Overview Amina arrived in Melbourne on a family visa after waiting nine years to reunite with her husband. Tragically two months before their arrival, her husband had a workplace accident that left him with a severe acquired brain injury. As a result, Amina and her three children experienced significant trauma and grief, reuniting with their…
Author Archives: theme
19
Oct
Oct
The Annual Report highlights our journey to strengthen and build trusted community links, helping community members overcome hardships and create better futures for themselves and their families. This year SECL’s work reached 25,000 community members and their children, positively impacting their lives through essential services and support. Some of the key highlights include: $1 million…
19
Oct
Oct
Our new multi-language mental health and wellbeing videos were launched by our young leaders at SECL’s 2022 Annual General Meeting. The ‘Every Person Counts’ video campaign was produced in response to the continuing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic which has impacted many young people. This fun and engaging campaign focuses on steps to improve mental health…
30
Sep
Sep
Overview Soni is a 52-year-old Sri-Lankan woman who arrived in Australia in 2016 on a partner visa. Since arriving in Australia, Soni had not been able to find a suitable and stable job despite strong English skills and work experience in Sri Lanka. As a result, Soni was working for cash-in-hand jobs without stable hours,…
30
Sep
Sep
Overview Suhela is an Afghan woman and a single parent with five dependent children under the age of 15 years. She was married at 14 years old to a man 13 years her senior. She arrived as a refugee from Afghanistan in 2007 and is a victim of extreme family violence and financial abuse. At…
30
Sep
Sep
Overview Zamina is a 30-year-old woman from Afghan background who arrived in Australia with her husband in 2017 on a partner visa and was later granted a permanent visa. She does not speak English and has three children under 10 years of age. The family experienced physical and emotional abuse by multiple perpetrators including the…
30
Sep
Sep
Overview Zora is a single mother of four children who arrived from Afghanistan in Australia three years ago on a refugee visa. She had complex physical and mental health issues, a history of self-harm and suicidal ideation and depression. She also experienced low English language skills and digital literacy, and a lack of understanding of…
16
Dec
Dec
Every person counts, every system fair. Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, this simple message remains our priority, now and into the future. For while, we’ve all been impacted by the pandemic, these impacts have not been felt equally. We’ve seen growing inequality for women, youth and people from culturally diverse backgrounds. This is…
16
Dec
Dec
At 26 years old, Safia arrived in Australia from Afghanistan with her husband and daughter on a Humanitarian Visa. Safia’s husband has a severe physical and mental disability. When she first arrived, Safia spoke little English and had limited digital literacy skills. She presented to SECL’s settlement services during lock-down to seek support regarding employment….
16
Dec
Dec
By Kay Dilger, Head of Financial Wellbeing ‘It’s the most wonderful time of the year…’ according to the famous Christmas carol. However, as financial counsellors know it’s also the ‘most expensive time of the year’! Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, an increasing number of families in Australia will be struggling to put Christmas…