Annual Report 2014

Transcription

Annual Report 2014
Annual Report
2014
metropolitan MIGRANT resource centre inc
Designed by Dessein
Contents
Funding and Support
2
Management Committee
3
Organisation Objectives
3
Chairperson’s Report
4
Director’s Report
5
Employees, Contractors, Casuals, Students and Volunteers
6
Programs
7
• Settlement Grant Program (SGP) 9
–– Generalist Program
9
–– Youth Program
9
• Multicultural Support – Community Services Sector
12
• Family and Community Support
13
–– Counselling
13
–– Parenting Service
13
–– Community Group Work
14
14
–– Community Education, Peer Education
15
–– Theatre for Social Change
15
• Leadership Empowerment and Development (LEAD Program)
15
• Multicultural Parents and Children English Program (MPAC)
17
• Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network WA (MYANWA) Project
17
• Childcare Bicultural Support Program 18
• Cultural Diversity Training
18
• Bilingual Workers
18
• Film Club
18
• Community Detention Program (CDP)
19
• Immigration Advice and Application Assistance Scheme (IAAAS) 20
Sundry Programs and Activities
20
Auditor’s Report
21
Financial Statements
24
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
• Sharing Stories
Funding and Support provided by:
Australian Health Promotion Association
• Health Promotion Scholarship
Australian Red Cross
• Community Detention Program
Centre for Multicultural Youth
• Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network
Child Australia
• Provision of Bicultural Support to Childrens Services in WA
Department of Health WA
• Sharing Stories Sexual Health Community Support Project
Department of Immigration and Border Protection
• Immigration Advice and Application Assistance Scheme
Department of Local Government and Communities
• Multicultural Support – Community Services Sector
• Family and Community Support (FaCS)
Department of Social Services
• Humanitarian Settlement Services
• Generalist Settlement Grants Program
• Youth Settlement Grants Program
• Family Reunion Migration
• Community Leadership Development Program
Department of Sport and Recreation
• Youth Sport Engagement and Development Program
Lotterywest
• Emergency Relief Grant
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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Swan Alliance
• Conversational English Program
WA Police
• FILM Program
Fee for Service
• Cultural Diversity Training
Membership
• Individuals and community groups with a commitment to settling refugees
Volunteers
• Individuals, community groups, church groups and organisations assisting families in a practical way
Management Committee
Janet Pettigrew
Chairperson, appointed 2011
Errol James
Vice Chair, elected 2012
Albert Meyerkort
Secretary, appointed 2011
Jann McFarlane
Treasurer, elected 2011
Ahmed Yassin
Appointed October 2013
Christine Ockenfels
Elected October 2013
Foreman Foto
Appointed 2012
Iqbal Samnakay
Appointed February 2014
Umile Gwakuba
Elected 2012
Our Vision
An inclusive and harmonious community that accepts and values migrants and their contributions, and in which
migrants are active participants in Australian community life.
Our Purpose
To facilitate the settlement and participation of migrants, especially humanitarian entrants and their
communities in Western Australia.
Our Objectives
Our vision focuses on the wellbeing of each and every person; on individuals. Indeed, many of our services
support individuals.
However, we recognise that to achieve our vision and purpose we cannot just focus on family and individual support. We
need, also to contribute to an environment in which communities have the capacity to support themselves, and where those
organisations that provide support and opportunities in Western Australia are as effective for our target group as they are for
anyone else.
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i. on individuals;
ii. their communities and
iii. the large number of “mainstream” organisations (including government and non government) that can provide support
and opportunities.
Accountability by taking personal and professional responsibility for our actions, maintaining a consistently high level of
performance.
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
Therefore, our first three Objectives focus
Chairperson’s Report
With our new Strategic Plan in hand MMRC proceeded
enthusiastically into this new year. But as always, life gets in
the way and a couple of factors made us slow down and move
forward carefully. The first to dent our momentum was that
several of our funding grants were due to expire either at the end
of December or at the end of the financial year, and the second
was the federal election. With the change of government and
their many statements about cuts and belt tightening for many
sectors meant that we had to be financially cautious. We were
therefore unable to spend any money to develop our capacity
or expand our services, as quickly as we had hoped, in the
directions proposed by our Strategic Plan.
So, as the year continued and still no funding rounds
were opened, we proceeded very gently and with the
cooperation of our wonderful staff we managed to rein in
our expenses. I would like to thank every staff member for
their contribution over this past year.
To pursue the wider opportunities as stated in the Strategic
Plan, MMRC has:
• Commenced discussions with country towns in the
South West and in the Wheatbelt, looking for ways to
work together to build our joint capacities, skills and
scope.
• We have surveyed the broader settlement market
to understand the gaps that exist, whether it be for
students or for skilled migrants
• We have been in talks with colleagues who provide
specialist CALD Employment services looking at
opportunities to work together to build our knowledge
and capacity.
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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• We have increased our linking role using our SGP
information sessions to increase the readiness of our
clients for employment and we have the excellent
services of Darryll Stephens, a very experienced
employment services professional, to work on an
individual basis on their job ready skills.
And then in February 2014 MMRC became a flurry of
activity when the Humanitarian Settlement Service Tender
was announced. The North Metropolitan Perth was the
only HSS contract region in Australia that the Department
of Social Services opened for tender. And to our great
delight and relief, in May we signed the contract. With the
new program came the hiring of new staff and rebuilding
infrastructure to support them in their work. The transitionin period also included the investment in new Information
Technology and four new vehicles. The new program
needed to be accommodated and so the decision was
made to transform the Youth and Family Centre into the
HSS office.
So in all we finished the financial year on a very positive
note.
The three members whose turn it is to rotate off the
Management Committee at this year’s Annual General
Meeting having completed our 3 year term are Jann
McFarlane, Albert Meyerkort and myself. I would like to
thank them for their valuable input and support during
the time they were involved. To my fellow committee
members, the staff and volunteers, I greatly appreciated
your dedication and support working towards this valuable
endeavour of the MMRC.
Janet Pettigrew
Chairperson
Director’s Report
I am pleased that the year has finished and thankfully it came to
an end on a very positive note. Across our 10 programs during
the year, we provided service to 1,185 clients, 270 attended
our information sessions, 863 young people participated in our
activities and more than 888 participated in our Cultural Diversity
training workshops. That is, we provided a service to over 3,200
people.
The year was not easy. Not only did we have to be
financially restrained to remain within our budget targets,
but we were also very unsure about the future size of the
organisation in 2014/15.
This placed the majority of the daily supervision of our
program staff to Eric Imani, our Executive Manager. His
willingness and forbearance to significantly increase his level
of hands-on responsibility has been greatly appreciated.
As we began 2014, we only had 4 programs for which we
had funding that would continue into the next year. They
were:
So it was a great relief for us all, when gradually
notifications started to come through. The Sharing Stories
grant was extended for another year, the Community
Detention Program was extended twice so that it is funded
until December 2014, LEAD our Youth Leadership program
was extended for 6 months, the Immigration Application
Assistance and Advice Service was rolled over for another
3 years. And then to cap it all off, in May we were informed
that we were the successful tenderer to provide the
Humanitarian Settlement Service for the North Perth and
northern region WA.
• Multicultural Support – Community Services Sector
• Family and Community Support
• Multicultural Parents and Children English Program
The grants and contracts that were due to terminate at
30th June 2014 or before, were:
• Community Detention Program
• LEAD
• Sharing Stories
• Immigration Application Advice and Assistance program
• Film Club
• Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network WA
We had submitted a number of tender responses during
the year but the decisions from the departments were not
forth-coming, added to that, the standard grant rounds
which we expected each year had not opened.
At about the same time, when our Manager of Programs
Chris Konrad decided to move inter-state, it was decided
not to replace him and to remove that level of management.
So we have finished another successful year, in terms of
services we provided for our clients, with a very positive
expectation of a productive year to come.
What I am truly grateful for is that I never feel that I am
alone when having to tackle the vagaries that confront the
settlement sector and community organisations in general.
To my Chair, Janet Pettigrew and all the members of the
Management Committee, I thank you for your generous
support, clear direction and the fun throughout the year.
And secondly, to the fantastic team at MMRC, none of
the great work that has been done this year would have
been possible without your dedication, connections,
understanding and hard work. I would like to heartily
thank you all for the great effort that each one of you has
contributed.
Michael O’Hara
Director
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
• Settlement Grants Program – providing casework,
referrals, information and youth programs
Employees
Staff
Casuals
Agnes Appudurai
Senior Admin Officer
Aayesha Gaffoor
Ahmed Cheaib
HSS Case Coordinator
Amani Divanian
Ahmed Fadlalla
SGP Generalist Officer
Amena Marial
Ali Jan Khandad
CDP Case Worker
Amparito Caicedo Perez
Ali Reza Hussaini
CDP Case Worker
Arzu Kocak
Anne Sorenson
Sharing Stories Coordinator
Athy Tun
Annie Neleman
SGP and IAAAS Migration Agent
Birikhti Winta Habtay
Ashleigh Haw
MYANWA Project Officer
Brigitte Tha Heh
Catherine Chakulunta
SGP Youth Community Development Officer
Chaojian Hong
Celeste Dzvangah
Youth and Parent Engagement Officer
Deba Mher
Celestin Ngoga
SGP Generalist Officer
Eh Yout May Htoo
Chris Konrad
Manager of Programs
Farida Abubakar
Christelle Collet
Volunteer and Bilingual Coordinator
Fatme Awada
Daffodil Ahwha
Reception and Information Officer
Frishta Akbary
Eh Soe Kyat Oo
HSS Case Coordinator
Geetika Yadav
Elaine Joy Atkins
HSS Housing Officer
Golda Signal
Elizabeth Scully
HSS Admin Officer
Hadia Masud
Eric Imani
Executive Manager
Hasnaa Almansour
Farah Zeitoon
Finance Officer
Ihsan Khalil
Florence Muvandi
SGP Coordinator
Josephine Doe
Gabi Wiedemann
Family and Community Support Worker
Joujou Dogbe-Tsogbe
Hailemeskel Ghebremichael Cleaner
Kler Mya
Hanan Abu-Laban
Multicultural Support Community Services
Labiba Divanian
Isabella Mandungu
Sharing Stories Youth Educator
Lenny Kamir
Jasna Hodzic
CDP Coordinator and HSS Housing Coordinator
Leeda YosufiFamily Support Service Community
Development Worker
Linda Cook
CDP Admin Officer
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Marie Hayes
HSS Orientation Coordinator
Marlene Cunningham
HSS Accommodation Support Officer
Masiha Minhaj
SGP Generalist Officer
Meagan Roberts
Sharing Stories Project Researcher
Michael O'Hara
Director
Mzingisi Mqhum
SGP Youth Project Officer
Nadia Farooq
SGP Generalist Officer
Nasrin Naseri
HSS Case Coordinator
Olwyn Heredi
CDP Senior Caseworker and HSS Coordinator
Paul Rafferty
HSS Manager
Rasha Saweris
SGP Generalist Officer
Renjit Kumar
IAAAS Migration Agent
Runya Marimo
HSS Admin Officer Housing
Saba Rahi
Training Coordinator
Say Paw Hay
SGP Generalist Officer
Shahnaz Kazemi
Reception and Informaiton officer
Stephany Oromo
SGP Community Projects Officer
Suhair Mustafa
SGP Generalist Officer
Tsige Gebremeskel
Cleaner
Yvonne Kweeta Johnson
Sharing Stories Community Educator
Mahboubeh Seydalzadeh
Margaret Sam-bindi
Maria Sein
Mariam Shalemie
Mashair Fadlalla
Mu Lay
Nazle Samir Hourani
Nemat Ibrahim Mossa
Norma Cordero Cuadros
Parham Peirovi Milani
Parwin Omar
Pauline Ariyaratnam
Ping Biffin
Pratima Kumari Gupta
Qiong He
Rosaline Ayyami
Rose Ruby Lee
Sadia Saleh
Safiya Ahmed Essa
Saleha Khateri
Samara Assafiri
Samia Mustafa
Sara Fatemian
Saw David Ohn Ba
Sein Aung Moe
Contractors
Arwa Al-Hanbali
Coordinator Child Care Bilingual Workers
Somaya Khateri
Judi Kellond
Senior Finance Officer
Spogmai Walizada
Nancy Jones
Blue Moon Film and Video
Sumaira Nasim
Susan Fahnbulleh
Tax Help
Simon Kandiah
Casuals
Suzanne Pickering
Tarjani Mistry
Migration Agents Pro Bono
Roger Jewell
Ibrahim Kakay
Gabrielle Lim
Marlene Marcus
Terese Micallef
Theresa Sharp
Thi Truc Linh Phan
Tim Thomas
Tina Mirmotalebi Sohi
Tyler Fisher
Yaniet Tesfazghi
Yaping Jiang
Programs
Yonas Tesfamariam
Yuxia Liang
Zaid Al-Hanbali
Humanitarian Settlement Services (HSS)
Students on Field Placement
Aime Robininson
Edith Cowan Joondalup
Alicia Albrecht
Fremantle TAFE
Amena Marial
West Coast Institute of Training
Clive Lawrence
UWA
Daniel Moroney
UWA
Heather Whewell
Tabor College
Helen Skoog
Challenger TAFE
Isabel Lo
Polytechnic West Midland
Maxwell Mujawo The University of Nortre Dame
Melissa PakirisamyCentral Institute of Technology
Leederville
Phun Tial
Polytechnic West Midland
Roopmatee BijadhurPolytechnic West Midland
Sabrina ThomsonHamburg University of Applied
Sciences
Sumaya AliGirrawheen Senior High School
Xueli Cheng
UWA
Volunteers
Ai Luyn Choo
Alex Towongo
Alexx Mubanga
Caloger Radici
Carlo Jogee
Curtis Taylor
Don-Emmanueal Smith
Donnavin Robertson
Grace Barbe
Graham Lamb
Jenny Nguyen
Jesse Hults
Leah Cole
Luke Tressler
Mary Chetcuti
Nina Henschel
Rasha Hanbali
Tiffany Devlin
From 6 June 2014, the Metropolitan Migrant
Resource Centre (MMRC), contracted through the
Department of Social Services, commenced delivery
of the Humanitarian Settlement Services (HSS)
programme.
MMRC aims to operate a holistic model of service
delivery, with the core goal being to provide client
specific, individualised and tailored pathways that
assist newly arrived humanitarian entrants to settle
into the Western Australian community, become
self-sufficient and participate fully in all aspects of
Australian life. A key focus is on equipping new
arrivals with knowledge and life skills, to effectively
link into local networks, access services and
resources and to support them in gaining economic
independence and social cohesion.
Clients holding the following visas are eligible for
HSS:
–– Refugee (visa subclasses 200, 201, 203 and
204)
–– Special Humanitarian Program (visa subclass
202) To be considered for an SHP visa the
principal applicant must be proposed for entry by
an Australian citizen or permanent resident over
the age of 18 years.
–– Unaccompanied Humanitarian Minors (UHM)
A UHM is a child under 18 years of age who
has entered Australia without a relative to care
for them.Under the Immigration Guardianship
of Children (IGOC) Act 1946, the Minister for
Immigration is the guardian of the child and can
authorise decisions on their behalf.
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
Zeina Alardah
Three broad types of services are combined to deliver the
HSS programme. These include:
basic package of Household Goods to assist them to
establish their new place of residence in Australia.
• Case Management - under which entrants receive
many of their early and critical services including on
arrival reception, referrals to Centrelink, AMEP and
Humanitarian Entrant Health Service. As a core service,
case management coordinates the delivery of other
services provided through the HSS program including
orientation.
• Local Area coordination – which plays a leading
role in promoting collaborative working relationships
with other settlement and community organisations
and key government agencies to achieve sustainable
settlement outcomes for clients in key areas such as
housing, employment education and English language
proficiency.
• Accommodation Services - which assists entrants
to secure stable and affordable accommodation that is
appropriate to their needs and provides entrants with a
In 2013/4 MMRC commenced services to over 100 clients.
The main country of birth for these clients and languages
spoken are provided in the table and chart.
Country of Birth – HSS Clients June 2014
Country of Birth
Special
Humanitarian
Program 202
Refugee Visas
200,201,204
HSS Clients: Language Spoken June 2014
Total
MYANMAR
19
25
44
AFGHANISTAN
4
24
28
IRAN
8
1
9
CONGO
5
5
ERITREA
4
4
ETHIOPIA
4
4
IRAQ
3
SUDAN
4
4
SOMALIA
2
2
EGYPT
1
1
KENYA
PALESTINIAN
AUTHORITY
SOUTH SUDAN
1
1
Total
55
4
Other
17%
Karen
22%
Pashto
5%
Tigrinya
6%
Arabic
6%
Dari
21%
1
1
1
1
53
108
Farsi
10%
Chin
13%
1
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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HSS Team: Elaine Atkins, Jasna Hodzic, Paul Rafferty, Olwyn Heredi, Elizabeth Scully, Ahmad Cheaib,
Runya Marimo, Nasrin Naseri, Marlene Cunningham, Eh Soe Kyat Oo, Marie Hayes
Settlement Grant Program (SGP)
Youth Program
Generalist Program
Sports
The SGP Generalist program is funded by the Department
of Social Services (DSS). The program provides settlement
services, case work, referrals, advocacy and links clients
with training and information sessions on a wide range of
topics.
The SGP Youth program provides services to young people
aged 8-25 years from migrant and humanitarian entrant
backgrounds. The service assists all eligible SGP clients
to integrate, participate in mainstream activities, contribute
positively into society and reduce isolation. This is achieved
through a range of sports and arts activities - to engage,
mentor and build leadership skills in the young people.
MMRC provides this service from our office in Mirrabooka
and as an outreach service in Clarkson, Ellenbrook,
Banksia Grove, Ballajura and Lockridge.
The program aims to facilitate the access to mainstream
services and support smooth settlement in Australia for
clients from refugee and humanitarian backgrounds who
have lived in Australia for less than 5 years.
The SGP generalist program has run information sessions
on the following topics:
• Learner drivers
• Computer classes for adults
• Dental hygiene
• Insurance
• Renting vs buying houses
• Women’s health
• Tenancy law and responsibility
• Transport
• Utility bills and finance
• Racial profiling
The service operates across the northern suburbs and is
funded by the Department of Social Services.
Arts
• The School Art / Life skills program is a 5 weeks
school-based project where primary and high school
students engage in various art activities. The project
is aimed at addressing issues of social isolation and
marginalisation within school premises. The youth team
liaises with different schools and tailor the art activities
to school values and participant needs. The project is
delivered by using leadership and mentoring principles
as tools to engage participants. Each week explores
a different leadership principle using different forms of
artistic activities such as; paper collage, thumb print
artwork, 3D snowflakes and rotational peer reflection
drawing. This year the program attracted 60 participants
from the following schools; Eddystone, Nollamara and
Koondoola Primary Schools.
• Employment and redundancy
• Fraud and identity theft
• Parenting and raising children in Australia
• Becoming Job Ready
The support groups that were offered:
• Seniors’ Activities for the Karen community
• Young men’s sports program
• Sewing program for women
Overall, in this financial year, 250 clients participated in
the information sessions and workshops and we provided
case-work services to 458 clients through 890 contacts.
The SGP team would like to thank our partners and those
who have worked closely with us to offer these services,
such as Ishar, Northern Suburbs Legal Community Centre,
City of Stirling, Headspace Midland, Cancer Council,
Relationships Australia, Ngala, City of Wanneroo, City of
Swan, Franklyn Scholar, Stanley College, PVS, LearnEd,
WA Police, DSS, Department of Health, Department
of Human Services, Office of Multicultural Interest,
Multicultural Housing Services, Centrelink, ASeTTS,
Edmund Rice Centre, Employment Law Centre and the
Australian Red Cross.
Art Program at Koondoola Primary School
• The Magazine project is an arts/media project
focused on creating a magazine by young people from
CaLD backgrounds. It aims at informing the public on
many aspects and differences of culture among new
and emerging communities in Western Australia. The
project comprised a team of 8 participants who met
regularly to discuss topics based on issues affecting
old and newly arrived migrants. The participants learnt
how to plan, document ideas and create their own
magazine.They created two magazines with information
on community updates, nutrition, fashion, business,
food and recipes.
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
The Certificate training programs in which our clients
participated:
–– Aged care
–– Hospitality
–– Children’s Services
–– Warehouse skills
• Star Search is a new project which creates an
opportunity for young people to show case their artistic
talents as singer, musician, dancer and actor. The
performers are mentored, coached and counselled by
professional musicians, choreographers and dancers
over a period of two months leading up to the Grand
Finale. The program is structured such that there are
mini competitions within this overall competition. Certain
achievements during the rehearsal and coaching stages
are awarded to give incentives to work harder.
Star Search 2014 kicked off with 49 young people
auditioning; with 12 professional artists /mentors
engaged during the competition; and 9 sponsors
as contributors towards the mini awards. The
Professional artists coached the participants in groups
and individually on the following topics: health and
personal hygiene, stage presence, costumes, originality,
dance and vocal techniques. During the semi-final,
the participants performed in front of a panel of 5
judges who coached and mentored them during the
competition. The ten finalists were chosen not only
according to the quality of their performances, but also
according to the development they had shown as artists
and their commitments as participants on the program.
locations; Greenwood Senior High School; Aranmore
College (IEC); Aranmore College (EAL/D); Mirrabooka
Senior High School; Clarkson Library; Mirrabooka
Library.
• 2014 Mentoring and Leadership Camp was held
at Woodman Point Recreation Camp, Munster WA.
MMRC’s annual camps are themed to encourage
participants, audience and the presenters alike to
exchange ideas and information on issues affecting
youth. This year’s theme was cyber bullying which
prompted dialogues on instances, impacts and laws of
cyber bullying. Presentations also focused on fostering
the culture of respect amongst youth.
Sports
• It was a summer to remember for all those who
participated in the 2014 Multicultural Indoor Soccer
Tournament, as the Sword Boys FC triumphed again
for the second time in succession. The games were
thoroughly entertaining, dramatic, at times funny, but
above all succeeded in bring together under the one
roof a wildly enthusiastic multicultural crowd.
Another debutant team, Senegal United FC, was
afforded the opportunity to take part in the tournament.
Senegal United FC was placed second on their first
attempt, a great result indeed. Now, having had time to
allow their achievement to sink in, their spokesperson
reflected on their success. He said, “It took a couple
of days to realise what happened. Anyway, we are
very encouraged that an organisation like MMRC is
able to organise an event such as this to engage our
young people. More of such opportunities are needed
for youth with relocation experiences. Already we are
looking ahead to next year, to what we hope will be a
successful tournament for our team.” Congratulations to
all participants and prize winners.
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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Star Search 2014 top 10 Finalists
Winning the Trophy
• Homework Hut is an after school support program
which offers help with homework, assignments and
assessments for young people. It runs in selected library
and school locations. The tutors are all volunteers. The
program is still growing and has had approximately 100
participants so far. Homework Hut runs at the following
• The Multisport Program is aimed at engaging migrant
youth in sport and active recreation. It does so through
a number of ways including: (i) working with local teams
from various sporting codes to create sustainable sport
development pathways for Settlement Grant Program
(SGP) eligible youth; (ii) identifying and eliminating
cultural barriers that impact the retention levels of
migrant youth who join local clubs; (iii) encouraging
representatives from local teams to MMRC organised
sporting sessions (e.g. training/clinic/tournament) to
come and appeal to and scout for potential players.
• Initially the Youth Development Program was run
weekly at Des Penman Reserve, Nollamara for twenty
weeks. It is inspired by the desire to provide a friendly
outlet for migrant youth to engage in sport and active
recreation on a regular basis. Also, this program aims to
work in conjunction with schools and other stakeholders
to provide sustainable pathways for migrant youth to
partake in sports and active recreation.
Collecting tennis balls
• School Holiday Programs (SHP) is designed to
engage eligible participants in sports during school
breaks. Children with limited English have benefited
from this program because it provides an opportunity to
build friendship and support. MMRC continues to liaise
with different sporting codes to run modified sessions
and/or clinics during these periods. While there has
been consistent involvement from AFL footy, soccer
and basketball, in 2013-2014 we have seen interest
from other sporting codes. Tennis West conducted a
successful four weeks clinic at the beginning of the year.
• As a Referral Agent for KIDSPORT Scheme, we
continue to liaise with local sporting clubs to create
opportunities for migrant youth to participate in sport.
This year alone, with all things considered, we registered
over twenty young people to different clubs.
Date (Month)
No. of sessions
No. of participants
September 2013-October 2013
5
24
On-going
On-going
On-going
Koondoola Primary Art Program
October 2013-Novemeber 2013
5
24
Nollamara Primary Art Program
October 2013-November 2013
5
16
June 2013-July 2014
10
5
February 2014 – March 2014
16
80
May 2014
1
130+
October 2013- January 2014
8
13
On-going every school term
On-going every
school term
80+
Eddystone Primary School Art
Program
Networking meetings
Magazine Project
Star Search Auditions + Workshops
Star Search Grand Finale
Dance Program
Homework Hut (various locations)
Leadership & Mentoring Camp
Australian Football Clinics
Basketball 3-on-3 Mini Games
April 2014
1
18
April - May 2014
2
16
September - October 2013
3
22
Badminton Clinics and Games
May - June 2014
2
18
Multisport Indoor Sport
March - July 2014
7
70
February 2014
1
180
May - June 2014
9
100
Multicultural Indoor Soccer
Tournament
School holiday Sport Program
Soccer Clinic
Tennis Clinic and Games
Youth Development Program
May 2014
1
24
October 2013-January 2014
8
13
November 2013 - February 2014
21
30+
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
Group Activity
Tennis Clinic
SGP Team: Rasha Saweris, Ahmed Fadlalla, Catherine Chakulunta, Say Paw Hay, Stephany Oromo,
Celestin Nogoa, Mzingisi Mqhum, Florence Muvandi (Absent: Masiha Minhaj and Nadia Farooq)
Multicultural Support – Community Services
Sector
The Multicultural Support – Community Services Sector
service is funded by the Department of Local Government
and Communities to enhance the capacity of organisations
to engage and work with clients from culturally and
linguistically diverse background in a competent and
appropriate manner.
Multicultural Support is offered through a range of activities
that are flexible so that it is able to respond to the unique
needs of the diverse range of community services.
The service provides:
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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• Formal half day or one day Cultural Awareness training,
generic or specialised that can be tailored to the
organisation’s needs. We have an experienced team of
presenters from a variety of cultures who can share their
experience and knowledge of cultural/religious issues
and sensitivities
• One on one consultations, coaching or agency
information sessions
• Workplace training to provide service providers hands
on experience with Culturally and Linguistically Diverse
(CaLD) communities through outings, and fun activities.
Service providers can interact with individuals in an
informal and friendly environment whilst gaining first
hand knowledge and skills to be able to work in a
culturally sensitive manner
• Workplace based workshops
This year the service provided over one hundred different
activities, ranging from whole day formal Cultural
Awareness trainings to individual coaching. This training
was provided to more than twenty different community
sector organisations.
In February, the Multicultural Support service partnered with
MYAN WA, the City of Swan and the Ballajura Community
Centre to organise the Youth Settlement Forum. The
forum was attended by 124 service providers from a
wide range of state government, local government and
non-government organisations. Ms Jenni Perkins, Actg.
Commissioner for Children and Young People opened the
forum which focused on the settlement needs of newly
arrived humanitarian youth in the WA community. The
speakers included;
• Dr Lisa Hartley and Dr Caroline Fleay from Curtin
University who presented on a research into the
complex needs of young asylum seekers living in the
Australian community;
• Nadine Liddy, the National Coordinator of MYAN
Australia, who presented about MYAN Australia’s
national consultation for a Youth Settlement Framework
which is currently under development.
During the afternoon there were break-out sessions on
the themes of educational attainment, racism/community
acceptance, and justice issues.
Access to the service is through referral from MMRC staff,
external agencies and self-referrals. Telephone counselling
and home-visit services are available.
A series of community consultations was organised to
discuss parenting challenges seen through the eyes of
CaLD parents and the gaps they perceive in the parenting
systems. This needs analysis was documented and
presented to the department and other relevant services.
This year the counsellor provided service to 166 clients, 96
female and 70 male (5 % increase for male participation,
compared to last year).
Harmony Day at Herb Graham Recreation Centre Mirrabooka
Family and Community Support
Funded by the Department of Local Government and
Communities, the Family and Community Support program
provides services for individuals and for groups.
Counselling
The counselling service offers support to families and
individuals where they are able to discuss their individual
and/or their family circumstances. The discussions enable
our clients to identify and build on their strengths, receive
relevant information to enhance their knowledge and a
place to build their skills.
The issues that were most commonly dealt with were:
The clients came from the following cultural backgrounds:
• Afghanistan
• Kenya
• Burundi
• Lebanon
• Bosnia
• Myanmar
• Brazil
• Palestine
• China
• Pakistan
• Columbia
• Sierra Leone
• Congo
• Somalia
• Croatia
• South Africa
• Egypt
• Sri Lanka
• Eritrea
• Sudan
• Ethiopia
• Taiwan
• Ghana
• Togo
• India
• Uganda
• Iran
• United Emirates
• Iraq
• Vietnam
• Israel
• Zimbabwe
• Jordan
Parenting Service
MMRC is very aware that being an effective parent does
not come automatically and that parenting young children
and teenagers is very demanding. We believe parenting
is like any other skill, it comes with plenty of practice and
experience. There is no simple guidebook on how to
become a good parent.
The MMRC service empowers parents with effective child
management so that both parent and child feel respected
and the children develop a sense of right and wrong,
helping them to act with consideration. Teaching parents
how to communicate positively with their children is one of
the first steps to grow happy families.
• Relationship and
parenting
• Postnatal Depression
The parenting service includes:
• Career
• How to communicate positively
• Parent child conflict
• Accommodation and
housing
• Tips to find appropriate ways of managing and enjoying
our young
• Immigration
• Teaching the skills to guide children’s behaviour
• Teenager issues
• Conflict resolution and
communication
• Anxiety
• Decision making process • Social isolation
• Anger management
• Financial and legal
• Domestic violence
• Grief and loss
• Family separation and
divorce
• Physical health
• Information on child development and children’s needs
at different ages
• Referral for more specific parenting needs
This service has been delivered in two different ways, either
clients attended single counselling sessions to discuss
individual parenting needs or they have been attending a
psycho-educational group to build confidence and learn
new skills to effectively manage their own parenting needs.
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
MS-CSS coordinator actively participates in a range of
networks, such as Social Inclusion, Celebrating Diversity,
CaLD youth engagement in education, East Metro CaLD
network, African Learning Circle, Department of Human
Services Consultative Forum and the Mirrabooka Harmony
Day Celebrations Committee.
All together there were 360 sessions.
Community Group Work
The community program provides a range of different
psycho-educational group settings to enhance knowledge,
confidence and life skills. These groups are developed in
response to the client’s needs, to enable the participants to
build their capacity and manage current and future issues.
The Groups offered were:
• Playground safety (Burmese and African communities)
• What is a healthy relationship and how to maintain it
(Burmese and African communities)
• Parents and children holiday activities (African
community)
The Cooking program provided participants with
information on nutrition and at the same time parenting
issues. Each group met over 8 weeks with 15 - 20 women
participating.
The program was run in partnership with the MMRC SGP
team and the City of Wanneroo. At the end of each group
the participants received a copy of their own Cook Book.
The participants were a mix of ethnic backgrounds, such
as: Afghans, Burmese, Egyptian, Iranian and Iraqis.
Playground excursion after the playground safety discussion
Cooking Class
Cook Book launch
Workshop
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Sharing Stories
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
• Parenting in a new country (Afghan, African, Burmese,
Iraqi, Iranian communities)
The Sharing Stories project has been running from late
2008 and since then has received continual funding as a
result of its invigorating and inspiring approach towards
community education in regards to relationships and
sexual health. Sharing Stories aims to equip young
people, parents and community members with skills and
knowledge to become peer educators within their own
communities.
The Sharing Stories project continues to:
• Provide sensitive sexual health education and
information using a variety of strategies through the
Women’s Drama, Youth Drama and other engaging
activities targeting youth and the community.
• Raise awareness and enhance knowledge of sexual
health issues amongst different populations within
migrant, new and emerging communities in Perth
through information sessions, camps, training and
information stalls at community events.
• Increase the skills of our Community and Youth Peer
Educators to deliver sexual health awareness raising
programs to CaLD groups through training and support
in the techniques of using theatre and in sexual health
information.
• Work towards the goal of developing a sustainable
project in sexual health education run by local CaLD
communities by ‘growing’ knowledgeable Community
Educators through the HIV Awareness training program
which has now formed into a HIV Network group.
The above are achieved through a holistic and community
development approach, utilising community members
and established community groups, in collaboration with
other service providers and the MMRC SGP/ Community
Development team.
Strategies include: Community Education, Youth Theatre,
Peer Education programs, Professional Development and
Education Resources.
Community Education, Peer Education
The Sharing Stories has continued the HIV train-the-trainer
program (in partnership with WA AIDS Council) which has
attracted many leaders and members in the community.
With the on-going support of the Community Educator,
a HIV Network group was created in which graduated
participants can continue to meet at MMRC to receive
peer support from one another in delivering HIV awareness
programs for their own communities.
The Sharing Stories facilitated peer education through stalls
at community events. In providing quick, approachable,
life-skills information at these stalls, the community and
young people who engage with their stall walk away with
strong ‘safe-relationships’ messages. This approach has
been continuously offered at the Beatball event held once
a month in Mirrabooka through a partnership with the
Herb Graham Recreation Centre and has been provided at
various stalls around the Perth metropolitan area.
Theatre for Social Change
Young Women’s Leadership Camp
The Sharing Stories Youth Theatre Ensemble uses drama to educate and explore the complex world of relationships for
multicultural young people, families and communities living in Western Australia. Sharing Stories actors create plays and
films that address challenging subjects such as parent-teen conflict, safe ‘partying’, alcohol and drug awareness and
protective behaviors. Sharing Stories aims to empower young people, young adults and parents to learn how to abstain
from sexual activity as well as how to maintain their safety and show respect for others.
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Family Drama Group
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
The Sharing Stories Youth Theatre
Ensemble aims to create peer leaders
who can share their knowledge
through film, theatre and arts based
activities. Young leaders from Sharing
Stories are given opportunities to
showcase their skills at state and
national conferences as well as youth
events throughout the year. This
strong team has now developed three
distinct youth drama groups who meet
on different days once a week. An
all-girls group in Ellenbrook facilitated
by peer educators, a mixed group
held in MMRC run by the sharing
stories project coordinator and also an
intensive drama group in which peer
leaders are mentored in strengthening
skills around theatre and sexual health
issues.
Leadership Empowerment and Development
(LEAD Program)
The program provided 47 leadership sessions during the
year:
The Leadership Empowerment and Development (LEAD)
program provides leadership training and development to
young people from culturally diverse backgrounds between
the ages of 13-25 and is funded by the Department of
Social Services.
Groups assisted to attain successful grants and/or facilitate
community programs:
The LEAD project officer works closely with current and
potential youth leaders from aboriginal and the new and
emerging communities through interactive workshops and
individual training sessions. Training is provided on a range
of topics, including:
• Liberian Youth Community
• Community Musician to initiate youth music program
• Mirrabooka Senior High School to run holiday programs
in partnership with the Settlement Grants Program
• Sharing Stories Peer Educators to deliver a camp for 15
young people
Youth Leadership Mentoring Groups:
• Decision making
• Music Program
• Communication Skills
• Inter-generational conflict
• Aboriginal Girls Group
• Working with groups
• Career pathways
• Ellenbrook Girls Program
• Managing conflict
• Violence and Offending
behaviours
• Liberian Youth Program
• Leadership
• Confidence and self
esteem
The program utilises a proactive approach and is
continually strengthening existing partnerships within the
community, youth leaders, local schools and mainstream
service providers. These partnerships allow the LEAD
program to work effectively to empower young people to
become more active participants in their communities,
families and in society, to identify their needs and concerns,
whilst working to plan and implement projects that directly
address the issues within the community.
• Boys Mentoring Leadership Sessions
• 7 Day Leadership Development Camp
• Community Peer Mentor Leadership Development
• CaLD Mentoring for Youth Justice Office
Training Sessions:
• The Department of Corrective Services
• Central TAFE
• DAFWA
Information Sessions:
• North Metro Youth Justice Team
• Mirrabooka Senior High School
• GlobalHeart Leadership College
• Ellenbrook High School
• African Learning Circle
• Let’s Talk Culture
• Cannington Coalition
Total number of young people directly referred through the
program: 363.
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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Aboriginal Girls Program
Ellenbrook Girls Program
Sharing Time
Multicultural Parents and Children English
Program (MPAC)
Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network WA
(MYANWA) Project
The MPAC English Program, funded by the SWAN
Alliance, is designed to encourage parent child interaction
and improve functional every day English language. The
program is administered alongside West Beechboro
Primary School on Friday afternoons after school. This
program is specifically designed to target parents from
a culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) background.
West Beechboro Primary School provides a venue that
parents can easily access after picking their child up from
school. This eliminates any travel and child care issues.
The Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network (MYAN
Australia) is the nationally recognised policy and advocacy
body representing migrant and newly arrived young
people. The MYAN works in partnership with government
and non-government agencies at the state and national
levels to ensure that the particular needs of multicultural
young people are recognised and appropriate responses
developed. Through its state and territory representatives
and partners, the MYAN also supports the development of
a specialist approach to youth settlement across Australia.
Activities within the program aim to reflect English that
is used during everyday activities; reading, cooking,
shopping, craft, gardening, literacy, homework and sport.
Within the sessions, parents are provided with information
regarding common and important topics. These include:
In 2012 MYAN received funding from the Department of
Immigration and Citizenship to provide project officers in
each state to identify and collate issues to do with new
arrival youth.
• The benefits of reading to children in the home
environment
• Health
• Education/homework/ the role of the teacher
• Legal issues
• Parenting
• Importance of physical activity in children
• Australian values
The activities not only provide important and beneficial
information, but also encourage the parents to interact with
their child using English. Parents have the opportunity to
expand and develop their social network during ‘snack time.’
Parents who have attended this program have reported
improved motivation to use English. They have also
reported positive developments in their interactions with
children. Of the parents who have participated in the
program, many stated that they replicate the activities at
home.
The MPAC program has successfully attained a partnership
with the Brockman House which will offer the program on
Tuesdays.
A part of the Project Officer role is to support the Multicultural
Youth Advocacy Network Western Australia (MYANWA)
which was established in 2005 as the Refugee Youth
Services Network (RYSN). The MYANWA aims to provide a
forum for those who work with multicultural young people
including those from new and emerging communities,
to network, share information and identify sector issues.
The MYANWA now has over 70 members from the nongovernment and government sectors and meets six weekly.
The MYANWA is represented at the national level.
The MYANWA Advisory Group was established in late
2011 with the support of MYAN Australia. The aim of
the committee is to oversee the MYANWA network and
maintain a consistent, uninterrupted connection with MYAN
Australia. The Advisory Group works in partnership with
MYAN Australia and is chaired by the Programs Manager
of MMRC.
In the 2013-2014 financial year, the activities included:
• Attendance at the first National Forum on Children and
Young People from Refugee Backgrounds (University of
Sydney Law School/MYAN AU) – 15th and 16th of July
2013;
• Hosting The Multicultural Youth Settlement Forum for over
100 delegates from a range of youth service providers.
• Ongoing stakeholder engagement activities and
continuous updating of MYANWA’s Network members;
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
Cooking for Parents at Beechboro Primary School
• Ongoing promotion of MYANWA network’s activities,
programs and services;
• Contributions to national policy papers on issues
affecting migrant and refugee youth in WA
There are currently 264 members of the MYAN WA
Network. Approximately 103 new stakeholders have
engaged with MYAN WA during the reporting period.
Cultural Diversity Training
There has been a significant amount of Cultural Diversity
Training offered over the year. MMRC provided 27 training
sessions, with a total of 484 attendees. The participants
were employees from15 different service providers, four of
which were government departments.
Our generic training covers topics such as the difference
between migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, the
rationale behind these specific groups’ behaviours, plus
presentations on Islam versus Culture and African Culture.
MMRC also provided 6 specialised training sessions,
tailored specifically to cover the requested areas of interest.
Bilingual Workers
With the commencement of the new contract to provide
the Humanitarian Settlement Service, we are in the process
of renewing and rebuilding our list of bilingual workers.
MYANWA Youth Forum
Childcare Bicultural Support Program
MMRC was subcontracted by CHILD Australia to provide
Bi-cultural Support to early childhood services in the Perth
metropolitan area. Many migrant and new arrival families
are not familiar with mainstream early childhood services in
Australia. Therefore, under this program, specially trained
Bi-cultural Support Workers provided cultural information
and knowledge and support to early childhood years
center staff, typically long day cares, so that those staff
may feel more confident and competent in working with
children of families from culturally and linguistically diverse
backgrounds and to help settle the children into those
services. Through our Bi-cultural Workers the program:
• Provided cultural knowledge and understanding to
facilitate building effective links between a service and
the family/ care giver and the child, especially during
times of enrolment and parent meetings;
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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• Assisted in the settling-in of children from culturally and
linguistically diverse (CaLD) or refugee backgrounds;
• Encouraged maintaining the child’s home language
by developing and presenting culturally appropriate
experiences; and
• Provided resources and cultural programing activities
with staff and children.
The service was free and time limited (a maximum of 4
sessions are available per centre) for the eligible services,
which included Long Day Care, OSHC, Family Day Care
and Occasional Care/Vacation Care.
The Bilingual Coordinator has commenced the process of
reviewing each bilingual workers’ languages spoken and
availability, as well as providing them with an overview of
the HSS program, along with casual workers’ rights and
responsibilities.
MMRC continues to provide crèche workers to Perth
Family Relationship Centre (FRC). 18 bookings of crèche
workers from the Perth FRC were recorded for the last
financial year..
Film Club
The FILM Club Mentor project was funded under the WA
Police - Community Crime Prevention Fund. Its purpose
was to provide positive activities for young people from
culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and to
see the development of four brief DVD clips promoting
anti-violence messages. In this project young people are
mentored by professional film makers in developing and
creating films with positive messages. Young people are
mentored in a range of skills including: story boarding,
script writing, acting, filming and directing. In the process,
young people will also develop good work skills and
leadership.
The outcomes for the project include
• Action film “Hard-life”- directed by club members
• Art film - “The Tell-tale Heart” – directed by a young
Sudanese student
• Spare Parts video clip - the lyrics and music written by
one of the members was developed into a film by the
club members
• Hope – a short film clip
Community Development Team: Yvonne Johnson, Hanan Abu Laban,
Isabella Mandungu, Terese Micallef, Suzanne Pickering, Celeste Dzvangah,
Chris Konrad, Arwa Al-Hanbali, Gabi Wiedemann (Absent: Anne Sorenson,
Ashleigh Haw and Meagan Roberts)
Community Detention Program: Flora Longinous, Federica
Zammuto, Ali Reza Hussaini, Linda Cook, Eric Imani
Community Detention Program (CDP)
Outcomes for clients
MMRC was sub-contracted by the Australian Red Cross to
provide the Community Detention Program for families and
those deemed vulnerable.
The community detention program has the following key
objectives:
• Provide suitable and stable accommodation and
support to clients living in the community.
• Enable greater individual independence and
empowerment and social community participation.
Guiding principles for the Community Detention
Program:
• Enhance settlement outcomes for those clients granted
protection.
• The best interests of child and client are paramount in
decision making, including in determining a community
detention placement and what support and services are
provided.
• Support the status resolution process of clients on a
return pathway.
• Support provided to clients is aimed at building
independence and self sufficiency
• Support and services provided to clients are generally
commensurate with, but not above, support available
for permanent visa holders in Australia.
• The Department of Immigration and Border Protection
retains duty of care for people in community
detention, as well as status resolution and compliance
responsibilities.
• Clients living in community detention arrangements
must remain connected with DIBP and compliant with
the conditions of their residence determination.
• Service delivery is flexible to meet client needs.
• Services are delivered in a consistent and integrated
way throughout the program.
The types of meaningful engagement in which clients have
participated include:
• Sporting activities (Persian wrestling, soccer and cricket)
• Drama classes
• Guitar lessons
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• English language lessons
• Cooking classes
• Customer service for a canteen
MMRC commenced the year managing 17 properties in
the northern suburbs which were reduced to 14 properties
in 2014. We provided care for an average of 54 clients per
month, with 7 new families entering the program and 12
families exiting during the 12 months.
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
The majority of clients living in community detention have
arrived as irregular maritime arrivals seeking Australia’s
protection. Under current government policy all IMAs will
remain subject to initial mandatory detention until health,
identity and security checks can be completed.
• Enhance wellbeing, resilience and self-agency of clients
awaiting resolution of their immigration status.
Immigration Advice and Application
Assistance Scheme (IAAAS)
programs including Refugee Family Reunion, Spouse Visa,
Child Visa, Orphan Relative and Carer Visa.
MMRC provides free immigration advice and assistance
under the following two programs:
Settlement Grant Programme (SGP)
Immigration Advice and Application Assistance
Scheme (IAAAS)
This program is funded by the Department of Immigration
and Border Protection (DIBP), to provide immigration
advice and visa application assistance to those visa
applicants or sponsors who are living in the Australian
community and considered as “Disadvantaged Person”
(Category A service only). This year, we provided 180
appointments of advice for individual clients and offered 7
Community Information Sessions to various communities,
such as Chin (Burmese), Karen (Burmese), Afghan, Arabic
and Sudanese etc. The topics covered a range of visa
This program was initiated by the Department of
Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC), and then transferred
to the Department of Social Services after the last
federal election in 2013. This program is aimed to assist
eligible humanitarian entrants to propose and sponsor
family members to Australia where this is necessary
for the client’s successful settlement. This year, we
provided immigration assistance to 120 clients through
228 appointments (both consultation and form filling),
conducted 4 Information Sessions to inform clients of
general policies and procedures related to the migration
options for family members.”
Sundry Programs and Activities
Pro Bono Immigration Assistance Service
Migration advice provided to 294 clients by four Migration Agents held once weekly throughout the year.
Tax Help
A qualified volunteer coordinated by the Australian Taxation Office assisted 69 clients to prepare and submit their tax returns
during the reported period.
Justice of the Peace
A document and statutory declaration certification service was provided by Eric Imani, J.P. to individual clients and local
agencies.
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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Management, Finance and Admin: Michael O’Hara, Eric Imani Shahnaz Kazemi,
Farah Zeitoon, Judi Kellond, Agnes Appudurai, Daffodil Ahwa
Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
Auditor’s Report
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
Financial Statements
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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Metropolitan Migrant Resource Centre Annual Report 2014
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MIRRABOOKA
1/14 CHESTERFIELD ROAD MIRRABOOKA WA 6061
Phone (08)9345 5755 Fax (08) 9345 5036
2/17 CHESTERFIELD ROAD MIRRABOOKA WA 6061
Phone (08) 9344 6788 Fax (08) 9344 3008
Email admin@mmrcwa.org.au Web www.mmrcwa.org.au
metropolitan MIGRANT resource centre inc