Ashley Community and Housing (ACH) were joined by Unleashing Refugee Potential (URP) CIC at this lively one-day workshop which explored current projects and emerging areas of interest. 

Alongside introductions and presentations from the different organisations in attendance, delegates enjoyed a tour of the BDFI facilities.

The second part of the workshop involved discussions around three topics:

• The role of AI in digital translation in enabling and assisting refugee integration and asylum application procedures 

• Digital tools in measuring and driving micro-integration with data analytics

• Digital strategies for fast-tracking integration, skills, and employability

Many potential ideas for future projects and initiatives were discusses and are now in early stages of development.

Sanja Milivojevic, the BDFI academic who leads on the partnership, said: "We had some really useful and lively discussions about how we can take forward some of these ideas. It's so valuable to get this breadth of knowledge and experience together in one room and look at how we can collaborate meaningfully. I look forward to taking these plans forward in the near future."

Kidist T, director of Unleashing Refugee Potential, said: "It was wonderful to see everyone in person at the potential partnership workshop, and it was inspiring to witness the innovations and efforts to place communities at the heart of the BDFI initiative. We’re grateful to be part of this collaboration and are hopeful that together, we can work towards more inclusive systems and an enabling work environment for migrants and refugees."