March 20, 2025
Whittlesea Community Connections has welcomed the Australian Government’s announcement to extend its funding for the Economic Pathways to Refugee Integration program (EPRI). The funding was announced this week by Federal MP Julian Hill, the Assistant Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs and ensures Whittlesea Community Connections (WCC) can continue to help refugees settle successfully in to the outer northern regions of Melbourne.
Whittlesea Community Connections CEO, Alex Haynes, said the funding would ensure WCC could support an extra 60-80 refugees with low skills and/or low English to overcome barriers to employment and thrive in their new country.
“Working with refugees for more than 30 years we understand the challenges of securing employment when you haven’t had a chance to finish school or learn English before arriving in Australia,” she said. “You have so many settlement challenges around housing, health, caring and navigating systems it is hard to focus on employment. Through EPRI we can provide holistic support to make it possible for refugees to believe they can find a job or start a business, and then work with them to unlock opportunities – EPRI is truly changing lives in the short and long term.”
The Hon Andrew Giles MP, Member for Scullin, shares WCC’s excitement and said this is fantastic news for our community. “Already this program has made a huge impact, opening doors that otherwise would have been closed and supporting people into work. The extension will enable WCC to keep changing lives, and building a stronger community. I’m really proud of the Albanese Government’s ongoing commitment to settlement services that work with people on their terms, and help recognise their strengths.”
In 2023, when Andrew was the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, the Australian Government Department of Home Affairs funded a pilot with 20 social enterprises to deliver the EPRI program over three years. It is designed specifically to support refugees with low English and/or low skills to build a pathway to employment or self-employment. All 20 social enterprises worked together with Social Enterprise Australia to maximise the community value and impact of the pilot.
The EPRI program pilot enabled WCC to support 240 refugees to improve their English, build skills and confidence, identify their interests, tackle employment barriers and build a pathway to employment or self-employment. WCC offers tailored support, including training, volunteering, paid placements, casual and part-time roles, job search strategies, resume building, and interview techniques, equipping participants with the skills they need to secure sustainable and meaningful employment. WCC’s four social enterprises play a key role in getting participants job ready.
“One of our EPRI participants, Dalia, shared her journey with WCC(watch the video below) and highlighted how the EPRI program changed her life,” said Ms Haynes. “Dalia is now a fully qualified driving instructor with her own business. It is just one amazing story of courage, hope and determination among many that can be attributed directly to the EPRI program and its impact.”
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