Asylum Seekers Employment Service Evaluation

People seeking asylum are some of the most disenfranchised people in Australia, facing significant challenges to settling and recovering from trauma. Regardless of their previous qualifications and work experience, people seeking asylum face discrimination and a range of systemic barriers to finding employment. However, access to paid employment forms a highly important safety net for this community, as well as a foundation for social inclusion.

Recognising these issues, the Asylum Seekers Centre's employment service works to help people seeking asylum to find and sustain employment. In addition to providing individual support, the program works to build the capacity of employers and to create systems change which will enable better employment outcomes.

Using a collaborative evaluation design process, Lirata is working with the Asylum Seekers Centre and partners to develop a robust evaluation approach for the ASC's employment service. This will enable assessment of the partnership's outcomes at individual and systems levels. In addition to developing key frameworks, Lirata is delivering in-house evaluation training to share skills and approaches.