BUILD BRIDGES FOR NEWCOMERS AND REFUGEES FROM AFGHANISTAN.
Afghanistan and Central Asian Association — London, UK
Helping Afghans and Central Asians prosper in the UK.
Afghanistan and Central Asian Association (ACAA) works with Afghans and Central Asians living away from their homeland, providing them with support, skills and knowledge to live and prosper in the UK.
Our wide range of services includes English language classes, employment workshops, a women’s support group, a Saturday school and homework club, youth and family support services, drop-in and telephone advice, volunteer placements, and cultural and social events. We provide outreach and visits to individuals and families in detention.
Help us break down the largest obstacle to integration and employment in a new country: the language barrier.
Are you passionate about teaching? Would you like classroom experience? Do you want to help refugees and migrants improve their language and social skills?
ESOL for Integration provides a dedicated English Speakers of Other Languages class for migrants to help them integrate into British society, with classes running in West London’s borough of Hounslow and Online. The aim of the project is to break down the largest obstacle to integration and employment in a new country: the language barrier. Classes are tailored for migrants and address other aspects of integration such as local culture, British politics and history. The classes place a heavy focus on functional skills and spoken English to enable migrants to thrive. Currently we are providing free online English classes over Zoom to help people continue their education in lockdown, reduce isolation and promote integration into the local community.
We provide 24 classes each week for a variety of levels from absolute beginner or pre-entry, Entry Level 1, Entry Level 2, Entry Level 3, and Level 1 classes. There are generally between five to ten students per class. Our teachers work hard at creating an environment where no-one is afraid to make mistakes and where everyone feels involved and included.
Find a teaching position.
ACAA is looking for enthusiastic volunteer ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) teachers, teaching assistants and project assistants to support refugees and migrants living in the UK. You can also enquire about current opportunities to be an online tutor with ACAA whilst you are taking the Citizens TESOL course.
Coordinator: Justine Seligson, integrationmanager@afghanistan-central-asian.org.uk
DID YOU KNOW:
You can see the Rosetta Stone and other ancient artifacts at the British Museum
Try your hand at deciphering this 2000-year-old decree written in stone. The top and middle texts are in Ancient Egyptian while the bottom is in Ancient Greek. The British Museum was established in 1753 as the first public national museum in the world, and some of its other famous artifacts include Egyptian mummies and the Parthenon Sculptures.
“The challenges I faced as a refugee trying to integrate into British society motivated me to action.”
A MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR
Our vision at the Afghanistan and Central Asian Association is fair treatment for all refugees who enter the UK. We seek improved quality of life for refugees, including successful integration into their host countries, improved human rights in the Afghan diaspora and in Afghanistan itself. All of ACAA’s projects, from citizens advice centres in Afghanistan to homework clubs and Saturday schools in the UK, seek to achieve this.
This commitment stems from my own journey: I arrived in the UK in 1999 as a refugee, unable to speak a word of English. While studying English at Lewisham College, the challenges I faced as a refugee trying to integrate into British society motivated me to action. I founded ACAA in 2001 to focus on the needs that I felt were unfulfilled when I first arrived as a refugee.
Equipped with a law degree from Southbank University, I was determined to make a meaningful contribution to improving the quality of life for refugees in the UK and for the people of Afghanistan. Ever since, our organisation has worked to advance this mission in areas whether in education and employment, or social cohesion.
Though we have achieved a lot, there is still much to do. With the support of people across the UK and in Afghanistan and Central Asia, I am confident that we can continue to go from strength to strength and make a real difference to the lives of the people we help.
— Dr. Nooralhaq Nasimi
As a grassroots charity, we work with families, communities and organisations across the UK and Afghanistan to tackle the problems directly affecting migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers and their root causes. Our work frees refugees and newcomers from the isolating feelings which can come with migration.
— Afghanistan and Central Asian Association