“The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” Lao Tzu
When it comes to integration, some of the most effective work is the steady, relationship‑based support that happens week after week and month after month. LINKnet Mentoring, based in Edinburgh, is a strong example of this kind of practice.
We spoke with Afaf Azzahari, Development Team Coordinator at LINKnet Mentoring, who shared how the charity supports people at different stages of settling into life in the UK.
“Our beneficiaries are 18+ and from all different backgrounds and ethnicities – people from refugee backgrounds, EU citizens, and people on different schemes such as Ukrainians, Syrians, Afghans, and people from Hong Kong.
“We also support students. These are individuals with different statuses within the UK system, including those with limited leave to remain, indefinite leave to remain, or student visas, as well as BME community members who are born and bred in the UK but did not have the opportunity to progress professionally and economically.”
Mentoring
At the heart of LINKnet’s work is a structured mentoring programme focused on education and employment and personal development.
“Our volunteer mentors are recruited from the local area. Following a structured selection and recruitment process, mentors receive training before being matched with identified, suitable mentees. Our mentorship programme lasts six months, during which mentors and mentees meet weekly for a couple of hours, with the aim of supporting individuals into education, employment, and target-oriented personal development.”
“Mentors and mentees have an initial meeting with us to introduce them to one another, which we refer to as a matching meeting. After this meeting, the mentor and mentee decide where and when they will meet. At the end of each month, mentors submit a completed form as part of the reporting process. We also check in with both of them periodically to see how the mentorship is progressing.”
Befriending
LINKnet’s befriending work supports people who are new to Edinburgh and experiencing isolation.
“This project is specifically for New Scots — newcomers to Edinburgh, mostly people seeking asylum and refugees who have been granted leave to remain in the UK but have no social connections.
These are mainly individuals experiencing isolation, loneliness, lack of confidence, and significant English language barriers. This group of service users often does not yet know how or where to look for opportunities or support. In addition to helping them find their own ways to settle into society, the befriending service acts as a stepping stone towards our mentoring project.”
Our befriending and mentoring programmes follow the same process: we carefully select participants, provide informal training, and match people based on suitability, preferences, and interests. Many of our befrienders are students, and we work in partnership with the University of Edinburgh, QMU, and various other institutions. Once we feel a client is ready to move on to something more structured, we transition them into the mentoring programme, which ultimately leads to employment and further education.
“Some of our befriending activities to tackle isolation include monthly events, where we take groups of around 10 to 20 people to different places in Edinburgh and beyond the city.”
ESOL language sessions
Language plays a crucial role in helping people access education, employment, personal development, and community engagement.
“Language is a very big obstacle for people, so to reach as many people as possible, we tend to run our classes online.
We have beginner, intermediate, and advanced classes. Each group gets three hours per week over two days. This covers conversational grammar plus spoken English. We use external volunteer tutors for spoken English, usually people from teaching backgrounds, to help people practice speaking.
Because of high demand this year, we applied for funds specifically for English for employment. We have over 50 people starting our English for employment pilot project in December 2025. We will be covering things like CVs, covering letters, and preparing for interviews.”
Volunteering: gaining UK work experience
“One of the biggest barriers to employment is getting that first UK experience. Our volunteering programme is for people looking for UK work experience. LINKnet Mentoring gives people the opportunity to volunteer with us in roles such as administration, befriending if they have a good level of English, and sometimes even mentoring.” By organizing volunteering opportunities for BME professionals, we create an atmosphere that enables them to socially engage, connect, and learn, thereby gaining the know-how on key employment-related aspects.”
