The Change Makers Project

COMMUNITY NEWS The Change Makers Project

Refugee-led social enterprise implements Comic Relief funded Change Makers initiative that aims to put refugees' needs at the heart of policy refugee-led social enterprise ACH and RAMP (Refugee, Asylum and Migration Policy), have now successfully started implementing the Change Makers Project. An initiative that aims to influence and drive support and integration policies that place the needs of refugee service users at the front and centre.

Funded by Comic Relief, ACH and RAMP are one of 20 initiatives to be successful recipients of the funding in Bristol, receiving a generous £600,000. Through close collaboration, ACH and RAMP are delivering a high quality, two-way dialogue between practice and policy that bridges the current gap between grassroot integration work and policymaking. Over 5 years, the project aims to identify strategic opportunities with the wider refugee sector to influence city-level and regional strategies in Bristol.

To celebrate the launch of the project back in October, Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees visited ACH’s office to meet clients of ACH’s Migrant Business Support programme and members of staff that are delivering integration support services every day. Bristol Mayor, Marvin Rees said, “I support ACH and RAMP’s new initiative that will bring to light potentially unidentified barriers to integration in Bristol and bridge the gap between organisations delivering integration services and policymakers. As an active Board Member of the Mayor's Migration Council, I have and will advocate for cities’ views to be considered on discussions around asylum seekers and refugees by national governments and international bodies.”

The project is on its way to driving change in Bristol’s refugee policy agenda through generating sector-wide discussion, producing regular ‘State of the City’ reports, developing a strong evidence base, engaging with the private sector, and promoting collective action. The voice of refugee service user is fundamentally integrated into the project through ACH’s innovative IsTailored, a tool to measure a person’s level and barriers to integration through key indicators.