Thursday, June 07, 2007
The Pre-LMDA Picture: Rural and Urban Differences
The urban or rural setting of an agency affects a number of areas of service provision, according to Pre-LMDA survey respondents.
Good collaboration, suitable referrals, and a broad spectrum of opportunities for women are advantages reported by agencies serving urban and urban/rural areas.
However, clients attending these agencies are far more likely than their rural peers to encounter program eligibility difficulties, a problem for many immigrant women. Urban agencies, compared to rural serving agencies, also describe other immigration-related issues, such as language challenges, lack of Canadian experience, and underemployment. This difference in client need reflects the settlement patterns of newly arrived immigrants in urban locations.
In comparison, many rural-serving agencies report a limited range of services for women, little access to training, and few well-paying employment opportunities. The lack of opportunity is a particular barrier for their clients.
Community collaboration appears to be less productive for rural-serving agencies as well. Agencies with only rural clients are neutral about the level of local collaboration among community services; in contrast, all other agencies (urban and rural/urban mix) are likely to report high levels of successful collaboration in their community. One respondent from a women-focused agency in a rural/urban setting explained that local agencies often fail to recognize women's specific needs and can make poor referrals and employment-related matches as a result.
Read the full survey report.
Our next entry on the Pre-LMDA Picture: Defining Success
Good collaboration, suitable referrals, and a broad spectrum of opportunities for women are advantages reported by agencies serving urban and urban/rural areas.
However, clients attending these agencies are far more likely than their rural peers to encounter program eligibility difficulties, a problem for many immigrant women. Urban agencies, compared to rural serving agencies, also describe other immigration-related issues, such as language challenges, lack of Canadian experience, and underemployment. This difference in client need reflects the settlement patterns of newly arrived immigrants in urban locations.
In comparison, many rural-serving agencies report a limited range of services for women, little access to training, and few well-paying employment opportunities. The lack of opportunity is a particular barrier for their clients.
Community collaboration appears to be less productive for rural-serving agencies as well. Agencies with only rural clients are neutral about the level of local collaboration among community services; in contrast, all other agencies (urban and rural/urban mix) are likely to report high levels of successful collaboration in their community. One respondent from a women-focused agency in a rural/urban setting explained that local agencies often fail to recognize women's specific needs and can make poor referrals and employment-related matches as a result.
Read the full survey report.
Our next entry on the Pre-LMDA Picture: Defining Success
Labels: Pre-LMDA
