About CARAS
What is CARAS?
CARAS (Community Action for Refugees and Asylum Seekers) is a Tooting-based refugee charity serving South West London. The mission, as stated on the homepage, is to "provide firm foundations for new-arrival asylum seekers to build happy and successful lives." CARAS is a registered charity (Charity Commission of England and Wales No 1124376) based at 23 Blakenham Road, London.
The charity's work is structured into four service areas: Youth Services, Adult Services, Campaigns & Advocacy, and Teaching & Training. Donation tiers on the homepage offer a concrete picture of what the team does day-to-day — £6 funds transport to a 1:1 casework session, £25/month provides a year of ESOL tuition for one person, £50 funds a 1:1 casework appointment, £75 funds a women's yoga session for 20 women, £100 funds a London day trip for 15 young people, £500 funds 10 employability workshops, and £1,000 funds a 3-day residential for 20 young people.
The new-arrivals context CARAS works within is sobering: families placed in hotels for up to two years awaiting asylum decisions, living off £9 per week; an average one-year wait for English classes; over 40% of asylum seekers without legal support; and young people with a refugee background an average of 37.4 months behind their peers at GCSE level.
Where will I work?
CARAS is based in Tooting, South West London. The team works hybrid with regular attendance at the office for team meetings and at programme delivery sites for events with members.
What is the team like?
CARAS' staff team (as of mid-2024) brings together expertise from operations, education, social work, youth work, and adult community development — many of whom have their own migration stories. Named senior staff include Eleanor Brown (Managing Director, MSc Violence, Conflict and Development), Molly Abraham (Head of Casework, registered social worker), Jamie Charnock (Head of Development & Impact, MA Human Rights University of Vienna), Mirza Baig (Operations Manager, prior volunteer work at The Children's Society, YMCA, MIND Lancashire, Refugee Council), Envere Gllogjani (Finance Manager, 17+ years in non-profit finance), Atefeh Givian (Development & Campaigns Manager, refugee work across Iran, UK, Northern France, Greece — co-founder of a refugee-led organisation in Greece), and Myriam Abdel-Basit (Youth Caseworker, prior Search and Rescue work in the Mediterranean and previously Médecins Sans Frontières / Save The Children / Refugee Trauma Initiative).
A CARAS community member is quoted on the homepage: "I have seen so many charities, organisations, companies and places in the UK and there is no one like CARAS. Your organisation is so special. You really care about human rights and you treat people with kindness and dignity."
Work-Life Balance
CARAS piloted a 4-day workweek from January to June 2025, with staff receiving 100% pay for 80% of the time. The pilot was a deliberate experiment to test whether the model could work for the charity. As of May 2026, the live CARAS website does not publish the post-pilot status — candidates should confirm the current schedule arrangement directly during the interview process.
Perks and Benefits
- 4-day workweek pilot — January–June 2025 (100% pay for 80% of time); post-pilot status not currently published on caras.org.uk
- Hybrid working — combining remote, office (Tooting), and on-site programme delivery
- Mission-driven work — directly supporting refugees and asylum seekers in South West London
Other historically-listed benefits (28 days annual leave + Christmas holidays, 7% employer pension contributions, enhanced parental leave, enhanced sick leave, Employee Assistance Programme, cycle-to-work, interest-free loans, training + study leave + volunteering time) are not currently published on the live caras.org.uk site; candidates should confirm directly with CARAS HR.