Fiona’s Journey

Progression into Higher Training

Fiona has been a resettlement client since January 2019 and has been accessing the day centre since 2018.

Fiona worked as a journalist in Ethiopia and holds a degree in Anthropology. Her career as a political news reporter in Ethiopia presented challenges due to ‘threats of press freedom’ in the country. Fiona was imprisoned unfairly for comments she made against the government. Fiona fled her country due to political persecution and claimed asylum in the UK.

While accessing the Drop-In Centre, Fiona engaged in ‘women into work’ activities. She completed the Level 2 Health & Social Care training and started working as a Carer. Fiona’s goal was to go to university and pursue a qualification in media studies. We supported Fiona to apply for university courses, but she was not successful as her anthropology degree qualification from Ethiopia was not in English. It was recommended that she sat the IELTS Exams to get a score for her English level. The EILTS course cost £360. Fiona was supported by Church Army to pay for the course. Fiona completed the course within 3 months and got the score she needed to secure a place at university. We supported Fiona to apply for a course in media studies at London Metropolitan University. She was accepted on the Digital Media course. She started the course in February 2020 at the Holloway campus. Fiona has been allocated a mentor to support her with course work and career development.