WOMENS ASYLUM SUPPORT JOURNAL

Issue 1 1st November 2012

Womens Project @LRMN Lewisham Refugee & Migrant Network Parker House 144 Evelyn St London SE8 5DD www.lrmn.org.uk Tel: 020 8694 0323 Fax: 020 8694 6411

Womens Project @LRMN

Issue 1 1st November 2012

WOMENS ASYLUM SUPPORT JOURNAL

WELCOME
To the first issue of Womens Asylum Support Journal, a quarterly publication designed to support and inspire front-line counsellors and support/ advocacy staff working with refugee and asylum-seeking women. We feel that this sector is specialized, unique, often marginalised, due to the complexity of casework, the multiple needs of the women we support, and the discrimination they face in accessing fair treatment or in having their voices heard. As a result, many of us are working with few opportunities for networking or sharing good practice, and yet our work requires high levels of energy, empathy, dedication and skill. This journal was created in response to meeting so many skilled professionals working in a variety of settings from community organisations to NHS services, specialist refugee and sexual violence agencies to social services. This issue is London-focused due to the contacts available, but we are keen to link up across the UK. If you are working directly with refugee and asylum-seeking women in a supportive capacity, your expertise is needed and your contributions are most welcome to what we hope will be a lively forum, so please send in your comments & ideas for articles to emma.brech@lrmn.org.uk. All the best,

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Main Feature ... 3 Quote of the Quarter..3 Spotlight on . .. 4 Problem Solved.4 Hot Topic 5 Info+ Events. 5 Why I love my Job..7

Emma Brech
Editor

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Main Feature (p3): Ann Byrne, Chief Executive at the Womens Therapy Centre offers us an insight into how her organisation approaches therapy for refugee and asylum-seeking women. A problem shared (p4)how would you respond? Spotlight on (p4). focusing on different services for refugee and asylum-seeking women in the UK; this quarter counselling and support projects in London. This issues Hot Topic (p5) is on supporthow do we meet both the therapeutic and practical needs of refugee and asylum-seeking women? And finally, a regular feature to inspire and energise you Claire Cochrane from the Centre for the Study of Emotion and Law tells us Why I Love my Job (p7).

MAIN FEATURE:
Access to psychological therapies for women who are refugees or asylum seekers can be problematic, not least because in many cultures the concept of counselling or psychotherapy remains taboo.
Ann Byrne, Chief Executive of Womens Therapy Centre, gives

an overview of the approach adopted by her organisation in improving accessibility.

QUOTE OF THE QUARTER

from Still I Rise by Maya Angelou

When Bernice* came to the Womens Therapy Centre she was an asylum seeker, driven from her country by rape, violence and torture. Her husband and children had been killed and she had escaped to the UK via a family friend. When she arrived at the Womens Therapy Centre, she was living on benefits in hostel accommodation and was suffering from nightmares and flashbacks and depression. She spoke limited English and initial sessions were conducted through an interpreter. Bernice is the eldest of seven children born to a poor family. She was adopted by her childless maternal aunt at the age of six and had little contact with her family. She described a loving relationship with her aunt who died when the patient was 13. She was then returned to a family from which she was estranged and was quickly married to a wealthy man at the age of 15. The experience of therapy provided Bernice with an emotional language. During the sessions, she began to find words (in her own language and in English) to describe her feelings. For such a traumatised woman, this was a notable achievement. In an endeavour to relate more directly, she took up English classes and began attending therapy without an interpreter. It then became possible to link her more recent traumas with the traumatic early loss of first her family life and then of her beloved Aunt. The Women's Therapy Centre (WTC) has been offering individual and group psychotherapy to women since 1976. Its access policy ensures that psychotherapy is available to all women, regardless of financial or immigration status, sexual orientation, disability, cultural or social background, previous psychiatric history or age. The WTC has a particular commitment to offering psychotherapy to women who would not usually have access to it. Over the years, the Womens Therapy Centre has developed expertise in working with highly traumatised populations including refugees/asylum seekers and women who have experienced extensive abuse, including domestic violence. Our ethos is that it is possible to work psychoanalytically with even the most traumatised and disturbed women, providing that appropriate clinical safeguards are in place, if necessary. The experience of therapists at the Womens Therapy Centre is that the analytic work needs to be applied and flexible. In addition to offering assessments, individual and group therapy the WTC offers information and taster therapy sessions which enable women to gain an understanding of mental health issues and how psychotherapy works. We then facilitate psycho education groups which give women an opportunity to experience a psychoanalytic way of thinking within a boundaried setting.

Out of the huts of history's shame I rise Up from a past that's rooted in pain I rise I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide, Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. Leaving behind nights of terror and fear I rise Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear I rise Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave. I rise I rise I rise.

contributed by Jacqui Lovell SSASI-TV Women

If you would like to contribute an inspiring quote, please email emma.brech@lrmn.org.uk

For some refugee and asylum-seeking women, additional support is provided by GPs and/ or other NHS professionals. For many women , the support provided by refugee and communities based organizations plays a valuable role in promoting access to therapy. The Womens Therapy Centre offers the services of a Link Worker who provides sessions for women in psychotherapy, providing practical advice and signposting, alongside their therapy. Her role is crucial in enabling women to more effectively use therapy sessions as well as freeing up the psychotherapists working with women who have experienced such trauma and loss . In Bernices case, the Link Worker supported her in her application for refugee status which she has now achieved. She has also been supported in making a successful application for Local Authority Housing and for Disability Living Allowance. At the end of her therapy contract Bernice commented that Therapy improved my life. Ann Byrne
*to protect confidentiality this client is an amalgam of several women seen at the Womens Therapy Centre. Womens Therapy Centre is based in North London: www.womenstherapycentre.org.uk

SPOTLIGHT ON . COUNSELLING/ SUPPORT SERVICES IN LONDON

Womens Therapy Centre (North) 020 7263 6200 enquiries@womenstherapycentre.co.uk Refugee Therapy Centre (North)

020 7561 1587

info@refugeetherapy.org.uk Women and Girls Network (West) 020 7610 4345 www.wgn.org.uk

PROBLEM SOLVED
Every quarter we feature a common support/ counselling dilemma and welcome your contributions*either your own dilemmas, or solutions to those posed by others .
*Please note: dilemmas will be anonymous, solutions will have contributors names attached

Poppy Project (South) 020 7735 2062 www.eavesforwomen.org.uk Womens Project @LRMN (South-East) 020 8694 0323 emma.brech@lrmn.org.uk Afghan Association of London (North) 020 88616990 All Afghan Association (West) 02088 408 777 WAST Drop-In womentogether@wast.org.uk

Next quarters dilemma:

I have just started working with a woman who has been refused asylum and is sofa-surfing. She suffers from clear PTS symptoms as a result of detention and rape in the Ivory Coast, and although she comes to see me every week with practical issues, she remains very wary of counselling. We have managed to find food parcels for her as well as a small grant, but it is clear she is talking more and more about emotional issues. How do you suggest we support her towards therapeutic work?

Eritrean Community in the UK (North) 020 7700 7995 info@ericomuk.org.uk The Maya Centre (North) 020 7281 2728 info@mayacentre.org.uk Refugee Womens Association (East) 020 7923 2412 info@refugeewomen.org.uk IKWRO (Iranian + Kurdish) 0207 920 6460. admin.ikwro@gmail.com. West Hampstead Women's Centre (North) 020 7328 7389 info@whwc.org.uk African Women's Welfare Group (North) 020 8885 5822 Latin American Womens Rights Service 02073 360 888 lawrs@lawrs.fsnet.co.uk Housing for Women (South-West) 020 7501 6171 hfw.org.uk

Send in your ideas, suggestions, responses to emma.brech@lrmn.org.uk

HOT TOPIC:
How do we combine therapeutic work with the overwhelming practical support needs of refugee and asylum-seeking women?
Refugee Therapy Centre uses bilingual outreach workers and mentors who work separately from therapists to identify the most urgent needs within each community. For Refugee Therapy Centre an appreciation of the potential for misunderstandings and failures in communication with patients is essential in our work. We have identified that a Western therapeutic approach often excludes the political dimension as an external reality, which can limit understanding of refugees distress. Working with refugee and asylum seeker women who have often experienced torture and organised violence requires knowledge of the traumatic consequences of state terrorism, and political and historical awareness. For asylum-seekers, mental health problems often co-exist with other problems such as, homelessness, poverty, housing and welfare problems, poor physical health and the after-effects of trauma they have endured.

TRAINING & EVENTS

Developing and Delivering Domestic Violence Training Organisation: Tender Date: Wednesday 14th to Friday 16th November 2012 More info: www.wrc.org.uk

Breaking the cycle: using civil and criminal remedies to protect women from violence Organisation: ROW Date: 21 November 2012 More info: www.rightsofwomen.org.uk

Our Bilingual Outreach/Community Development staff provides support-work to help us identify peoples most urgent needs and signpost to appropriate services.

Understanding forced marriage and honour-based violence; Risk and Case Management Organisation: IMKAAN Date: 28-29 November 2012 More info: www.imkaan.org.uk

In recognition, we provide a number of gender and language based groups; including a new group for lesbian refugees and asylum seekers; and support a team of Bi-lingual Outreach/ Community Development staff and mentors. Our Bi-lingual Outreach/Community Development staff provide support-work to help us identify peoples most urgent needs and sign-post to appropriate services. Sessions may involve sign-posting to services in their local area such as GP surgeries, schooling for children, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), computer or other courses for adults, introduction to appropriate Refugee Community Organisations, or helping people who do not know where to start looking for employment, voluntary or paid. In addition, the team provides a listening ear for people feeling isolated, stressed, concerned about their current circumstances or worried about the future. We find this a very effective means of helping people from communities in which the idea of counselling and psychotherapy is unknown or stigmatised. Our mentoring project provides weekly, one-to-one support sessions for adults and children which focus on easing the processes of adaptation and integration. We help with childrens education and help women to improve their English language skills and become familiar with British ways of life in an atmosphere of trust. Working to support childrens education has added to our ability to develop trust with the women we serve and it is encouraging to be able to help mothers and their children thrive economically, socially and educationally whilst supporting with their emotional development. Sarah Lee
Refugee Therapy Centre is based in North London: www.refugeetherapycentre.org.uk

Understanding the effects of domestic violence and BME women. Organisation: IMKAAN Date: 12-13 December 2012 More info: www.imkaan.org.uk

New Seminar series on Psychology and Refugee Protection Organisation: CSEL / RLI Date: various More info: www.rli.sas.ac.uk/ events-courses-and-training/ psychology-and-refugee-protectionseminar-series.

AND ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE...

Compass, an organisation specialising in therapy for young refugees and asylum-seekers, believe that offering some practical support within therapy sends an important message to their client group...

For many refugees counselling is unfamiliar. Practical and emotional/ psychological needs may not be clearly defined or separated and this is not surprising considering the increased levels of isolation, disorientation and discrimination experienced Repeated unsuccessful attempts to negotiate systems or solve problems can result in feeling de-skilled and helpless. At Compass, an important aspect of our work has been the development of a culturally sensitive approach to counselling, acknowledging migration trauma and providing support within the context of the additional challenges of being a refugee/asylum seeker in the UK. In providing an effective service, we have reviewed our counselling models and have identified ways to widen access to counselling.

BOOKS & RESOURCES

Books
Trauma and Recovery by Judith Herman M.D. The Body Remembers by Babette Rothschild

Asking for help may be seen as a first step towards independence and autonomy what message do we give if this is rejected or not heard?

One aspect within this process has involved considering our response to practical and advocacy needs. Whilst signposting to agencies is an effective way to meet additional needs and maintain clear counselling boundaries, our experience suggests this is often unsuccessful in isolation. Compass counsellors have found that addressing an immediate issue, such as helping clients contact professionals or make a phone call, negotiating referral systems or providing a letter of support have reinforced therapeutic goals rather than detracting from them. Asking for help may be seen as a first step towards independence and autonomy what message do we give if this is rejected or not heard? The BACP Information sheet G8 (BACP, June 2008) acknowledges differing expectations clients may bring to therapy and the reasonable assumption that elders or experts will offer advice or concrete help. Requesting help from trusted professionals, including counsellors, is an understandable response. It is reasonable to assume professionals have a greater understanding of systems in the UK. Our aim in counselling is to contain and hold these varied needs, addressing them differently, but understanding them in context as a whole. Interventions need to be explicit and carefully negotiated with clear sense of outcomes, to avoid confusing our role as therapists or disempowering clients. Supported referral to specialist agencies can support on-going or complex advocacy needs. Counselling models need to adapt and grow to meet the needs of our clients if we are to offer a truly culturally sensitive and accessible service. At Compass, we believe that our response can significantly affect therapeutic outcomes, and that a refusal to engage with these needs can be experienced as rejection or as not being heard, mirroring wider experiences as an asylum seeker. Louise Fahey
Compass at Off the Record is based in Croydon: www.offtherecordcroydon.org

Womens Bodies, Womens Wisdom By Dr Christiane Northrup

Articles
Just Tell Us What Happened to You: Autobiographical Memory and Seeking Asylum Jane Herlihy, Laura Jobson and Stuart Turner . Email CESL for a PDF: papers@csel.org.uk.

Please email us with your recommendations emma.brech@lrmn.org.uk

What do you think? Send us your responses or ideas for your own Hot Topic

WHY I LOVE MY JOB:

CLARE COCHRANE

Research Dissemination Worker, Centre for the Study of Emotion and Law

WOMENS PROJECT@ LRMN If the passion Ive seen could make every asylum seeker safe, sanctuary would take on a whole new meaning.
The Womens Project@LRMN is a small counselling and advocacy project aimed at supporting refugee and asylum-seeking women who have suffered gender-based violence (GBV). Based within Lewisham Refugee and Migrant Network in Deptford, South-East London, the project is funded by Comic Relief and Trust for London and is an organisational member of the BACP. Our aim through counselling, advocacy and group work is to address the effects of trauma and displacement, providing a safe space in which women can come together, and discover their own resources and resilience as they strive to make their voices heard. We are passionate about our project and keen to work in partnership with other organisations. For more information, please contact Emma Brech on 020 8694 0323 or via email at emma.brech@lrmn.org.uk

For the last three years Ive been lucky enough to work training people who support traumatised women seeking asylum, to understand scientific research into the effects of trauma on memory for those going through the asylum process. The research, by the Centre for the Study of Emotion and Law (CSEL), can and has been used by women* and their legal representatives to help explain why they did not disclose a traumatic experience (such as sexual violence) immediately, or why their accounts of their experiences are not exactly the same each time they tell them. Immigration judges need to base their decisions on authoritative evidence. CSELs research is published in high profile academic journals, and has been peer -reviewed (read and approved for publication) by other experts and academics before being published. All our research studies use rigorous scientific methodologies that can be repeated by anyone wishing to test our findings. During this project Ive loved the enthusiasm of the staff and volunteers Ive met around the UK working to support women seeking asylum. The conditions of any job are vitally important, but everyone Ive met is definitely also working for the love of the work. If the passion Ive seen could make every asylum seeker safe, sanctuary would take on a whole new meaning. Ive also loved having the opportunity to bring together refugee-supporting organisations and violence against women support organisations. These two kinds of groups come from very different traditions refugee support has its background in humanitarian concern and charity, sexual violence survivor support in feminist and womens activism and solidarity and dont have a history of working together. But they have so much to share, and when they get a chance to meet and talk about their work, inspiration happens. I hope that through this project were enabling new partnership working that will mean women refugees can more easily access really good help to recover from often terrible experiences. The project has produced a training toolkit so you can train yourselves to use and understand our research. Its free to download from our website at: www.csel.org.uk/resources.html, or you can order a printed copy from CSEL (2 donation requested to cover costs) by emailing toolkit@csel.org.uk.
*CSELs research findings cover mens experiences too, and can be used in working with men, but this project has been funded by Comic Relief particularly to support vulnerable and traumatised women seeking asylum. CSEL is based in London: www.csel.org.uk

Thanks to

All LRMN staff for your help and support, particularly: Nur Jahan Mazumder Cristina Zorat Margot Lawrence Denver Garrison
technical support technical support advice/ editorial listings / admin

Tell us why you love your job working with refugee and asylum-seeking women. Send 300 words max + jpeg photo (optional) to emma.brech@lrmn.org.uk. Or if you would like to contribute to any other section of Womens Asylum Support Journal, email or give Emma a call on 020 8694 0323.

Lewisham Refugee & Migrant Network Parker House 144 Evelyn St London SE8 5DD Phone: 020 8694 0323 Fax: 020 8694 6411 E-mail: info@lrmn.org.uk www.lrmn.org.uk Facebook.com/ LewishamRefugeeandMigrantNetwork

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