THE Romero Centre, a Catholic advocacy and support centre for refugees, is seeking help to house and care for young asylum seekers in the Brisbane community.
Mercy Family Services will run a program through the centre at Dutton Park in partnership with the Red Cross.
The young asylum seekers are unaccompanied minors under status determination by the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship.
Centre manager Faiza El-Higzi said the minors would be housed in the community with four to six young people per house.
“Currently we have not been successful in securing housing through the rental market,” she said.
“We are seeking assistance from the community to provide us with access to houses that can accommodate four to six young people plus a carer.
“Accommodation is planned around the southside, preferably around the Annerley-Moorooka corridor and the Logan-Woodridge areas.”
Ms El-Higzi said the aim of the program was to reduce harm and increase resilience for those awaiting their visa outcomes.
“The program is enacted by the Minister of Immigration to allow people who are awaiting visa decisions to be cared for in community accommodation instead of detention centres or alternative places of detention, for example, secured motels,” she said.
“This model of community support provides a more humane model of detention for families and young people, including children, while their visa status is being resolved.”
People in detention are currently from Sri Lanka (Tamil), Iran, Afghanistan (Hazara) and Kurdish people who can be from Iran, Iraq or are stateless, she said.
Volunteers are also being sought to support the young asylum seekers in such areas as the learning of English as a second language (ESL), completion of homework and, where necessary, transport.
Romero Centre volunteers co-ordinator Kerrie Manning said volunteer training would take place on the first Thursday of the month.
The first training class for those interested in joining another program at the Romero Centre – the three-month Federal Government pilot Directed Persons Program – was held at the centre on May 5.
The Directed Persons Program will take asylum seekers on excursions into the community as part of a familiarisation process.
Those wishing to volunteer for any of the programs at the Romero Centre can contact Kerrie Manning on (07) 3846 3250 or volunteer@romerocentre.org.au
