Super Youth Worker

Super Youth Worker
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“Spoza brány k politikom” – From behind the gate to politicians

Silnejší slabším o.z.

https://www.silnejsislabsim.sk/

Zlatovská 10, 911 05 Trenčín, Slovakia

silnejsislabsim@gmail.com


  • Participation of young people in activities (planning, preparing, carrying out, etc.)
  • Participation of young people in decision making
  • Non-formal education/-learning
  • Recognition/validation of learning
  • Inclusion
  • Active citizenship/activism
  • Community work

The aim of the project was long term active cooperation of children from children’s home and social facilities with representatives of public institutions. During the meetings, they discussed the biggest problems of individual parts of the city, villages with deputies and village managers, who accepted the invitation. Young people together with deputies identified the problem, found a solution, realization of which they together planned and realized.

Please describe your good practice based on the above given information (Explain your practice as such, in ‘technical’ terms and as clear and simple as possible.)

Projects aimed at the adjustment of parks, playgrounds, preparation of pallet sitting in the are of Social facility in Adamovské Kochanovce, cleaning of town swimming pools, or workshop about the separation of trash for children from primary schools. And deputies and mayors helped with the realization of activities of the implementation team. Along with realization, they had an opportunity to create relationships, communicate together, discuss different problems, which young people deal with. Children from children’s homes and social facilities developed their competencies and showed, they can also significantly contribute to improving life in the community in some parts and brought different views and somehow substituted missing families to young people and developed intergenerational dialogue.

Please describe eventual challenges and problems related to the creation, implementation, and/or running of your good practice? (Explain the eventual difficulties that you have come across, so that others know what to think about if they want to implement your practice.)

By overall increasing active citizenship of the target group, such as children from children’s homes, apart from inclusion, we wanted to achieve improvement of their acceptance by the public and increasing the quality of their everyday life. We had a feeling, that they do not have enough opportunities and possibilities for expressing themselves and being involved in everyday life as are their peers. Therefore they have a minimum of information about how, where and why to participate and are on the edge of the society. Many want to help only by gifts, but what do they want? They want to be helpful, find their place and employment. The project was preceded by the project “Spoza brány k politikom 1”, whereby cooperation with Trenčín, villages, but also with institutions we tried to come closer to competencies and powers of individual offices and institutions, establish cooperation, which is successfully developed onward. Projects were supported by grant program Erasmus+ KA3.

Please give the names, roles and tasks of eventual partners involved in the creation, implementation and/or running of your good practice.

Trenčín region municipality, City of Trenčín, Municipality Chocholná – Velčice, Municipality Adamovské Kochanovce, Children´s town Zlatovce in Trenčín, Adamovská Kochanovce Social Services Home, Regional Leisure Center in Trenčín – Regional Youth Center (RCM)

Please give an overview of the resources needed in order to establish and run your good practice. (Please describe the human, financial and other resources that are needed. Please also explain if you have got external financing from sources available for others, and if so, from what funding scheme(s).)

Grant support of Erasmus+ project gained by civic association Silnejší slabším with support of coordinator for youth work in TSK, who also became its expert guarantor.

For young people:

Development of competencies, consider the needs of youth and involving them in the decision process

For youth workers:

Acquisition of competencies in terms of youth work with lack of opportunities;

For your organisation as such:

Development of cooperation, competencies of members of the organization, publicity;

For youth work in general:

Example of good practice, which can be implemented in other municipalities, support of inclusion;

For society/your community in general:

Recognition of youth work, development of work with disadvantaged youth.