Virender Batra has been cooking for over 40 years, and has chef qualifications in Indian and continental cooking. Virender came to Australia 30 years ago, and after working in various restaurants as a head chef, he decided to open his own restaurants with his brother.

Settlement Services International has welcomed the NSW Government’s decision to allow asylum seekers in NSW to apply for Opal Card travel concessions earlier than planned, with 15,000 asylum seekers living in NSW now able to apply for the travel benefit. The travel concession, which was first scheduled to become available to eligible asylum seekers from January 1, allows people seeking asylum to access the same $2.50 all day travel benefit as other NSW concession cardholders.

A group of individuals seeking asylum in Australia have overcome social barriers and developed new community connections following the success of the inaugural Surfing Without Borders program run by Settlement Services International. The program introduced a number of individuals who are seeking asylum to the iconic Australian sport of surfing with regular lessons provided by Let’s Go Surfing, owned and operated by community surfing advocate Brenda Miley.

Discounted food parcels called The Staples Bag have been sold by CoACt/SSI jobactive program participants to help improve access to basic food supplies for people on low incomes. Now the Christmas Staple Bag includes food to help create a special feast for the end of year celebrations.

Home cook Barbara Sweeney and chef Sharon Salloum joined forces on Wednesday, December 2, to prepare an Aussie barbecue at SSI’s Community Kitchen. Barbara is a writer with an interest in food. She contributes stories to Country Style and The Sydney Morning Herald’s Good Food and curates the food writers’ festival Food & Words. After being approached by SSI’s Community Engagement Team, Barbara accepted the offer straight away and took charge of its organisation.

It has been a busy and exciting year in which SSI and the people we work with have achieved a great deal. SSI’s staff, partners, the communities we work with, our volunteers and supporters should be very proud when we look back and see the positive changes that our work has made.

Refugees and people seeking asylum could soon benefit from a smartphone app that helps to create goals and achievement pathways, thanks to the joint efforts of developers, refugees, the start-up community, and SS!.

A special event at Settlement Services International’s Bankstown offices in November helped support the efforts of the citizens coalition Sydney Alliance to 'Change the Conversation' about asylum seekers.

An innovative project that includes a smartphone app that comes in multiple languages has been launched to support men who have recently arrived in Australia on humanitarian visas. The new app becomes available as Australia prepares to welcome an additional 12,000 refugees who have been affected by the conflicts in Syria and Iraq.

Australia has a proud tradition in volunteerism, as shown by a remarkable 36 per cent of the population aged 18 and over who regularly offer their time to support others, and those who volunteer for SSI are prime examples. The options for aspiring volunteers are endless, although sport, community and education have long maintained their status as the most popular recipients of the volunteering efforts of Australians.

SSI celebrated International Day of People with Disability (IDPwD) today, December 3, with an event at its Bankstown office, featuring Ability Links NSW ambassador Nick Gleeson. IDPwD promotes an understanding of people with disability and encourages support for their dignity, rights and wellbeing.

Settlement Services International today held its first Annual General Meeting under the new structure of Company Limited by Guarantee. Another first for the organisation, the AGM was held at its recently opened office in Bankstown.

Settlement Services International has celebrated its 15th Anniversary in the company of members, founders, friends and partners, who enjoyed food, music, dancing, speeches and an anniversary video at SSI’s Bankstown auditorium on November 18.

Michelle Naike is a seasoned globetrotter, having lived in Afghanistan, London and Australia for decades at a time. But when it came to wearing the chef’s hat at Community Kitchen, Michelle said cooking delicious Afghani fare was just too good to pass up.

SSI is excited to support Net Diasporas, a pilot internet music project that will enable musicians from migrant and refugee backgrounds in urban and regional areas to collaborate and perform culture specific musical repertoires online.

Thousands of people around the country celebrated cultural diversity and Australia’s commitment to humanitarian values at Walk Together on October 31. SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis said she was proud that SSI could support the annual event, which was a strong show of support from the public.

Some of you may have heard about Maria Sorki, an SSI Ignite Small Business Start-ups client, who fled persecution in Iran and came to Australia as a refugee. Maria made a documentary film about the ancient religious minority, the Zoroastrians in Iran and it was the reaction to this film which meant she had to leave.

Community and sustainability were the focus of the inaugural Auburn Community Friendship Garden Spring Party on October 24, but face painting, rock decorating and a live petting zoo won over the dozens of children who attended. Held at the Auburn Centre for Community from 10am-2pm, the Spring Party brought together more than 200 people from the local community, including many refugees and people seeking asylum who are supported by Settlement Services International (SSI).

A report released today found that, with the right support, Australia’s refugees have significant entrepreneurial potential and the ability to contribute to the economy. The report, which looked at the outcomes of the Ignite Small Business Start-ups initiative operated by humanitarian settlement organisation Settlement Services International (SSI), was prepared by Professor Jock Collins of UTS Business School and was launched by the Executive Director of the Sydney Business Chamber, the Hon. Patricia Forsythe.

People who attended SSI’s Community Kitchen on October 7, might be surprised to learn of the mixed heritage of the delicious biryani they enjoyed. The traditional Indian dish has a Farsi name and it was cooked on the day by a volunteer Iraqi chef. But for Khalid, the cook who arrived in Australia seeking asylum one and a half years ago, this mix of cultures and food is not something new.