PROJECT FOR YOUNG ADULTS
The path to life
The aim of the project is to improve the preparation of young adults for leaving the center for children and families (former children’s home) and increase the success of their integration into society.
Prepared only theoretically
Young adolescents face various pitfalls when becoming independent. Children from families are shown the way to independent life by their parents. However, young people from children’s homes (now centers for children and families) are mostly on their own. They also want to fit into society and be accepted.
Young adults are largely prepared for leaving the orphanage only theoretically, they lack practical skills and experience in handling official matters. This is why they often find themselves in difficult life situations – they are victims of unfair treatment at work (they have disadvantageous or no employment contracts), they are discriminated against when looking for accommodation, their ignorance of legal obligations causes them to become debtors to health and social insurance and they are no longer able to get rid of these debts.
They often have problems establishing and maintaining relationships, lack communication skills, and their low motivation and perseverance often lead to them not completing secondary education or changing jobs frequently.
LET’S GET TO KNOW THEM.
THE NEXT GENERATION MATTERS.
Young adults face difficulties in finding and maintaining housing after leaving child and family centers. They do not have a permanent place of residence, often end up on the streets, are at risk of long-term homelessness, and find themselves in a vicious circle of uncertainty. However, this situation is not the only one that young people have to deal with when leaving the centers. They have to become independent – find housing, work, equip
everything necessary at the offices and start managing your finances wisely. After leaving, they suddenly have freedom and independence. But along with the tempting freedom comes unexpected loneliness. Teenagers from centers for children and families are alone with most of the responsibilities that await them in an independent life. What do they face on their journey through life?
Mladí dospelí čelia po odchode z centier pre deti a rodiny ťažkostiam s hľadaním a udržaním si bývania. Nemajú istotu trvalého bydliska, neraz končia na ulici, hrozí im dlhodobé bezdomovectvo, ocitajú sa v začarovanom kruhu neistoty. Táto situácia nie je však jedinou, s ktorou si mladí ľudia pri odchode z centier musia poradiť. Musia sa osamostatniť – nájsť si bývanie, prácu, vybaviť všetko potrebné na úradoch a začať rozumne hospodáriť. Po odchode majú zrazu voľnosť a slobodu. Ibaže spolu s lákavou voľnosťou prichádza aj nečakaná samota. Tínedžeri z centier pre deti a rodiny sú na väčšinu povinností, ktoré ich v samostatnom živote čakajú, sami. Čomu všetkému na svojej ceste do života čelia?
OUR EXPERIENCE
Our 20 years of experience of volunteering with children and youth from the centers for children and families (CDR) at Úsmev kom dar show us that we achieve the best success with an individual approach. The one-on-one mentoring program is built on this principle. From the age of 16, a teenager builds a relationship with a mentor that lasts even after he leaves the CDR. After the introduction activities, each mentor finds his teenager and the teenager finds his mentor.
Some of these young people value the values in their guides, which, based on their relationship, become their own values for life or everyday functioning. Others are impressed by the charm of diversity. The expected result is a healthy, long-term, friendly relationship. How else can a guide be helpful to a young person from CDR and who can become a guide?
The starting line for young adults from children’s homes (child and family centers) who want to become independent is completely different from that of children who leave their families. Adolescent children from centers do not have a safe environment to return to and no one to turn to when they become independent.
As part of the Cesta do života project, we offer young adults from centers for children and families the opportunity to successfully become independent and integrate into society after leaving CDR through education and guidance.
Through a series of educational activities, we prepare them to handle problems in areas that appear to be the most complex in the long term, but also that life itself gradually brings. Education is made in an engaging experiential form so that young people enjoy it. At the same time, the interest of the participants in the education themselves in individual topics is taken into account, so that they themselves want to sign up. We provide the opportunity to gather knowledge and experience, and it is up to young adults how much of it they take and what they then use.
PROJECT PURPOSE
The aim of the entire project, within which communication is taking place, is to help young adults from Centers for Children and Families (CDR = former children’s homes):
- to integrate without difficulty into a society that will accept them,
- achieve inner satisfaction,
- to acquire the necessary knowledge, experience and skills essential for practical independence
Target group:
- young people aged 16 to approx. 21 from centres for children and families (CDR, former children’s home) who are preparing to leave and become independent.
Project result:
- verification of these methods and their expansion throughout Slovakia.
The project ‚Road to Life‘ is supported by the ACF – Slovakia program, which is financed by the EEA Financial Mechanism 2014-2021. The program administrator is the Ekopolis Foundation in partnership with the Open Society Foundation Bratislava and the Carpathian Foundation.
The project ‚Road to Life‘ is supported by the ACF – Slovakia program, which is financed by the EEA Financial Mechanism 2014-2021. The program administrator is the Ekopolis Foundation in partnership with the Open Society Foundation Bratislava and the Carpathian Foundation.
Project name: Journey to life
Project duration: 1.8.2020 – 31.7.2021
People responsible for project communication:
Active Citizens Fund – Slovakia
is a grant program aimed at strengthening civil society, supporting active citizenship and improving the position of vulnerable groups in Slovakia.
The Active Citizens Fund is part of the financial assistance provided by Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway to the 15 Member States of the European Union. The ACF in Slovakia is managed by the Ekopolis Foundation in partnership with the Open Society Foundation and the Carpathian Foundation .
Official website of the Government Office of the Slovak Republic on EEA and Norway Grants: www.eeagrants.sk
Official website of financial assistance from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway to the 15-member states of the European Union: www.eeagrants.org
Partners
