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Description
In the Kocmyrzów-Luborzyca municipalities there is an ever-increasing need for aid for vulnerable persons. In 2018, 179 families were assisted by the Municipal Social Welfare Center and by 2019 this number had reached 259 (2018 and 2019 reports on current status of the Kocmyrzów-Luborzyca municipality). The situation in the Skała municipality is similar. The goal stated in our statute is preventing children being raised in harmful family conditions and environments. We conducted questionnaires in schools to diagnose the fundamental problems: increasing marginalization of young people from impoverished families and families with problems, and an inability to provide support within the age group, and young people not playing a role in activities to help others. The aim of the project is to develop voluntary work and peer support network, to enable empowerment and integration of children in families facing social exclusion. In the course of two training sessions (40 hours in total) we will teach 40 Leaders of Change (young people who wish to take up voluntary work) to provide support for, to listen to, and the tools for peer coaching. They will apply these skills in assisting 40 young people from disadvantaged families. Each Leader of Change will conduct six support consultations with one of the persons receiving support. We will provide the Leaders with support from a supervisor. We will organize Design the Change workshops for all project participants. Young people will implement the social projects devised in the workshops in their local communities. 80 people aged 12-15 from the Kocmyrzów-Luborzyca i Skała municipalities will take part in the measures. Peer coaching will increase motivation and self-esteem of 40 vulnerable persons. The project will help to integrate young people. A film will be made to promote peer volunteering throughpeer coaching.
Summary of project results
There is an ever-increasing need for aid for vulnerable persons in the Kocmyrzów-Luborzyca and Skała municipalities. In 2018, the Municipal Social Welfare Centre provided support for 179 families, while by 2019 this number stood at 259 (Kocmyrzów-Luborzyca municipal status reports of 2018 and 2019 roku). Surveys conducted in schools revealed the fundamental problems: growing marginalisation of young people in impoverished families and families with problems, inability to provide peer-to-peer support, and young people not involving themselves in work to help others.We set up a peer support and volunteer work network to address these issues. In four sessions, we trained young people wishing to become volunteers and Leaders of Change (40 people) to provide support, listen actively, and use peer-to-peer coaching tools. The Leaders used these skills to support forty peers from disadvantaged families, providing six support sessions per person. The quality of the support was assured due to continual supervision for the Leaders. On excursions to attend workshops, the young people together designed four schemes of their own for their local community, which next, under the scheme, refurbished a classroom, created a venue for meetings, created greenery arrangements around a school, and held a board game picnic. A film was made to promote peer voluntary work with peer-to-peer coaching.77 people aged 12-15 from the Kocmyrzów-Luborzyca and Skała municipalities enhanced their community skills. The support provided a greater sense of control and agency, and decreased the sense of marginalization. The joint measures for the local community helped integrate young people, and they remain in contact now the scheme has ended.Due to creation of a peer support network and young people working together, participants have more community contact, a greater role in community life, an enhanced sense of control and influence over their surroundings, and a readiness to take part in community action and help others, thus improving community cohesion.
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