Since moving to Australia in 1998 due to political and civil unrest in Iraq, Bashar Hanna has faced and overcome the many challenges of establishing himself personally and professionally in a foreign land.

New research by Settlement Services International and the Institute for Culture and Society, Western Sydney University, challenges narrow economic definitions of successful refugee settlement and, instead, suggests social and civic dimensions are equally valid markers of refugee integration.

Like many individuals working in the creative sector, Damon, a talented photographer and artist has been greatly impacted by COVID-19 restrictions.

In response to overwhelming demand, SSI is distributing donated food packages to individuals and families from asylum seeker backgrounds.

"The virus doesn’t discriminate but the government is discriminating by visa type." As a signatory to an open letter sent to the Prime Minister today, Settlement Services International (SSI) has backed calls across the community services sector to leave nobody behind, “build back better” and avoid mass-unemployment and social unrest after the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the emergence of COVID-19, it would be easy to forget that more than 70 million people globally are still living displaced from their homes. Although we have adjusted the way we work, SSI’s reception team has continued to support newly arrived refugees in their settlement journey through this hard time.

Four participants in an SSI refugee employment program have joined a workforce constructing Australia’s first purpose-built coronavirus testing centre for use by governments here and around the world.

Some refugee families attempting to home-school during the COVID-19 lockdown are finding it particularly difficult without access to suitable technology.

Due to the risk posed to staff and client wellbeing as a result of the escalating COVID-19 pandemic, SSI and Access locations will be temporarily closed from Monday, March 30, 2020.

The spotlight was turned on Australia’s culturally diverse female artists and music practitioners earlier this month at the Australian Women in Music Awards (AWMA).

An innovative new approach to disability services education is using lived experience to help providers better understand the challenges facing people with disability from migrant and refugee backgrounds.

Settlement Services International (SSI) partner The Bower, has provided more than 200 families of refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds with free up-cycled household goods through their House to Home program. 

Sunday November 25 was International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, marking the launch of 16 Days of Activism, a global campaign to galvanise action to end violence against women and children. It will conclude on December 10, International Human Rights Day.

Hundreds of Sydneysiders showed their support for refugees when an eclectic group of Sydney’s newest community members took centre stage at Darling Harbour on November 18.

Education for people from refugee and migrant backgrounds was the focus of a training event held by the NSW Settlement Partnership (NSP), recently. Loukia Zinopoulos, Settlement Services Manager for Settlement Services International, said the training event was a great opportunity for NSP members to hear how educational institutions could link recent migrants and people from refugee backgrounds to education and training opportunities.

Hasan, an SSI client living in the community while he awaits the outcome of this refugee application, has won silver at the NSW Judo Championships held last week. Hasan finished second in the 66kg division, which qualifies him for the National Championship next year.

Settlement Services International (SSI) has today, July 1, opened its doors as an employment services provider based in Campsie. SSI will deliver the Australian Government’s jobactive services to job seekers living within the Sydney East Metro region.

Settlement Services International (SSI) is pleased to announce that the organisation has been successful in tendering for the new $5 billion employment services model, known as jobactive that will replace Job Services Australia from July 1.

Settlement Services International in partnership with St Vincent de Paul Society NSW and UnitingCare has been awarded the tender to deliver Ability Links across 23 local government areas in inner Sydney, Metro Sydney South West, Sutherland Shire and Southern Highland region.  Ability Links is contributing to the objectives of the National Disability Insurance Scheme and is a new approach of the NSW Government to foster full and active participation of people with disability in their community. Sixty-four Ability Links Coordinators, known as Linkers, will be hired to provide information and support to people with disability, their families and carers, and their local communities. Linkers will work in connecting local communities in order to shape a more inclusive society for people with disability and their families. Settlement Services International CEO, Violet Roumeliotis said the missions of the organisations regarding social inclusion made for a highly compatible partnership focused on benefiting people with disability. Providing quality services and support for vulnerable communities, SSI is a leading not-for-profit organisation providing a range of services in the areas of humanitarian settlement, accommodation, asylum seeker assistance and foster care in NSW. “People with disability are the beneficiaries of this combined approach and the new model for full participation offered by Ability Links,” said Ms Roumeliotis.