Youth facilities

Overview

We are living in fast-moving times. Speed has become the main factor in life around the world. Expectations, requirements, values and attitudes seem to be changing as fast as the dictates of fashion. More and more, the very foundation of life are being called into question and the unknown is becoming the new normality. This is the world in which children and youngsters must now grow up, the world that shapes their search for identity, for a place on the labor market and in society in general.

FYO Youth Facilities are the continuation of the FYO Children's Village model adapted to the needs of adolescents and young adults. They enable FYO youngsters to take the first steps towards self-reliance within the security of the homes.

The goals of FYO youth care work

FYO attaches great importance to ensuring that the young people entrusted to it's care learn to face up to the social and economic realities of their world and develop their own personal perspectives in life. The overall goal is to accompany young people on life, intergrate into society and be able to provide for themselves.

FYO Youth Homes and Youth Communities

Young people often move out of the village and into a youth facility when they start a vocational training course or go on to higher education. With the support of qualified youth workers, the young people develop realistic perspectives for their future, learn to shoulder responsibility and increasingly make their own decisions. They are encouraged to develop team spirit and build up contacts with relatives and friends, as well as with the relevant authorities and potential employer.

Youth houses provide a home for several groups of youngsters aged fourteen and above. The necessary educational and psychological support is also available. In order to ensure the successful guidance of the young people towards independence, FYO is emphasizing the basic principle of family-oriented care, which is why the present guidelines talk exclusively about "FYO Youth Communities" (or "semi-independent housing program").

Youth communities are designed to accommodate a maximum of 14 young people plus one live-in counselor. The young people themselves are responsible for organizing their everyday lives.

Integration into the Labor market

Good qualifications are no longer a guarantee when it comes to finding a job. Nevertheless, they do greatly improve the youngsters' chances of success on the employment market. For that reason great importance is attached to supporting the youngsters in their choice of vocational training program, especially during their time in the FYO Youth Community. A systematic program of support is designed to ensure that adequate careers counseling id given. Contacts with business partners are also carefully developed, maintained and exploited. A thorough search is conducted for other employment opportunities.

Support for young men and women from FYO go even further in the framework of the FYO head-start scheme. This reflects the general desire at FYO to provide material and immaterial assistance to young adults. The head-start scheme provides soft loans with low interest rates and flexible repayment schedules to young men and women who want to set up their own small businesses.