Social counselling

SIMI (The Association for Integration and Migration) offers free social counselling, aiming to promote the integration of foreigners into Czech society and is a service provided to all foreigners living in the Czech Republic regardless of their residential status. We aim to equip our clients with such knowledge and skills, so they are able to act independently and integrate themselves into their host community during their stay in the Czech Republic. This approach to professional assistance is intended to strengthen the abilities of each individual as well as the communities they are in, whilst supporting streamlined cohabitation of foreigners and the social majority.

Social counselling is at the core of the activities of our organization and counselling assistance is provided by social workers in the following areas:

  • Employment - assistance searching for, obtaining or maintaining a job, providing information on rights and obligations of foreigners in the Czech labour market (for those who are both employed and self-employed)
  • Housing
  • Health – assistance with insurance, social security, social benefits and pensions
  • Education
  • Family life – assistance and information regarding childcare, etc.

Social counselling often works to resolve the challenges of families with children, seniors or those with disabilities who are unable to take care of themselves as well as more general day to day challenges. Social workers help families in dealing with schools, jobcentres, hospitals or health insurance companies and accompany them to their appointments whilst supporting their integration into Czech society.

Services are provided at our headquarters in Prague and at designated locations in the form of screening and escorting clients to various appointments. Each applicant is firstly familiarised with the services we offer and the way in which they are provided. After defining the terms of support the applicant has to sign an informed consent form as well as ‘a management of file’ document. The counsellors at SIMI are able to provide sessions in Czech, English, French and Russian languages and in certain cases we may provide interpreters for other foreign languages.

Our clients are all foreigners regardless of their residential status, including applicants seeking international protection, refugees and persons without a residence permit. The service is provided to those who have either an address or would like to remain anonymous. SIMI counsellors also conduct sessions via telephone and via the Internet, where they are answering questions asked via email, Skype or Facebook.

SIMI professional social counselling is a registered social service in accordance with the law no. 108/2006 Sb., and all the workers fulfil competence and integrity regulations. Clients are not discriminated on the basis of their age, race, native language, sex, sexual orientation, family status or economic situation and services are provided equally regardless of ethnic, national, social, religious and other affiliations. The service provided respects the uniqueness, dignity and independence of the client, their privacy and right to their own choice. This service is provided with an emphasis on the empowerment of the client and with regard to ensuring the continuity of support.

Legal and social counselling

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