Metropolis Conference Gatineau, Quebec March 13-15, 2014

1. Metropolis ConferenceGatineau, QuebecMarch 13-15, 2014 Moving Ahead A Vulnerable Immigrant Populations Program Burnaby and New Westminster British Columbia Marc Larrivée, MSW, RSW Senior Manager, Specialized Programs

2. Moving Ahead is a successor program related to a number of pilot and demonstration projects designed to serve primarily refugees that were funded wholly or in part by the Settlement and Integration Branch of the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training.

3. These pilot and demonstration projects included: • The Step Ahead Settlement Enhancement • The Refugee Youth Employment Project • The Early Years Refugee Project • All three of these provincially-funded projects were developed to serve more “vulnerable” populations of newcomers, primarily refugees.

4. Evaluation: Building on Success Moving Ahead is a direct outgrowth of the success of Step Ahead and FreeRunning and combined previous staff from those projects with new staff. In the fall of 2009, aevaluation of Step Ahead began with an emphasis on the results obtained within and across a group of client families (i.e., who would received full services through the pilot program) and a similarly-profiled ‘control group’ (i.e., who had minimal contact with staff). ‘Control group’ participants were chosen on the basis of their eligibility for services. Note, these participants were able to access other settlement services during the course of the evaluation.

5. Evaluation: Building on Success The evaluation found statistically significant differences in the breadth of responses to the questions posed in the final assessment between client and control groups, with the clientele being more likely to offer answers relative to those individuals in the control families. Likewise, the depth of understanding among client was found to be statistically significant to a much greater extent (i.e., for 85% versus 18% of the 110 response options in the assessment questionnaire). This suggested that Step Ahead had a demonstrable impact on the knowledge and understanding of refugee and immigrant families in areas that influence their success in settlement and quality of life within communities of Metro Vancouver.

6. Beginning in October 1, 2012 VIPP began in the following regions in BC: Burnaby and New Westminster (MOSAIC) Surrey, North Delta, and Langley (DiverseCity) Vancouver (SUCCESS) Tri-Cities and South Delta (ISS of BC) Abbotsford (Abbotsford Community Services) Greater Victoria (Victoria Immigrant & Refugee Centre Society) North Vancouver (North Shore Multicultural Society) Beginning on April 1, 2014, VIPP will be funded directly from Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

7. Moving Ahead is intended to serve individuals with multiple settlement needs. • It utilizes a case management model of service delivery whereby a comprehensive needs assessment of each client is done and an individual wraparound support plan is developed. • Moving Ahead is mobile. Case Managers meet with clients not only in the MOSAIC office in Burnaby, but at their homes, in the community and with other service providers.

8. MOSAIC Moving Ahead has Case Managers on staff who can communicate with clients in the following languages: • Arabic • Amharic • Dari and Pashto • English • French • Russian • Kirundi • Kinyarwanda • Kurdish • Lingala • Nuba • Swahili • Tigrinya

9. Needs Assessment: Should be comprehensive in order to gather a robust understanding and the inter-relationships of a client’s circumstances. • Planning: A Case Manager and client collaboratively determine a plan and establish priorities and goals, and the roles and responsibilities each will assume. • Monitoring: Case Managers write regular case notes together with clients periodically review their plan.

10. Advocacy: This takes place at the level of garnering the necessary resources to meet a client’s individual goals and often involves addressing systemic barriers. • Collaboration: The approach between Case Manager and client is client-centred and provides ‘ownership’ of the process to the client. • Multiple Needs: Case Management is based in the belief that clients needs are varied and complex and Case Managers will inevitably help clients address those needs by working with a diversity of service providers (wraparound support).

11. Approach must seek to build on clients natural resilience and strengths. How? • Promote social connections to family, ethno-cultural community and larger community. • Providing clients with the information and skills to adaptto their new environment. • Advocate for an environment that makes a place for this population; policy and practices that lift barriers. • Recognize clients as members of our community, not victims. • Helping client set realistic, achievable goals. • Promote bi-culturalism.

12. Information and Orientation • Service Bridging/Cultural Brokerage • Employment-Related Services • Life Skills and Essential Skills Development Group and One-on-One The service time for most client will be approximately one year.

13. MOSAIC sub-contracts with Burnaby Family Life in Burnaby and New Westminster. • MOSAIC, from its location in Burnaby, has 9 Case Managers, 6 of whom serve adult clients with families and three focused on “youth” (16-25). The youth staff work under the banner of Moving Ahead FreeRunning and their services are designed to be youth-friendly and focused. • Note, all VIPP providers in the Lower Mainland have formed an alliance and hired a coordinator. The BC VIPP Alliance shares best practices, facilitates training, coordinates services and collectively consults with the funder.

14. Program eligibility is based on both: a) immigration status and b) the complexity, multiplicity and severity of the potential client’s barriers and the challenges facing the individual.

16. BC Ministry Evaluation Questions

17. BC Ministry Evaluation Results

18. Please visit the MOSAIC website: http://www.mosaicbc.com/settlement-services/settling-canada/moving-ahead