Save the Children has this month allocated funds to the Hamilton Branch of New Zealand’s only national agency dedicated to helping refugees to re-establish their lives here.

RMS Refugee Resettlement in Hamilton will engage two tutors with the money they have received from Save the Children New Zealand’s Small Grants Fund to help 20 Somali refugee children with basic language skills, social etiquette and classroom orientation.

Regional Coordinator of RMS Refugee Resettlement in Hamilton, Barbara Redfern said the extra support was welcome.

“Our aim is to provide both practical and emotional support to refugee children who through no fault of their own may be traumatised, homeless and placed in a situation that is socially and culturally bewildering. The grant we’ve received from Save the Children will give some of these children the social and behavioural skills they need to function at school with confidence and have a positive attitude to learning.”

Save the Children New Zealand’s Executive Director John Bowis said: “Save the Children is proud to support an agency that plays such a vital role in developing the younger generations of New Zealand’s international community.”

The Small Grants Fund was set up in 2002 to provide funding to local and national organisations working in the best interests of children.

For further information on RMS Refugee Resettlement, visit their website www.rms.org.nz