Regional Networks:
Go-East
East of England Regional Assembly
MENTER
Voluntary Sector Refugee Network-East of England
Refugee Council

Government Office for the East of England (GO-East)

The Government Office for the East of England covers Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. We bring together into a single operation the varied regional activities of a range of Government departments with the aim of making the region a better place to live and work in.

Other departments with a stake in Government Offices are the

Department for Education and Skills (DfES)
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)
Department for Transport (DfT)
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA)
Home Office (HO)
Department for Culture Media & Sport (DCMS)
Cabinet Office (CO)

We also work closely with the public health teams from the Department of Health (DH).

Government Offices therefore function from the heart of Government. As Government's eyes and ears in the region we communicate messages and ensure an East of England input to the policy-making process at the centre. We work with a range of regional and local bodies, including local authorities, businesses, local education authorities, voluntary organisations, the health service, and local people to help create sustainable communities and to maximise competitiveness and prosperity in the region.

Further information: www.go-east.gov.uk

East of England Regional Assembly Consortium for Asylum Seeker & Refugee Integration (EERA-CARI)

The EERA Consortium for Asylum and Refugee Integration is the regional enabling body for the co-ordination of services to asylum seekers in the East of England. Its role is to provide support, advice and representation to organisations working with asylum seekers and refugees across the statutory, voluntary and private sectors. It also seeks to ensure that the needs of asylum seekers and refugees are reflected in mainstream policy development and service delivery.

Its primary aims are:

To assist organisations to respond to the Government’s programme of dispersal, accommodation and support for asylum seekers;
To encourage a multi-agency partnership approach to meeting the diverse housing, health, educational, social, cultural and religious needs of asylum seekers, enabling long-term settlement for those granted leave to remain or refugee status;
To assist in the development of effective consultation mechanisms to involve asylum seekers and refugees and their community groups;
To influence national, regional and local policy;
To take a proactive role in developing a positive public relations and media strategy to enhance the integration of asylum seekers and refugees into local communities.

Funding

The EERA Consortium receives a grant from central government of £90,000 per annum for the operation of the enabling function as described above. The Grant Agreement with the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) was initially for two years from 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2006. Payment of the grant is dependent on the achievement of Key Performance Indicators agreed between the EERA Consortium and NASS.

Structure

The Regional Assembly has established an Asylum and Refugee Integration Panel to oversee the work of the EERA Consortium as well as providing a forum for discussion of issues relating to asylum seekers and refugees in the East of England (see Terms of Reference in Appendix 1). The Panel consists of thirteen local authority members, six Community Stakeholders and a representative of the East of England Development Agency.

Local authority members are selected according to the political balance in the region. The Community Stakeholders consist of three representatives from the voluntary sector and one representative each from the Association of Universities: East of England, TUC and East of England Faiths Conference.

An officer Reference Group supports and advises the Panel and is responsible for drafting the Business Plan and monitoring the delivery of that Plan on behalf of the Panel. It includes representatives from key service providers in the statutory, voluntary and private sectors (see Terms of Reference in Appendix 2).

A Stakeholder Forum is also being established to encourage input and communication with any organisation or individual who has an interest in asylum and refugee integration within the region.

Business Plan

The Business Plan is the principal means by which the EERA Consortium reports to the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) on expenditure of the Enabling Grant. The requirements of the NASS Grant Agreement constitute a significant part of the Business Plan.

Further Information

More information about the EERA Consortium and its work in the field of asylum and refugee integration is available from the website: www.eera.gov.uk

MENTER

MENTER is a regional network of Black / Minority Ethnic (BME) voluntary organisations and community groups. In October 2002 MENTER became the new name for the Black and Minority Ethnic Network which was formed in January 2000. MENTER currently has 40 members and a mailing list of 350 groups in the Region.

The network is run by a voluntary management board of 16 trustees from member groups with advisors from Race Equality Councils, Go-East, COVER (the general voluntary sector regional network) and Cambridge Ethnic Community Forum. Funds for this work are given by the Active Community Unit of the Home Office, the East of England Development Agency and a Go-East Community Safety Fund

MENTER staff consist of a Regional Co-ordinator, a Support Officer, a Researcher / Administrator for the Racial Equality Partnership based in Cambridge. There three County Outreach Development Officers. Each officer works in one of the following two paired counties: (1) Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire; (2) Cambridgeshire and Essex; (3) Norfolk and Suffolk. Additionally, Home Office funds from the Connecting Communities Grant and the Challenge Fund have allowed the new appointments of a Regional Partnership Development Officer in Norwich and a Community Development Officer in Peterborough.

MENTER aims

To develop the regional BME network to share good practice and partnership
To promote BME involvement in relevant local, regional and national initiatives
To contribute to building BME group infrastructure and help with access to funds
To promote race equality and advocate for the BME sector
To assist with community regeneration within BME communities
links with Sports England, Eastern Region to improve BME access to sporting opportunities and funds for these
established role in helping BME groups apply for the Community Champions fund

Further information:www.menter.org.uk

Voluntary Sector Refugee Network-East of England (VSRN-EE)

Background

The VSRN-EE is an independent network of voluntary organisations and community groups working with refugees and asylum seekers in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Essex, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Norfolk

VSRN-EE was created following a regional seminar in 2001 that focused on the experiences of refugees and asylum seekers in the region and looked at how community and voluntary services were developing to meet local and regional needs. This seminar highlighted the need for voluntary and community organisations to obtain and exchange information and to influence services and policy making in the region.

Since 2001 VSRN-EE has grown so that it is now an established regional network with a central office in Suffolk. Funding from COVER and GO-East has supported the network and enabled VSRN-EE to take on a full time Support Worker. With the aid of the Support Worker, the Steering Group (which meets bi-monthly) is now developing the network further to meet members needs more fully.

Aims

To share information, experience, good practice and local solutions to common problems
To take up voluntary and community sector issues relating to service provision for refugees and asylum seekers
To influence policies and strategies
To identify key issues and place them on the relevant agendas of statutory authorities
To work in partnership with other organisations through the East of England Consortium for Asylum and Refugee Integration at EERA. (EERA-CARI)
To promote regional networking by joining and participating in COVER and other relevant regional structures

For more info visit: www.vsrn-ee.org.uk

The Refugee Council

The Refugee Council is the largest organisation in the UK working with asylum seekers and refugees. The Refugee Council does not only give help and support, but also work with asylum seekers and refugees to ensure their needs and concerns are addressed.

The Refugee Council’s work includes:

giving advice and support to asylum seekers and refugees to help them rebuild their lives;
working with refugee community organisations, helping them grow and serve their communities;
caring for unaccompanied refugee children to help them feel safe and supported in the UK;
offering training and employment courses to enable asylum seekers and refugees to use their skills and qualifications;
managing a residential home for young refugees;
campaigning and lobbying for refugeesâ™ voices to be heard in the UK and abroad; keeping them high on the political agenda and discussed in the media;
producing authoritative information on refugee issues worldwide, including reports, statistics and analysis.

Further information: www.refugeecouncil.org.uk