AIG Services

AIG offers a wide range of services to meet the needs of refugees, migrants and the wider BAME community.

If you would like any further information about the services listed below, or if you need our help, please use our contact form to get in touch. 

    Employment and employability advice

    We provide bespoke employment and skills training services ranging from CV writing, cover letters, interview skills, IT skills, computing and help with job search. This can range from securing an apprenticeship and employability skills to general work preparation. We can also assist your career planning by helping you to identify your interests and abilities. We also offer coaching whilst you are on a work placement or starting out in a new job. 

    We are especially keen to ensure refugees and migrants are able to use the skills and qualifications gained overseas at an appropriate level in the UK. 

    Education Support

    We provide a range of educational support ranging from academic mentorship to tutorial and coursework support. We can also offer financial advice about different types of education and what it costs. 

    We work with mature refugees and migrant students to support their out-of-school work including a team of volunteer tutors to help address a range of issues: language, ESOL, learning difficulties, mental health, dyslexia, cultural shock and more.

    We support bright young migrants and asylum seekers without papers to help them achieve an Article 26 scholarship, which enables them to progress to university studies and cover full tutorial fees. We have a close working relationship with the University of Leicester and its University of Sanctuary Programme. 

    Advocacy and Signposting

    We are passionate advocates in support of our service users across a broad range of issues including human rights, civil rights, social justice and equalities legislation. 

    We have successfully advocated for numerous cases to be overturned in court, such as decisions to suspend or sanction welfare benefit payments; immigration cases, including refusals, appeals and reunions; and the cancellation of debt orders.

    Our signposting work means we can offer supported referrals to specialist agencies for support or to mutual self-help groups. We are networked across multiple groups, for example, those that are tackling child poverty, food banks or providing safe houses for domestic violence victims.

    Immigration / Asylum / EU settlement / Refugee support

    Our immigration support service works closely with OISC accredited legal advisers to support our service users.

    We work with those arriving in our city, county or country (or even before through family reunion support and resettlement programmes including for vulnerable Syrians). With engage with all those requiring support providing advisory, advocacy and research support work. 

    Where appropriate we make referrals to a wide range of partner charities who can provide additional support. 

    Once refugees attain their status, we help them to move into new homes, take up education or new employment opportunities, as well as providing assistance to reunite them with their families. We work very closely with the British Red Cross on this aspect of our service. 

    We also endeavour to ensure that refugees are not exploited by other services and receive fair and equal treatment in all areas of their lives.

    Women Empowerment Services

    A key component of AIG’s work is to focus on the needs of women in our community by delivering a range of support, which we call “Women’s Empowerment Services”.

    We provide support groups and workshops for vulnerable women, those seeking employment and those that want to start their own businesses.

    Our aim is to build self-confidence so that women can be more assertive in whichever setting they want to operate. 

    Community Outreach

    While Covid-19 has constrained our community outreach service, we have still been able to support groups in different settings, offering online workshops or targeted information provision. We have used this approach to tackle misinformation about Covid, vaccinations and other issues associated with the pandemic.  

    In a usual year, we deliver approximately 80 outreach sessions throughout Leicester city and county, making presentations to small groups about our work and how people in local communities can connect with us and support our work.

    Housing / Homelessness

    We work with a range of partners and organisations, including local authorities and charities that work directly with homeless and rough-sleeping individuals and families, to obtain any support that is needed. We can help service users to move into safe and permanent (including temporary) accommodation. 

    Collaborative Partnerships

    AIG believes in the power of partnership and collaboration. We work with several East Midlands universities (e.g. De Montfort University, Leicester University and Nottingham Trent University) and local colleges (e.g. Leicester College) to provide Work Placement for Students and Work Experience for secondary school pupils.  

    We also work in partnership with Voluntary Action Leicestershire to offer voluntary placements for adults within AIG where they can develop practical skills to help them prepare for work or future careers.

    Befriending Support

    Our befriending scheme is at the heart of everything that we do. We offer and find, support for the most vulnerable individuals in our local community. We help create friendships and attachments between vulnerable people, some of whom will be victims of modern slavery, human trafficking, domestic violence and abuse. Others will have been affected by county lines and gang violence, radicalisation and other socially corrosive factors.