Description
"Discover - Development and support for children and educators from social apartments", a project designed by Create Yourself Association is destined for children with ages between 11 and 19 years old as well as for social educators in social apartments, under the jurisdiction of the Department for Social Assistance and Child Protection in partner districts, 3,4, and 6, in Bucharest. The social apartment system offers personalized solutions of care and supervision for children, but does not address all risk situations the children might find themselves in. The project aims at preventing and solving some of the vulnerable situations the target-group might find itself in, by strengthening social services, that are already in effect, through an innovative social program comprised of: developing social skills and professional integration, vocational counseling and mentor-ship for 40 children and young people, aged 11 to 19 years old, doubled by a support service for 40 social educators that aims at raising the quality of the services offered by them. The project also aims at creating a common work framework with other NGO's as well as with executive authorities in the child protection domain.
Summary of project results
Integrating young people into the labour market remains a challenge in Romania. Moreover, institutionalised children and persons with disabilities face a high risk of poverty. The project provided a range of training, development and socio-professional integration programmes for institutionalised youngsters from Bucharest. 61 young people (20 being roma ethnic) with ages between 11 and 19 attended a vocational counselling and mentoring programme. 30 selected mentors have become “living books” for the youth, having thus the opportunity to share stories about their jobs, about how they got to practice them, the educational progress they undertook, the challenges they faced while practicing their jobs and the professional satisfactions. The beneficiaries of the project explored, having the “living books” as means of information, occupations in various areas, such as construction, textiles, make up industry, programme design, psychology and working with children, food industry, education, arts and crafts, organizing events etc. The mentoring programme included individual or group meetings at mentor's workplace. The impact of services was reflected in the increased level of self-esteem that youngsters had after the project. During the activities the youngsters had access to labour-market knowledge. Also topics like the impact of stereotypes, prejudices, discrimination and social exclusion were discussed in order for them to learn how to respond in different social situations. 87 social educators attended support groups to improve their work with children and youth beneficiaries.
Summary of bilateral results