destitute clients and bursary funding so people can access training and employment. 

Client-centred: Our clients’ needs are at the centre of all decision-making. We achieve this through regular consultation with clients to shape our ways of working and service provision and via external evaluations. In 2016/17, we re-established our Refugee Advisory Board to give us feedback on our services.  

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Partnership working: We work with, and through, other organisations to provide the best possible end-to-end service for vulnerable people. We take time to plan our services and talk to other providers to avoid duplication and ensure join-up.

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Sharing our expertise: We provide training for other organisations on mental health and effective ways to work with refugees and migrants, to ensure our clients are treated with understanding and compassion when trying to establish themselves in the UK.