Chapter 3: Create fair employment and work for all

My role is to develop, extend and embed the training and wellbeing services within the centre's broad holistic programme. It is also my role to ensure that the courses and activities have trauma informed content, and all the facilitators are trauma-informed and trained due to the nature of service users we support.

The inequalities and imposed barriers that black and minority women, girls and children continue to experience amidst decades of unemployment and health inequities have been worsened by Covid -19 and the cost of living crisis. These include Institutional racism, health inequities, having No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF), unstable immigration status as well as living in deprived areas. 

The women and children we support are experiencing some of the worst consequences of the current economic and climate crisis pushing them to extreme levels of poverty and destitution.Our training and wellbeing work aims to enable black and minoritised women to fulfil their potential by participating in projects and services that promote safety, economic and social inclusion, voice and choice.
(Mental Health Foundation (2022). Men and women: statistics)

Black and minoritised women and children are often isolated due to barriers of race and gender, so providing culturally appropriate activities in a women-only safe and supportive environment is a crucial part of the services we offer. We provide a wide spectrum of training courses, most of which are accredited as well as trauma-informed courses. Social and creative activities plant the seeds for long-term recovery, stability and socio-economic independence, helping to keep women engaged in further training and self-development.

We also provide:

• Culturally and linguistically appropriate advice, information and advocacy through case work to 
• black and minoritised women, children and young survivors of domestic and sexual violence
• Group support/activities for women, children and young survivors
• Therapeutic care and counselling for women and children individually and in groups 

This 'wrap around' support, developed in partnership with a wide range of relevant statutory and voluntary agencies, also addresses related problems of homelessness, poverty, NRPF, mental health and insecure immigration status. It empowers women and children to rebuild their lives free from violence and abuse. This advances our strategic aim to promote voice and choice for black and minoritised women, and we're involved in local, regional and national partnerships and networks.

To tackle inequalities, we must:

• Challenge business to ensure they have black and minoritised women in leadership positions
• Ensure Black and minoritised women are present in the conversations
• Provide young people with bespoke black and minoritised led services and ensure education settings have black and minoritised mentors with cultural competence
• Secure funding to provide more service users with our bespoke cultural competent training courses and additional space to support more women
• Research the impact of mental health on black and minoritised women in relation to education and employability
• Ensure recognition of holistic support systems by the Department of Work and Pensions
• Ensure recognition of the impact of NRPF on the futures of black and minoritised women both within the North East and national

Chapter 4: Ensure a healthy standard of living for all