$5.7 million to enhance Victorian settlement services
29 May 2009
Providing refugee and migrant children with a creative outlet for expression through music and the performing arts is just one excellent example of the important work carried out by settlement grants recipients, the Parliamentary Secretary for Multicultural Affairs and Settlement Services, Laurie Ferguson, said today.
As part of $5.7 million settlement grants program (SGP) funding for Victoria, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) will provide $74 000 to the English Language Centre in Melbourne's south-east.
'Music and the performing arts are used for self-expression in cultures all over the world. The English Language Centre works with refugee and migrant school children, raising their self-esteem and sense of belonging through creative media,' Mr Ferguson said.
The English Language Centre project will involve in-school music and arts workshops, holiday community workshops involving parents, children and community members, and the development of links with local arts groups and community organisations.
'One of the major issues we face in settling refugee children in Australia is communication. Projects such as this one provide an outlet and a forum for people to communicate and express themselves, engaging with both their own families and their new communities,' Mr Ferguson said.
In the 2009–10 financial year, the settlement grants program will provide $5.7 million to 46 projects that will help new arrivals settle into Victoria.
Some of the successful applicant organisations include migrant resource centres, multicultural service agencies and community and welfare organisations.
'The many projects supported by the settlement grants program will help migrants and refugees to settle successfully into their new communities, promoting social participation and assisting in their cultural transition into Australia,' Mr Ferguson said.
A list of successful applicants in the 2009-10 funding round is available on the department's website.
See: www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/delivering-assistance/settlement-grants
'I commend all organisations for their contribution to the successful settlement of migrants and refugees in Victoria,' Mr Ferguson said.
Media contact: Carla Wilshire 0432 755 935
URL: http://www.minister.immi.gov.au
/parlsec/media/media-releases/2009/lf09028.htm
Last update: 29 May 2009 at 11:24 AEST