Safe Haven program

Free settlement, employment, language, housing and counselling support for refugee claimants and other humanitarian newcomers

There is a growing number of humanitarian and vulnerable newcomers coming to BC who are not eligible for federal settlement programs but need wraparound support to settle into their new communities, practise their English, and find work and housing.

Safe Haven offers free, multilingual, wraparound services that support refugee claimants in all aspects of their journey including:

Settlement and immigration information, orientation and referrals
Claims submission support and assistance completing non-immigration forms
English-language assessment and formal language training
Housing search and support
Short-term non-clinical counselling
Psycho-social trauma counselling
Customized employment counselling, job skills support, labour market and workplace rights and responsibilities information, and short-term training (e.g., FoodSafe, First Aid, etc.)
Legal navigation and more
2SLGBTQI+ support

Asylum seekers (who have not made a claim for protection like a refugee claimant) can access help with their initial integration into society, including:

Settlement and immigration information, orientation and referrals
Claims submission process support and assistance completing non-immigration forms
Community connections and informal language practice
Short-term non-clinical counselling

Meanwhile, CUAET visa holders and other humanitarian newcomers can access psycho-social trauma counselling.

Services may be delivered in Surrey and Delta in various languages, including Punjabi, Spanish, Dari, Pashto, Arabic and Tigrinya. Languages and eligibility for each service area may differ.

Workshops and Events

Some of the workshops and events presented by Safe Haven include:

Job fairs and hiring events
Workplace rights and responsibilities workshops
Employment readiness training
Career decision making and labour market workshops
Canadian workplace culture, interview skills, digital literacy and more
Resumé and cover letter workshops

Partners we work with

To deliver services, we have partnered with several partner organizations including:

Sources Community Resources Centres (claims submissions support, immigration information and application assistance)
Options Community Services (settlement, labour market and accommodation support)
YWCA (emergency housing support and long-term housing search support)
Muslim Food Bank (settlement information and housing search in English, Dari and Pashto)
UMOJA Operation Compassion Society (settlement services and housing search support in French and Tigrinya)
Pacific Immigrant Resources Society (PIRS) (settlement and labour market services for women)
Progressive Intercultural Community Services (PICS) (settlement and labour market services, and housing referrals in Delta)
Sher Vancouver (2SLGBTQI+ settlement support)

Eligibility

For most of the services, eligibility is only for refugee claimants. Asylum seekers can access some services. And mental health supports are also available for refugees, CUAET visa holders and other humanitarian newcomers including:

Palestinian nationals with family in Canada issued a temporary resident visa from IRCC
Permanent resident status issued from IRCC for certain foreign nationals affected by the conflict in Sudan with family in Canada
Permanent resident status issued from IRCC for certain Colombian, Haitian and Venezuelan nationals with family in Canada

Contact us for support!

To learn more about how to access services through DIVERSEcity’s Safe Haven, please email safehaven@dcrs.ca.

Punjabi Wraparound Support Worker: Sanjay Jangra, 778-789-3258, sjangra@dcrs.ca

Spanish Wraparound Support Worker: Karla Garcia, 604-306-6823, kgarcia@dcrs.ca

Dari/Pashto Wraparound Support Worker: Hameedullah Asadi, 604-307-5609, hasadi@dcrs.ca

Group Orientation Coordinator: Ilaha Safi, 604-307-6493, isafi@dcrs.ca

Arabic Wraparound Support Workers will also be available.