We are hiring: Operations and Office Manager
***This opportunity has now closed***
We are recruiting an Operations and Office Manager to support our growing team and expanding operations.
We have been supporting LGBTQI+ people through the asylum and immigration system and campaigning for their rights since 1993. We are recruiting an Operations and Office Manager to support the organisation’s ongoing development by helping ensure the charity has necessary systems in place (and managing them) and is acting in line with policies and procedures. You will lead on HR and finance functions and oversee administrative processes to ensure the smooth running of the organisation.
You will:
- Manage and improve the effectiveness and efficiency of systems that support delivery of our mission such as office management and administration, IT and HR
- Work closely with the Executive Director to manage our finances
- Provide support to trustee meetings and our forthcoming refugee advisory group
- Lead on our HR processes, with training provided as needed in order to develop knowledge in this area
- Act as our administrator for our database on Salesforce, with training provided as needed
- Line manage our Administrator/Bookkeeper
Our vision is a world where there is equality, dignity, respect and safety for all people in the expression of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Our values are:
- Safety: We believe everyone should be safe from persecution and safe to be themselves. We strive to create a safe workplace culture, and we place importance on the wellbeing of everyone involved with Rainbow Migration.
- Integrity: We are thorough and honest in everything we do, and we take responsibility for our actions. We want to be accountable to our communities and those who support us.
- Belonging: We welcome and include all LGBTQI+ people, and we celebrate and value their range of experience in terms of gender, religion, race, age, disability status and class. We try to remove obstacles to participation, champion equality and promote a sense of family or home through our services.
- Respect: We believe that every person is equal and deserves the same level of courtesy, care, and attention. We respect the rights, wishes and feelings of our service users, and campaign for their rights to be respected as they go through the asylum and immigration system.
At Rainbow Migration, we don’t just accept difference – we celebrate it, we support it, and we thrive on it. We’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, gender identity sexual orientation, age, marital status, or disability status – simple, we consider all qualified applicants, consistent with any legal requirements.
We welcome applications from candidates with lived experience of going through the UK asylum or immigration system or who have been subject to immigration control, and also people of colour who are currently underrepresented among our staff. We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for anyone considered as disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if they meet the necessary criteria.
The successful applicant will be required at the point of conditional job offer to disclose all unspent criminal records and subsequently to undergo a basic DBS check.
Hours: Full-time (35 hours per week). Working part-time or job-sharing will be considered. Occasional work in the evenings and at weekends may be required but with plenty of notice. Rainbow Migration encourages staff to maintain a good work life balance and has a TOIL system in place.
Salary: Starting at £36,656 with potential annual step increases up to £40,837 (pro rata if working part time), plus statutory employer’s pension contribution. In addition to an annual step increase, the trustees consider giving a separate inflationary increase every April.
Contract type: Permanent
Location: Our offices are based in Borough, central London. All staff are currently working from home due to Covid-19. A mix of working at home and/or the office is likely for the foreseeable future. There might be occasional travel outside London with plenty of notice.
Annual leave: 25 days per year, increasing by one day per holiday year after two years of employment up to a maximum of 28 days (pro rata if working part-time).
How to apply:
Closing date: 10 am, Tuesday 14 June
Interview dates: 20 and 21 June 2022
Please read the job description and person specification. Email your CV and covering letter, along with optional monitoring form, to recruitment@rainbowmigration.org.uk.
When writing your covering statement, please give examples of how you meet the person specification. In addition to what is on your CV, we want to hear about any relevant skills and experience that demonstrate you meet the necessary criteria for the role and if you meet any of the advantageous criteria. Skills and experience could be from training, volunteering, interests and life experience. Please make your statement no longer than two A4 pages.
Please also confirm in your statement if you wished to be considered under the guaranteed interview scheme for anyone considered as disabled under the Equality Act 2010 (physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ effect on your ability to do normal daily activities).
If you have questions about the role, please email recruitment@rainbowmigration.org.uk.
By submitting an application, you:
- Confirm that you have the right to work in the UK and will produce the necessary documentation if you are offered this post
- Declare that to the best of your knowledge and belief, the information provided in your application is true and correct and that you understand that any false information or statement given may result in dismissal from Rainbow Migration if appointed
- Accept that, if successful, you will be required to disclose all unspent criminal records at the point of conditional job and subsequently to undergo a basic DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check.
Privacy Notice: Your privacy and data protection
In order to recruit and manage staff, Rainbow Migration needs to store personal information (data) about all applicants. Rainbow Migration is registered as a “controller of personal data” under the Data Protection Act 2018 with the Information Commissioner. By applying for this role, you agree that we will keep the information on your CV and covering statement. Monitoring information is kept separately and is pseudonymised to avoid identification of applicants. Monitoring information is amalgamated for statistical purposes and the original data then destroyed. Rainbow Migration keeps all personal information safely and securely, and does not share your information with anyone outside Rainbow Migration or any other organisation without your consent. Information is kept for the minimum period necessary which for CVs and covering statements for unsuccessful applicants is 12 months after the conclusion of the recruitment campaign.
IDAHOBIT: Feeling free and safe from harm
LGBTQI+ people that seek safety in the UK have had to flee violence and persecution in their countries of origin.
Sometimes they have fled countries where same-sex relations are against the law and punishable with prison sentences. Others have fled places where homosexuality is even punishable by death. And then there are LGBTQI+ people, with trans people at highest risk, who face a lack of state protection that often exposes them to hate crimes.
“I spent approximately 20 years of my life dealing with the prejudices, discrimination and transphobia, resulting from the lack of laws that would protect our lives and our human rights”.
Sasha, from Guatemala
Once they get here, they expect to feel safe and to have a chance to rebuild their lives free from violence and from homophobia, biphobia and/or transphobia. However, instead of that, most of them encounter a long and often cruel asylum process in which their sexual orientation and/or gender identity is called into question. It also sends them to temporary accommodation and detention centres where they can face further abuse and isolation. And, depending on the route they took to flee violence, they soon might end up being sent 4,000 miles away to a place where they have no connections.
On the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) we need to come together to raise awareness of the violence and discrimination that LGBTQI+ people face around the world and the challenges that those seeking asylum face here in the UK.
Help us remind this government that we need a compassionate asylum system that allows LGBTQI+ people to overcome the traumatic experiences they’ve been through and finally feel free and safe from harm here.
You can do so by sharing the following post on Twitter and tagging Boris Johnson and Priti Patel (or share the blog with friends and colleagues!):
Sending LGBTQI+ people to Rwanda is not safe. If you care about the LGBTQI+ community, on #IDAHOBIT2022 I ask you, @BorisJohnson @pritipatel, to ditch this deal with Rwanda immediately and to treat LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum in the UK with compassion and dignity.
“Education and information are the greatest weapons we have to fight and eradicate ignorance, prejudice, discrimination, homophobia, transphobia and absences of laws that are ending with the lives of human beings who only want to live in total freedom and with their own identity.”
Sasha, from Guatemala
Government expected to send LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum to Rwanda despite the evidence it has found of abuse
This government has now confirmed it will send LGBTQI+ people who come to the UK seeking safety to Rwanda to process their asylum claims, despite the evidence it has found of ill treatment.
In the Equality Impact Assessment (EIA) for the policy published last night, the government accepts that trans women can face torture or inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, yet merely says that their relocation to Rwanda must be considered on a case by case basis.
In relation to sexual orientation, the EIA states that “investigations point to ill treatment being more than one off, but it does not appear to be systemic” and mentions that it will monitor the abuse of LGBTQI+ people in order to manage the risk.
Rainbow Migration’s Legal and Policy Director, Sonia Lenegan, stated that “the EIA accepts that LGBTQI+ people in Rwanda are subject to abuse, yet the government intends to send them there regardless”, and added that “this government should clarify as a matter of urgency the precise level of mistreatment of LGBTQI+ people that they find to be acceptable”.
Arrest, prosecution and detention of LGBTQI+ people
In the document setting out the country information on general human rights, there are pages of examples of the arrest, prosecution and detention of LGBTQI+ people. This evidence is dismissed on the basis of an interview with an organisation that by its own admission “doesn’t know about the difference in treatment of different LGBT+ groups” and denies the mistreatment and harassment of LGBTQI+ people, despite all of the evidence to the contrary.
“It is notable that while other organisations that were interviewed by the UK government are named in the published interview notes, the “representatives of the LGBT+ community” that met with the Home Office on 5 April 2022 are not named, presumably for their own safety”, said Sonia Lenegan.
No evidence of deterrence
The EIA also states that they “do not consider relocation to Rwanda to be a penalty”, to which Sonia Lenegan said, “it is difficult to understand how the government squares that position with their assertion that the policy will act as a disincentive to small boat crossings, as this government has made clear is its intention”.
Despite the government pointing to Australia in the EIA as evidence that the policy will deter people arriving in the UK in small boats, the evidence relied on has been debunked several times.
Sending LGBTQI+ people into what is known to be a dangerous situation, with the promise only to “monitor” whether or not they are abused, is completely insufficient. The evidence published by this government makes it clearer than ever that it is unsafe to send LGBTQI+ people to Rwanda.
We are asking Priti Patel and Boris Johnson to ditch this deal with Rwanda immediately and to treat LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum in the UK with compassion and dignity.
Don't send LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum to Rwanda
Rwanda is a dangerous place to be LGBTQI+, but the UK government plans to send people seeking asylum there.
The government has announced that it intends to send people seeking asylum in the UK to Rwanda to have their asylum claims processed there. This is extremely concerning for LGBTQI+ people seeking safety, as Rwanda is a dangerous place to be LGBTQI+.
Although same sex relations are not outlawed, there are no specific laws protecting LGBTQI+ people from discrimination and abuse. Rights like same-sex marriage or adoption and gender recognition for trans people do not exist. And there is widespread evidence of LGBTQI+ people being harassed, detained and beaten by security officials.
The UK Foreign Office’s own advice for tourists to Rwanda warns of “discrimination and abuse, including from local authorities”. And the situation for LGBTQI+ people there is so dire that Rainbow Migration has supported LGBTQI+ people from Rwanda seeking asylum here.
People who arrive in the UK seeking asylum have fled persecution or conflict, and sending them 4,000 miles away to a place where they have no connections will only cause them further suffering.
Sign the petition now to call on Priti Patel and Boris Johnson to abandon this shameful policy before it’s too late and to instead create a compassionate, caring asylum system.
Proposals to offshore asylum claims to Rwanda will be harmful to LGBTQI+ people
The government is expected to announce on Thursday that they intend to send people who are seeking asylum in the UK to Rwanda and have their asylum claims processed there. A similar agreement with Israel resulted in most people who were transferred to Rwanda leaving, some subsequently making the dangerous journey to Europe. During that journey, people were trafficked and sold.
Last year, when Denmark passed a law providing for the offshore processing of asylum claims, outside the European Union, this was condemned by the African Union as “responsibility and burden shifting”. Despite this, this government has sought to introduce similar provisions in the Nationality and Border Bill.
The agreement means that LGBTQI+ people who have fled life-threatening situations in their home countries, and sought safety and protection from the UK, will instead be sent to a country where it is not safe for LGBTQI+ people to be open about their sexual orientation or gender identity.
There is widespread evidence of ill-treatment and abuse faced by LGBTQI+ people in Rwanda. For instance, Human Rights Watch reported last year that:
“Rwandan authorities rounded up and arbitrarily detained over a dozen gay and transgender people, sex workers, street children, and others in the months before a planned June 2021 high-profile international conference.”
“People interviewed who identified as gay or transgender said that security officials accused them of “not representing Rwandan values.” They said that other detainees beat them because of their clothes and identity. Three other detainees, who were held in the “delinquents’” room at Gikondo, confirmed that fellow detainees and guards more frequently and violently beat people they knew were gay or transgender than others.”
The situation for LGBTQI+ people in Rwanda is so poor that it is a source country for people seeking asylum in the UK based on their sexual orientation, albeit in low numbers, and Rainbow Migration has previously provided support to LGBTQI+ people from Rwanda.
Rainbow Migration has been warning for months of the risk that the Nationality and Borders Bill creates for LGBTQI+ people in particular. In relation to offshoring, the government has said that even where they consider a country to be safe, they will take specific vulnerabilities into consideration. In theory, this could act as a safeguard against LGBTQI+ people being placed into an offshoring process, however a person’s sexual orientation is already frequently and incorrectly disputed, and the Nationality and Borders Bill will make it even more difficult for a person to “prove” that they are, for example, gay.
In this context, and from our experience, we expect to see that where LGBTQI+ people do try to resist their removal to Rwanda, this government is likely to dispute that they are LGBTQI+ and will remove them anyway. We do not consider that there are adequate safeguards that can be put in place to prevent this, and we have not heard any proposals on how this government will avoid the harm that the agreement will cause to LGBTQI+ people. These proposals are actively harmful and an abdication of the UK’s responsibilities under the Refugee Convention, and they should be abandoned.
Take part in our new survey!
We are carrying out research via survey monkey into how we can improve our communications messages. Our aim is to talk clearly about the particular barriers and discrimination LGBTQI+ people who are seeking asylum and who have refugee status face, and how our solutions might inspire people to support our work. Additionally, we would love to understand a little bit more about our audiences and supporters.
We really value your feedback and any ideas you would like to share, completing the survey will only take 5 to 10 minutes. Please be open and frank in your responses. All your answers are anonymous and confidential.
The survey will be open until 21 April at 5 pm.
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your views.
Statement: We stand in solidarity with the trans community
We stand in solidarity with the trans community and join Stonewall, LGBT Consortium and others in withdrawing all support for this Summer’s UK Government-led Safe To Be Me conference.
At Rainbow Migration we welcome and strive to provide a safe space for everyone who is claiming asylum based on sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or sex characteristics.
Many of our trans service users have fled violence in their countries of origin and we believe they should be treated with kindness and compassion by the UK, not fear that their rights to be themselves may be denied.
If this Government is truly committed to ensuring the protection of LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum it must ensure that trans people are protected from the harms caused by conversion practices.
How to support LGBTQI+ Ukrainians
We are deeply concerned by the situation in Ukraine and have joined other UK charities in urging the Government to protect those fleeing any violence in the region.
At the moment, we are actively campaigning against the Nationality and Borders Bill which, if passed in its current form, will be harmful to LGBTQI+ Ukrainians and anyone fleeing life-threatening countries seeking safety here.
We are also working with partner LGBTQI+ organisations here in the UK, signposting LGBTQI+ Ukrainians to trusted LGBTQI+ support services.
Here is a list of ways in which you can help LGBTQI+ Ukrainians:
- If you live in an urban area, have a spare room and are willing to host for a minimum of 3-6 months, you can sign up with Refugees at Home.
- If you don’t meet the above criteria, you can sign up with The No Accommodation Network.
- You can also volunteer as a Qualified Home Visitor for Refugees at Home – you will need to be a professional who does home visits as part of your day job. By volunteering, you’ll help Refugees at Home to assess more hosts and offer safe homes to more refugees, including LGBTQ+ Ukrainians.
- For LGBTQI+ people leaving Ukraine who want to find a host in the UK, you can email ukraine@stonewall.org.uk.
- ILGA Europe have put together a list of direct ways in which you can donate to support LGBTIQ+ people in Ukraine, and help LGBTQI+ organisations in neighbouring countries welcoming Ukrainian people.
- You can add your name to this petition that we have co-signed, urging the government to help Ukrainian refugees right now.
We are hiring: Communications and Campaigns Assistant
***This position has now closed***
Want to kick-start your career in social media and campaigning at a leading LGBTQI+ asylum and immigration rights charity?
Rainbow Migration, the leading UK charity dedicated to supporting LGBTQI+ people through the asylum and immigration system, is recruiting for a Communications and Campaigns Assistant who is keen to gain experience in digital communications, campaigning and supporting the involvement of people with lived experience in our work. You will also gain experience of fundraising.
Rainbow Migration has been campaigning for the rights of LGBTQI+ people since 1993 and have stepped up this work since 2021. We now have an opportunity for a Communications and Campaigns Assistant to join us and provide vital support across campaigning and influencing work, fundraising and communications.
This would be an ideal position for a creative, digital-savvy individual and a passion for LGBTQI+ and/or immigration/asylum campaigning.
This role will receive full training and support as required to deliver your responsibilities:
- Create and schedule social media posts
- Create graphic, audio and video content
- Help to set-up, test and promote online campaign actions
- Support the planning and delivery of online and in-person events
- Interview service users and write up their stories
- Help to support the involvement of LGBTQI+ people with lived experience of the asylum system in our work
- Help keep our fundraising database up-to-date and draft correspondence for our individual donors
Rainbow Migration’s vision is a world where there is equality, dignity, respect and safety for all people in the expression of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Our values are:
- Safety: We believe everyone should be safe from persecution and safe to be themselves. We strive to create a safe workplace culture, and we place importance on the wellbeing of everyone involved with Rainbow Migration.
- Integrity: We are thorough and honest in everything we do, and we take responsibility for our actions. We want to be accountable to our communities and those who support us.
- Belonging: We welcome and include all LGBTQI+ people, and we celebrate and value their range of experience in terms of gender, religion, race, age, disability status and class. We try to remove obstacles to participation, champion equality and promote a sense of family or home through our services.
- Respect: We believe that every person is equal and deserves the same level of courtesy, care, and attention. We respect the rights, wishes and feelings of our service users, and campaign for their rights to be respected as they go through the asylum and immigration system.
At Rainbow Migration, we don’t just accept difference – we celebrate it, we support it, and we thrive on it. We’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, gender identity sexual orientation, age, marital status, or disability status – simple, we consider all qualified applicants, consistent with any legal requirements.
We welcome applications from candidates with lived experience of going through the UK asylum or immigration system or who have been subject to immigration control, and also people of colour who are currently underrepresented among our staff. We offer a guaranteed interview scheme for anyone considered as disabled under the Equality Act 2010 (physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ effect on your ability to do normal daily activities), providing such candidates meet the essential criteria. If you wish to qualify under this scheme, please make this clear when applying.
CONTRACT TYPE: Permanent
HOURS: 35 hours per week. We will consider part-time or job share. When applying, please state what hours you are looking to work. Very occasional evening work is required, and possibly at weekends, but with plenty of notice (meetings and events will be held virtually until the office space is open again).
SALARY: Starting at £20,096 with potential annual step increases up to £21,319 (pro rata if working part-time), plus statutory employer’s pension contribution. In addition to an annual step increase, the trustees consider giving a separate inflationary increase every April and it has already been agreed that from 1 April this year the starting salary will rise to £21,101.
LOCATION: Rainbow Migration’s offices are based in Borough, Central London, and this role would normally be office-based. At the time of posting this advert, all Rainbow Migration staff are working from home due to Covid-19. A mix of working at home and/or the office is likely for the foreseeable future. There might also be occasional travel outside London with plenty of notice.
ANNUAL LEAVE: 25 days per year rising after 24 months by 1 day after each year of service to maximum of 28 days per year (pro rata if working part-time).
CLOSING DATE: 11pm, 3 April.
INTERVIEWS: Between 7 – 12 April
HOW TO APPLY: Please read the job description and person specification. If you have any questions about the role or would like to find out more before applying, then you can contact the line manager via recruitment@rainbowmigration.org.uk.
Please email your CV, covering statement, and optional monitoring form to recruitment@rainbowmigration.org.uk. When writing your covering statement, please give examples of how you meet the person specification. In addition to what is on your CV, we want to hear about any relevant skills and experience that demonstrate you meet the necessary criteria for the role, and if you meet any of the advantageous criteria. Skills and experience could be from , training, volunteering, interests and life experience. Please make your statement no longer than two A4 pages.
Please also confirm in your statement if you wished to be considered under the guaranteed interview scheme for anyone considered as disabled under the Equality Act 2010 (physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ effect on your ability to do normal daily activities).
By submitting an application, you:
- Confirm that you have the right to work in the UK and will produce the necessary documentation if you are offered this post.
- Declare that to the best of your knowledge and belief, the information provided with your application is true and correct and that you understand that any false information or statement given will justify the dismissal from Rainbow Migration if appointed.
Privacy Notice: Your privacy and data protection
In order to recruit and manage staff, Rainbow Migration needs to store personal information (data) about all applicants. Rainbow Migration is registered as a “controller of personal data” under the Data Protection Act 2018 with the Information Commissioner. By applying for this role, you agree that we will keep the information on your CV and covering statement. Monitoring information is kept separately and is pseudonymised to avoid identification of applicants. Monitoring information is amalgamated for statistical purposes and the original data then destroyed. Rainbow Migration keeps all personal information safely and securely, and does not share your information with anyone outside Rainbow Migration or any other organisation without your consent. Information is kept for the minimum period necessary which for CVs and covering statements for unsuccessful applicants is 12 months after the conclusion of the recruitment campaign.
IWD: Additional challenges for lesbian, bisexual and trans women seeking asylum
On International Women’s Day we’d like to pay tribute to all the lesbian, bisexual and trans women that go through the asylum system and acknowledge the additional struggles they face simply because of their gender or gender identity.
When assessing someone’s sexual orientation during asylum interviews, decision-makers often rely on a pre-determined assumption of sexual ‘self-realisation’ that doesn’t always apply in the case of women. Some women only form a same sex sexual orientation later in life and face being disbelieved on this basis, particularly where they have been in relationships with or married to men previously, or have children.
According to our LGBTQI+ Asylum Seeker Support Workers, this is a very common experience for lesbians who claim asylum. They might have married a man due to cultural, familial or religious pressures and/or to ensure their sexual orientation remains hidden. For instance, Marina had to leave Cameroon because after her family discovered her sexual orientation, they forced her into a relationship with a man. This factor can lead to women like Marina facing disbelief during their asylum interview.
Bisexual women face even greater challenges and have sometimes been asked why they have ‘chosen’ to be in a relationship with someone of the same sex when it places them in danger in their country of origin. In addition, lesbians, bisexual and trans women all face hardship and isolation due to their sexual orientation and/or gender identity as it is harder to seek support from country-of-origin communities, as they fear they would again be subjected to harassment and abuse.
On the other hand, trans women face systematic discrimination, harassment and violence when going through the asylum system. The current asylum decision making guidance lacks up to date information around gender identity, which leads to official written communications not recognising the chosen name of trans women and misgendering them, or what’s even more traumatic, to trans women being placed in detention in the wrong detention population and provision of shared accommodation in men's facilities that may attract bullying, assault or harassment. Like Nisha, who describes her experience in detention as “horrible”, and explains: “I did not have a shower for the first week because it was an open shower. So someone could see. I was on hormones before I was detained...So it was not good for me to expose myself. I had to hide.”
Trans women are also at a higher risk of hate crimes, homelessness and poverty.
As seen above, after leaving life-threatening situations, lesbian, bisexual and trans women all too often have to navigate additional challenges while claiming asylum. We believe it is time for a rights-based, intersectional approach to asylum, that recognises the specific experiences of women and makes them feel safe throughout the process. At the moment we are urging the Government to rethink the Nationality and Borders Bill, which will make things even worse for lesbian, bisexual and trans women, but also for everyone fleeing persecution. You can find out more about our call to action or learn more about the work that we do.