Migration and Settlement
SPG auspices Migration Council Australia (MCA) – that national settlement peak body that supports better settlement outcomes for Australia’s migrants and refugees and fosters partnerships among community, industry and government to provide a national voice for effective migration and settlement programs.
Migration research & policy advice
SPG consults widely and undertakes research to develop informed policy advice to government and non-government stakeholders.
Some of our key policy briefs to date include:
Gender-responsive settlement
SPG recognises the importance of settlement services being both culturally and gender responsive, inclusive to people with diverse sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics.
Diversity Data Analysis
SPG creates detailed data analysis on Australia’s cultural and linguistic diversity. We provide advice to public, private, and community sector stakeholders in order to inform policy formation and decision-making.
We utilise national data as well as our understanding of the lived experience of migrant and refugee individuals in Australia in order to create a holistic understanding of Australia’s social and cultural landscape.
Our analyses focus on the prevalence of non-English languages across Australia, trends in low English language proficiency, and the impact of the intersection of gender, age, ethnicity, visa status, and other key indicators.
Ukrainian Community and Settlement Support (UCASS) Grant Program
The Ukrainian Community and Settlement Support (UCASS) Grant program seeks to enable the member organisations of the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations undertaking critical work to welcome and support recently arrived displaced Ukrainians to facilitate positive settlement outcomes for the new arrivals alongside the services delivering the Humanitarian Settlement Program and
Settlement Engagement Transition Support program.
Further, the program aims to strengthen whole‑of‑community engagement and capacity building. The successful organisations will be supported through an organisational capacity-building program, as necessary and appropriate. The program is administered by The Social Policy Group (SPG) on behalf of the Australian Government.
Applications for the UCASS Grant Program will open on Saturday, October 1. For more information about the program and how to apply, click below.
SPG administers AACASS program, that supports Afghan-Australian and other community and grassroot organisations undertaking critical work to welcome and support people recently evacuated from Afghanistan. Through an open competitive process, the program provides grants to organisations to facilitate positive settlement outcomes for the newly arrived Afghan people.
SPG facilitates SETSCoP — a national collaboration of settlement service providers across Australia, who support vulnerable migrants and refugees under the Settlement Engagement and Transition Support (SETS) program. The community of practice (CoP) enables and supports settlement service providers to collaborate, collectively identify and address emerging issues, and share best practice at the national level.
Building service capacity to work with LGBTIQ+ forcibly displaced people
SPG collaborated with Forcibly Displaced People Network (FDPN), BridgeMeals, Meridian and Pride Foundation Australia to develop an online training module “Building service capacity to work with LGBTIQ+ forcibly displaced people”. This e-learning resource is designed to increase the capacity of various community services in providing affirming, safe and inclusive support for LGBTIQ+ forcibly displaced people.
National Compact on Permanent Migration
SPG is a strong supporter of Australia’s permanent migration program as essential to Australian society and economy and critical to our future as a nation. SPG facilitated the National Compact on Permanent Migration bringing together community, industry and unions to reaffirm our shared commitment to pathways to permanent settlement and citizenship as central to Australia’s migration framework.