I’m excited to share our new report ‘Building New Futures’, which presents the findings from a progress evaluation of our delivery of the Refugee Employability Programme (REP).
Maximus delivers REP on behalf of the Home Office in the West Midlands and North West of England. Launched in September 2023, the programme is designed to support refugees to fully integrate into life in the UK, gain sustainable employment, and build a long-term independent future. Through REP, refugees receive tailored support, structured across three components: English language, integration, and employability.
It is well understood that refugees face considerable challenges and barriers to employment and integration in the UK. As a result, refugees are more than 20% less likely to be employed than the rest of the population. Therefore, the support that REP provides is crucial in helping refugees integrate into the community and secure sustainable employment as the foundation of a new life.
Evaluating progress
We carried out our evaluation in the Summer of 2024. REP was still a relatively new programme, having been fully operational for only a matter of months. But we know that such programmes, supporting people with complex and varied barriers, take time to establish, develop and embed before they are operating at full strength.
With this in mind, our evaluation aimed to:
- Explore the emerging impacts of the programme.
- Gain insight from delivery to highlight key success factors and inform future provision of refugee employability services.
Our evaluation combined initial performance data and a review of research literature. Then we overlaid new insight from operational leads and frontline Case Managers who work directly with refugees on the programme.
Emerging impacts
Since REP began, more than 2,500 refugees have joined the programme with Maximus, receiving the support they need and making progress towards work.
Our report looks beyond these numbers, exploring the profound impact the programme is having by helping refugees settle into life in the UK, interact and communicate in English with increasing confidence, and move towards sustainable employment. Alongside these core aims, the report also highlights improvements in health and wellbeing, a growing sense of belonging, and increasing independence among the additional benefits felt by participants.
5 key factors for successful refugee employability support
Our findings also reveal 5 key factors which have been vital to the success of the programme. These factors are important to consider in future services aimed at supporting refugees.
- Delivering specialist support that meets the needs of refugees. Providing enhanced and tailored support which effectively addresses the barriers faced by refugees.
- Placing the participant at the heart of the approach. Delivering the programme with a focus on quality, consistency, and the participant experience.
- Recruiting and developing specialist Case Managers. Ensuring support is delivered by high-quality Case Managers with the skills and expertise required, including recognising the value of lived experience.
- Establishing trust with people and communities. Understanding the importance of proactive engagement in establishing trust with individuals and wider communities.
- Building integration through partnership working. Enabling holistic support and promoting service integration through cross-sector partnership working.
REP closed to new entrants in December 2024, and the programme is due to end in June 2025. I hope that our report sheds light on the important work that continues to be done through the programme to help participants to rebuild their lives in the UK, and helps to inform the future provision of support for refugees.
You can learn more in our full report, Building New Futures.
