Webinars
Training in the comfort of your own home by qualified RSTP trainers, SAH members, and settlement providers will contribute to your knowledge base of Canada's refugee sponsorship programs.
Attendance of several regularly featured RSTP webinars or watching a recorded webinar are required by each Core Team as outlined below:
The following 2 webinars/videos are required by the Team Lead plus one other core team member:
- What is the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) Program and How Does it Work?
- The Road from Schedule 2 to "Welcome to Canada": Preparing for Visa Office Interviews
Required training by each Core Team member:
- Preparing for Arrival and Providing Post-Arrival Support: Handling Unrealistic Expectations and Practicing Ethical Considerations
- Preparing a Settlement Plan: The Financial and Settlement Responsibilities of Sponsors under the PSR Program
- Preparing for and Transitioning to Month 13
- Sponsorship Ethics - 5 minute video
- Power Imbalance - 3 minute audio
You will find webinar descriptions and their registration links below as they are scheduled. Alternately, recorded videos of previous webinars are available on the RSTP site itself here.
Along with the webinars/videos, each core team person will:
- submit the results of a Vulnerable Sector Screening Check to their Team Lead
- participate in Cross-Cultural Awareness training facilitated by the Team Lead
- participate in volunteer screening and orientation as provided by their church. If a church does not already have a volunteer screening program in place, the AGC recommends Plan to Protect Orientation Training. Plan to Protect does offer a Refugee and New Immigrant module, but the information specific to refugees and newcomers is outdated and sometime erroneous. We do not recommend you take this module specifically.
This is one of the webinars that is required training by your SAH. The Team Lead and one or two others from the Core Team must take this webinar.
Date: Tuesday, April 7, 2020
Time: 3:00 - 5:00 PM EDT
This webinar delivered by RSTP for new and experienced sponsors will provide an in-depth look at the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) program, including:
- an overview of Canada’s refugee sponsorship and resettlement programs;
- who can sponsor under the PSR program;
- the eligibility and admissibility requirements for refugees being sponsored under the PSR program;
- the importance of refugee status documents and who needs them; and,
- an overview of the application process.
To register for this webinar, click here.
If that time is not convenient, the RSTP Video Library has a copy of the webinar available here. Attending the webinar in person allows for you to ask questions of the facilitator.
Date: Friday, April 17, 2020
Time: 1:00 - 3:00pm EDT
This webinar delivered by RSTP for new and experienced sponsors will provide an in-depth look at:
- how to submit a refugee sponsorship application under the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) program to the Resettlement Operations Centre – Ottawa (ROC-O) via email and
- when and how to update an application after submission
To register for this webinar, click here.
This is one of the webinars that is required training by your SAH. Every member of the Core Team must take this webinar.
Date: Friday, April 10, 2020
Time: 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm EDT
This webinar delivered by RSTP for new and experienced sponsors will provide an in-depth look at:
- the financial and settlement responsibilities of sponsors under the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) program, including:
- how long sponsors are expected to provide financial support to refugees sponsored under the PSR program;
- the minimum amount of financial support that sponsors are expected to provide to refugees on arrival and the relationship between the Sponsorship Cost Table and the Resettlement Assistance Program (RAP) rates;
- how to use the Minimum Financial Support Calculator to calculate the minimum level of financial support required on arrival;
- situations that may change the amount of financial support that sponsors are expected to provide once the refugees arrive in Canada; and
- an overview of sponsors’ settlement responsibilities under the program and how settlement agencies can assist sponsors with fulfilling their settlement responsibilities.
To register for this webinar, click here.
If this timing is not convenient for you, the RSTP Video Library has a copy of the webinar available here.
This is one of the webinars that is required training by our SAH. Every member of the Core Team must take this webinar.
Date: Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Time: 3:00 - 5:00pm EDT
This webinar delivered by RSTP for new and experienced sponsors while provide an in-depth look at:
- what is Month 13 and when sponsors should start preparing for the transition to Month 13;
- resources that are available to assist sponsors and sponsored newcomers with the transition;
- what to consider when sponsors and sponsored newcomers begin preparing for the transition;
- services that are available to sponsored newcomers in Month 13; and,
- how to evaluate the sponsorship
To register for this webinar, click here.
If this timing is not convenient, the RSTP Video Library has a copy of the webinar available here. Attending the webinar in person means you can participate in the Q&A session at the end.
Managing Expectations in the context of Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR)
This training is required by your SAH. Every member of the Core Team must participate in the Resource Kit activities or attend the webinar.
Managing Expectations Resource Kit
This kit can be used at one or two of your Core Team meetings to explore the unidentified expectations within your own sponsorship group. One or two Core Team members could facilitate the training after looking through the material using the guided questions and videos included.
RSTP's "Managing Expectations Resource Kit" is available for download here. Video links and Resource Kit Activities only (a duplicate of the activities already found in the Resource Kit) can be accessed through these links. This kit works like curriculum. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you need assistance to facilitate this training.
Preparing for Arrival and Providing Post-Arrival Support: Handling Unrealistic Expectations and Practicing Ethical Considerations
Webinar Date: Monday, April 27, 2020
Time: 3:00 pm - 5:00 pm EDT
This webinar delivered by RSTP for new and experienced sponsors will
- provide a recap of sponsors’ settlement responsibilities when sponsoring refugees under the Private Sponsorship of Refugees (PSR) and Blended Visa Office-Referred (BVOR) programs;
- review ethical considerations that are important to keep in mind when sponsoring refugees;
- the power imbalance that exists in the sponsor-sponsored newcomer relationship and tips on how to mitigate the imbalance; and,
- the importance of managing expectations.
For registration, click here.
This is one of the webinars that is required training by your SAH. The Team Lead must take this webinar, and then communicate the applicable content to the refugee before the Visa Office interview.
Date: TBD
Time: TBD
The interview with the Canadian visa offices (VO) abroad is the stepping stone towards granting permanent residence status for your sponsored refugees and bringing them to safety in Canada.