Kifah Soleiman, with clients and supporters who help out the organisation, from left, Amal Noor, community support officer Pardoe, Jennifer Francis from the Smethwick anti-social behaviour prevention team and Malyoon Noor.
A CHARITY which helps Somali migrants to settle into the West Midlands community has received a financial boost from the Birmingham Mail Charity Trust.
Ileys Community Association, which meets at Waterloo Road, Smethwick, was given a £1,335 grant which it used to fund drama therapy courses for children.
The organisation was set up 18 months ago to help integration and offer advice on a range of issues from housing to language. About 500 Somali families are living in the area. Co-ordinator Hodan Rashid, who moved to the UK three years ago, said: "The organisation was set up to help the Somali community integrate into the local community. Before that, there were problems with anti-social behaviour and harassment but since the group was set up things have really changed and improved. We have worked with the police to address some of the issues and it has been a real success. We have achieved a lot in a short space of time," she said.
"We offer advice sessions particularly to help with translation but we are now starting to offer more social and leisure sessions and activities. We used the money from the BMCT to offer drama therapy classes to children of all ages. We hired a drama therapist who works in the local community in schools. The courses explored emotions and it really helped the children, particularly the younger ones, to settle into the community. It also helped their parents to mix and socialise with other parents," she added.
"The feedback has been fantastic. When I came to England I lived in London and there was a much larger Somali community. There seemed to be more problems when I came to the Midlands because the population was smaller and integration was more difficult." she concluded
