GTA gears up for arrival of refugees

Settlement agencies have the experience and expertise to handle large groups of refugees, but staffing needs still have to be addressed.

Thestar.com
Nov. 18, 2015
By Debra Black and Nicholas Keung

How prepared is the GTA to welcome the Syrian refugees? It’s not yet clear how many of the 25,000 slated to arrive in Canada by year’s end will be resettled here.

But Debbie Douglas, executive director of the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants, says “the sector in Ontario is ready. We have the experience and the expertise. We just have to scale up our capacity and beef up our staffing when they arrive in Ontario.”

To that end, the first installment of the province’s two-year $8.5 million for resettled Syrians will be delivered to Ontario’s six refugee reception areas in Toronto, London, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ottawa and Windsor in December.

The Star checked in with six settlement agencies across the GTA to see how they were preparing to meet the needs of these newcomers.

Toronto

What’s ready? COSTI is Ontario’s largest immigration settlement agency in and the only one that holds a contract with the federal government for government-assisted refugees. COSTI has its own reception centre and provides mental health services, education and employment services, help with long-term housing and ESL classes. COSTI has five Arabic speakers on staff, 90 beds for short-term housing, and other housing arranged in local motels. “In Toronto, we’re fortunate we have a robust settlement system going already in the GTA,” says executive director Mario Calla.

What’s needed? More affordable housing; more Arabic speakers; more counselling and mental health workers to deal with post-traumatic stress disorder and bereavement; two more housing workers; and more employment counsellors to help with “pre-employment workshops.” Calla says the city is already talking to major landlords to see if they can get units for the refugees at a discounted rent for the first year or two. “We’re lucky in Toronto because of the services available. We’re a very multicultural urban area, and so most people won’t even notice we’ve had an influx of refugees - much like when we had the 5,000 Kosovar refugees, it’s not that evident,” says Calla.

Airport area

What’s ready? Malton Neighbourhood Services runs a resettlement assistance program out of Pearson airport to receive some 10,000 government-assisted and privately sponsored refugees a year. Thirty-five reception and information service workers are on call at the airport - four of whom are Arabic speaking.

“Malton is very receptive and welcoming. It is known for its affordability, access to the airport and settlement services,” said executive director Jacquie Lewis. “We have the expertise and infrastructure to welcome these newcomers.” The agency has a housing registry and works closely with landlords in the area for rental accommodation.

What’s needed? At least five more staffers who speak Arabic. More affordable housing and financial resources for food and winter clothing to give them when they arrive at the airport. “We are as ready as we can be. We just need to know the number and where,” said Lewis.

York Region

What’s ready? York Region has a well-developed Welcome Centre Immigrant Services delivery system currently providing services from settlement to language and employment support across five centres - in Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan and Newmarket. “There is a capacity across the immigrant-serving agencies in Greater Toronto to support the resettlement of the Syrians and provide the range of services they may require to successfully integrate,” said Robert Hickey, executive director of Catholic Community Services of York Region.

What’s needed?

“To meet the anticipated increase in demand, we do know that we will need to be flexible and look at ways to increase our capacity.” Those measures could include extending programming hours, increasing the size of language classes, providing additional employment supports and looking at new ways to serve the new arrivals’ special needs. And of course the biggest challenge will be affordable housing.

Peel Region

What’s ready? The Newcomer Centre of Peel has built-in infrastructure to help refugees and has already served 243 Syrian refugees this year. The centre has mental health counselling, employment counselling and settlement services, as well as housing counsellors who help refugees navigate through settling in the GTA. They have 10 Arabic speakers.

“Mentally we are ready,” says executive director Effat Ghassemi. “If they come and knock at our door, we are ready to tackle it immediately.”

What’s needed? More of everything. Funding, resources, staff with the right education, social workers, mental health workers, more Arabic speakers, as well as Kurdish speakers, and more affordable housing. “We’re looking to the federal government to provide the financial resources and enough funding to deal with the need and increase our capacity to deal with this group,” Ghassemi said.

Durham Region

What’s ready? As far as Kate Bird, executive director of the Community Development Council, is concerned, Durham is ready to welcome as many of the resettled Syrians as it can. It already has two welcome centres, in Ajax and Pickering, offering services through partnerships with 40 community groups, social service providers, school boards and settlement agencies. Eighty volunteers in the “community connection” program, which hosts social activity groups matching Canadians with newcomers through cooking, English conversation circles and exercise, are also available.

What’s needed? “We just need to increase our capacity. With the increased number, we need increased funding to alleviate the challenge,” said Bird, whose agency offers programs in 20 languages, including Arabic. “We try to offer a holistic approach by offering a variety of services at a one-stop shop. Our goal is to knock down all these barriers and provide them with a safe, welcoming home.”

Halton Region

What’s ready? The United Way and Oakville Community Foundation have stepped up to help with the anticipated arrival of the Syrians. So far this year, the community has already assisted or identified eight resettled families and is anticipating 20 more next year. There are four Arabic-speaking settlement staff.

What’s needed? “Part of the problem is we are not sure where the refugees are going to land,” said Kim Jenkinson, executive director of the Halton Multicultural Council. “What is hard about Halton is there is no access to transportation, which is a big deal. They will need the ability to get around,” Jenkinson said. There’s also a lack of affordable housing. More Arabic speakers will also be needed to help with translation, and more financial support for the refugees after their first year of government support is over.