“Housing Champion Project” to increase quality housing advice in BME communities

June 2017 will see Housing Rights and the Northern Ireland Housing Executive embark on an exciting new peer project that will increase access to housing advice in black and minority ethnic communities, including refugees, and all others who identify with this group. 

The Housing Champions project will recruit volunteers from ethnic minority groups and give them the support and training they need in order to provide high quality housing advice within their own community. By using peer advice, it is hoped that these communities will benefit from increased confidence, integration and inclusion.

The Housing Champions

The Housing Champions will be selected from ethnic minority communities across Northern Ireland.

As part of their role, the Housing Champion will: 

• gain an accreditation in housing advice,
• gain an accreditation in community interpretation skills,
• undertake a 16 week volunteer placement with a housing advice provider.

With the assistance of Housing Rights, the Housing Champions will deliver housing advice sessions within their local community, sharing their knowledge with their community.

If you have any volunteers working with you that you believe may be interested, or you have contacts within a community that may like more information, let us know. Contact Sonya Nelson, our Peer and Volunteer Co-ordinator sonya@housingrights.org.uk or call 028 9024 5640.