“ ” Bhagavat Educational Trust (BET)

Transcription

BHAGAVAT EDUCATIONAL TRUST
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission.This publication [communication] reflects the views only of the
author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Acknowledgements
Bhagavat Educational Trust (BET) was founded in 1997 and has evolved over several years. Its ethos is to promote
mutual assistance where by one marginalized group assists another marginalized group for the mutual benefit of both
groups. BET has operated in several continents including Asia, Africa, Australia and Europe, promoting the concept of
mutual assistance in each of these continents. This guide reflects the views only of its authors, and the Commission
cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Partners, part of this project:
BHAGAVAT EDUCATIONAL TRUST (Bulgaria)
COSVITEC(Italy)
MAGENTA (Spain)
IZMIT MUNICIPALITY (Turkey)
Credits and the small-print
Publisher
Bhagavat Educational Trust
Contact
[email protected]
Editors and text:
Paul Baron, Chief Executive
Stefan Krastev, Bulgaria Operations Coordinator
Galina Kabadzhova, Psychologist and Career advisor
COSVITEC- Simona Puddu
MAGENTA- Esther González, Chief Executive
Izmit Municipality- Omer Kaya, Youth worker coordinator
Graphic layout
Photos
Translation
xxxxxx
English proofreading
Copyright 2013
For non- commercial use only!
All rights reserved!
Content
1
2
3
The beginning
Phases, Qualifications & SMEs
Evaluation, Monitoring, Dissemination
4
Conclusions
5
Case Studies
6
Quotes
7
Partners
Preface
This guide has been written as a result of the “Mutual Assistance” TRANSFER OF INNOVATION PROJECT (TOI), funded by ECORYS the UK National Agency for the Lifelong Learning Programme, on behalf
of the European Commission, lasted 2 years between October 2011- September 2013. Four partners
become part of this exciting opportunity- BET (Bulgaria), COSVITEC (Italy), MAGENTA (Spain) and IZMIT
MUNICIPALITY (Turkey).
BET wholly concurs with the aspirations of the EU 2020 strategy and believes that our ‘Mutual Assistance’
projects goes some way to assisting this strategy particular with reference to Education, Training and Social Inclusion. ‘Mutual Assistance’ is whereby one marginalised group assists another to the mutual benefit
of both groups. This has manifested itself in our current ‘Living and Learning Abroad’ project where by
marginalised groups from the UK (typically ex -offenders, former substance abusers, those in or leaving
care) would assist orphans in Bulgaria and street children in Turkey.
The project is multifaceted, a group of 10 young people visit a new country, broadening their horizons,
experiencing new cultures and traditions, learning a new language, attending a careers seminar and gaining a nationally recognised qualification in personal development, with the aim of improving their career
prospects. In fact over the last 3 calls on average 80% upon their return progress to employment, education or volunteering.
In addition to assisting the young people from UK, we also assist the orphans and street children and their
staff. Often the staff has improved moral and the orphans and street children feel less abandoned and
more worthy in society.
We are a firm believer in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs embracing their enthusiasm while abroad, after
witnessing the deprivation the young people from UK, appreciate far more the opportunities they have
in the UK, they have far greater self esteem and confidence; referring to the project as a ‘Life Changing
Experience’
The aim of the TOI was to transfer our ethos and ‘Modus-operandi’ to our partners in Spain and Italy
adapting where necessary to their specific country requirements.
The purpose of this guide is to offer a comprehensive view of our project complimented by best practice
from our partners; the aim being to impart sufficient knowledge enabling future implementation.
We have adopted a Chinese proverb ‘It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness’ we very much
hope that with your support this candle will develop in to beacon, for all of Europe to benefit!
Paul Baron MBE
The beginning
1
“
It has made a huge difference on my
life. It’s helped me make up my mind
on what I want to do in my future.
Sean Mccafferts, 23/01/2010
”
B
hagavat Educational Trust (BET) was
founded in 1997, its ethos being the promo-
tion of mutual assistance; that is, whereby one
marginalized group assists another marginalized group for the mutual benefit of both groups.
BET has operated in several continents including Asia, Africa, Australia and predominantly Europe.
We endeavour to work very closely with other
organizations in order to facilitate the dissemination of knowledge and to avoid duplicating costs,
whilst applying business principles to maximize
our scarce resources.
Within the Europe 2020 Strategy, Member States
agreed to work together to meet targets in the
fields of education, employment & social inclusion. Here at BET we seek to adhere to these
principles as means of helping deliver higher levels of employment, productivity and social
cohesion amongst project participants. The 2020 ject encourages larger social homes to produce
strategy calls for improvements in education & essential items for orphanages such as beds
human capital: “In a rapidly changing world, and mattresses, as well as training residents of
lifelong learning needs to be a priority–it is these institutions to make and sell crafts such as
the key to employment, economic success Christmas cards for retail.
and allowing people to participate fully in society”
This underpins the guiding principles of our project, allowing opportunities for social & European
inclusion to disadvantaged young people, who
without BET would have remained disengaged
from society & lifelong learning BET fully agrees
with the aspirations of the EU 2020 strategy and
its objectives for which we feel the project helps
address the first 3 - employment, education, social inclusion.
We have adopted a Chinese proverb “It is better
to light a candle than curse the darkness‟ BET
believes that for each hosting organization and
sending organization that participate in the project a candle is lit, the young people referring to
the project as a “Life changing experience”.
During 2004 BET became the official partner
Initially BET operated in India, instigating pro- to the Prince‟s Trust in Bulgaria, where by BET
jects for Street children in Bhopal, making school would host under its mobility project „ Living and
desks and benches. Similarly, in Uganda a pro- Learning Abroad‟ marginalized and socially exject was also established for street children to cluded participants from the UK consisting of exproduce educational learning aids such as offenders, former substance abusers and those
wooden jigsaws and abacuses for distribution by in or leaving care to name a few. The teams conthe Ugandan Government. In Europe, BET es- sisting of 10 young people and 2 team leaders
tablished a Mutual Assistance project in Bulgaria would assist an orphanage in Bulgaria or more
named “Help Today, Hope Tomorrow”. This pro- recently street children in Turkey
Our target group from the UK consisted of NEETs The project has received considerable acco(Not in Education, Employment or Training) the lades, more recently BET has attained “Certifirationale behind this is demonstrated in the fol- cate in Mobility” and been awarded this transfer
lowing facts:
of innovation project.
 In 2005 20% of young people were
considered as being NEET’s.
The results are very promising for the last two
Between 1997 and 2006 there was a
15% increase in unemployment for 16 –
24 year old.
2009 and 2010 of the Young People have en-
The productivity loss to the UK due
to youth unemployment is estimated at
£10 a day.
It is this project, with your cooperation, input and
The cost to the exchequer is estimated at £20 a week in job seekers allowance.
implementation.
Every year 70% of school age offenders enter in to the Youth Justice system.
There is a 72% chance of reoffending
within 2 years of their release.
Since the inception of this project, we have also
become the coordinating organization, facilitating such projects between sending and hosting
organizations.
Several innovations have taken place; in order to
assist the NEET‟s enter in to employment, educations and training to name a few:
○ Online resource centers
○ Qualification in Personal Development
○ Careers seminars
○ Sustainable SMEs in the hosting country
completed years 82% and 84% respectively for
tered in to Education, Volunteering or Employment after their participation on the project.
improvements that we would like to transfer to
your country producing a generic guide for future
HOW OUR PARTNERS DID IT....
wE HAVE SELECTED BULGARIA AND TURKEY FOR THE FOLLOWING REASONS:
Bulgaria
1
Between 3 and 5 hundred
children live on the street.

 35000 children live in orphanages.
45,000 children drop out of
school due to financial difficulties3
A report by the Bulgarian Helsinki Commission reveals 238 mentally disabled children
in state run institutions have died in the past
ten years and at least two-thirds of those
deaths could have been prevented. Causes
of death include starvation, infections as a
consequence of poor hygiene, violence and
lack of a medical treatment when needed.
The Bulgarian government during this time
released only £1.25 a day per child on food.
The money provided only one diaper a day
per child. Because of the high inflation and
corruption in the country the orphans living in
the government orphanages live a very isolated and underprivileged lifestyle.4
1
The statistical information is for when the project in Bulgaria started- 1997
2 CHILDREN OF BULGARIA (source: a BG site called Hope for Bulgaria http://nadejda.duh-i-istina.net/statii_decata.php )
3 http://www.tbact.org/children%20neglected,%20abused%20and%20starved%20to%20death%20in%20bulgarian%20institutions.htm
Turkey
4
 The total of 18,495 youths between
the ages of 0-18 live in orphanages.
Families today are struggling to cope
with rapid and startling social change in
Turkey.
 About 3,000 families are currently
waiting placement of their children
in orphanages.
Poverty, economical and social crisis,
immigration, terrorism, violence, and
mental illness have all contributed to
having lots of children being placed in
orphanages due to abandonment, child
abuse or neglect.
There are approximately 88000
street children the majority being in
Istanbul.
15
4 The statistical information is from 2010 when the project in Turkey started
While on the streets the children
are subject to abuse, malnutrition
and assault.
The project and its main phases
Phases,
Qualifications & SMEs
2
Phases
1
Research and
Partner Matching
2
Preparation
3
Placement
4
Post Project
1
Research and
Partner Matching
This phase can be split into two in light of the tion regarding the necessary paperwork; please
activities that take place simultaneously in the find here an example Step 1 7. Evolved through
Sending and Hosting country.
previous projects is a large network of partners
who do re-occurring team challenges due to the
Sending country
benefits received from the project.
From the outset UK partners are made aware of
our ethos & modus operandi. The duties, rights
In the sending country it is imperative we enlist and responsibilities of both BET and the UK
the appropriate UK partner. We use referrals partner are clearly identified in our UK Partner
from existing partners, including such sources Information Pack. Should it be considered that
as the Charity Commission, the YMCA network, the UK partner or their prospective young people
and organisations that provide supported ac- would not benefit - other areas of cooperation
commodation for homeless young people. If the are explored i.e. UK volunteering, etc.
potential partner is interested – we would arrange for a representative of ours to visit them, After matching with a suitable UK partner the next
where possible it is best to also have the chance important step is recruiting suitable participants
to meet with a sample of the young people they through the UK partner. We assist the UK partwork with.
ner with advise, guidance as well as materials
such as Presentations and Recruitment Posters
On this visit the suitability of the UK partner is and links as indicated above. Once the UK partassessed; also the UK partner checklist is com- ner is fully aware with the regulations and the
pleted by the BET representative undertaking project we ask them to sign an agreement
the visit.
The selection of young people is in close cooperation with the UK partners and aided by an
A Letter of Intent and an Organisation Profile application form to determine their suitability;
are compiled, and constant contact is kept be- selection days and short interviews are often ortween the UK partner and BET.
ganised. It is important young people feel they
have been selected & demonstrate the required
The UK Partner Information Pack is a useful motivation to warrant this selection.
document which we advise our partners to read If the project is not suitable for the prospective
carefully. We would also provide the sending or- young people they are sign posted onto another
ganisations with links to our website and informa- organisation, i.e. UK volunteering, rehabilitation
A further important element is to ensure the pro- actual hosting social institution – this does not
spective participants are familiar and fully accept need to be in any specific format, but it is good to
the objectives and ethos of the project, they are have it for both parties – the social institution can
required to sign an agreement, which clearly iden- show higher authorities that they take care of the
tifies BET’s and the participants rights, obligations legal side of things and the interests of their target
and duties.
group, from the NGO side this is also beneficial as
it documents the right and responsibilities of each
Hosting country
party (Orphanage Agreement).
During the visit to the social institution our host
partner would also take plenty of pictures and vid-
During the same phase in the hosting country our eos, which would later contribute to the resource
host partner (an organisation that works with a centre. Please refer to the link Turkish Step 1 (or
number of social institutions in their country – cur- Bulgarian Step 1)
rently a large NGO in Bulgaria and a local authority in Turkey) would research a number of social
institutions and arrange to visit the ones that have
been assessed as appropriate. Choosing the most
appropriate social institutions and where to host a
future group is a comprehensive process, which
involves analyses of a number of factors, including: target group, motivation of staff and director,
living conditions, location, infrastructure in the
area, distance to accommodation, etc. We have
found that the orphanages requiring the most assistance are often rurally located which naturally
leads to logistic problems, with reference to locating suitable accommodation that complies with
our health and safety requirements and also arranging suitable transportation. All these however
can be resolved with appropriate planning.
During the visit to the social institutions a number
of forms is also completed, including: Orphanage
Initial Questionnaire (including details about the
institution and the type of activities participants
could undertake there. The form is completed for
you as an example), Overseas Risk Management Form (Health and Safety), Accommodation Checklist. It has also proven useful to have
an agreement signed by the Host Partner and the
2
Preparation
This is a crucial element to the overall success of Once we receive the completed Basic Enrolthe project as this stage fully acquaints the par- ment forms this allows us to then agree the
ticipants with the project, familiarizing them with dates with the hosting partner and book flights
the host country, preventing premature returns and transport to the airport. We book flights usto the UK.
ing a travel agency, as this minimises certain
risks as name changes which are often expen-
During this phase to assist with the sending sive.
country participants recruitment, we continue to
direct the organisations to the following link (tak- Our next step is to consider the reservation
ing Turkey as an example) Turkish Step 1 in or- stage, again and in order to minimise adminisder to minimise the steps necessary all the initial tration we have used a link for this please refer
information they require are contained in the link to the following Reservation for further details
including:
√ Links to our resource centre and the
actual project (Videos, pictures etc are
uploaded)
√ Do you need to fundraise
√ Invitations to our facebook groups
(so communication can take place at
peer to peer level)
√ Information packs
√ BET policies
√ Posters
√ Insurance policy
Once the organisation have confirmed they are
interested if they have not already done so will at
this stage complete and send to us the following
documents:
 Letters of intent
 Organisational profile
 Basic Enrolment forms
here we include the following:
 A guide explaining all the forms, if they
are mandatory and how to send back.
 The learning record the participants will
need to complete .
 Signed agreements (confirming individuals commitment to the program)
 Full group details (aiding the completion of their profiles, also indicating such
issues as medical conditions)
 Further policies such as drug policies.
 Details regarding criminal records.
 Checklist.
Risk Assessments and CRB checks (where nec- and are encouraged to join our internet peer –
essary) are left to the discretion of the UK part- peer forum (Facebook group). The pictures and
ner, furthermore the Full Enrolment Forms are videos prepared by the host partner (as indicatcrucial for creating an individual profile of each ed in the links above) about the project and suryoung person in addition to which, the forms in- rounding areas help to fully acquaint the young
form us and the host partner about any medi- people and give them a sense of reality; comprecal or health issues pertaining to the participants hensive info packs on each project and hosting
and provide information about their socioeco- country are accessible through the internet from
nomic background. A further advantage is that our resource centres, which also include video
the forms assist the preparation of their CVs, language lessons.
also their expressed aspirations and desires can
indeed lead to project adjustments including the
contents of the careers seminar, introducing topics and activities that could be more suited to the
participants. This ensures that each Mobility is
tailored towards the needs of each group, en-
Resource Centers
suring that the participants derive the maximum
benefit. Finally, the checklist should be received
as confirmation of the readiness of the UK partner.
Bulgaria
Turkey
Consequently the initial preparation will be
adapted to the needs and ability of the group.
A minimum of 36 hours with support provided
by the accompanying people within the participants‟ own community, including: self assess- It is also during this phase where we strongly
ment to identify individual needs and preparing advise the UK partner to organize activities and
for the placement experience, encompassing raise a minimum of £100 in sponsorship per
intercultural games, action planning, research- member of the team, including team leaders
ing the host country customs and traditions, lan- (e.g. 10 young people + 2 team leaders = £1200)
guage learning, living in the UK & what is Eu- which they will use to purchase the materials for
rope? A complete learning exercise - forms the the placements abroad. This not only provides
first part of our Learning record in preparation for the budget for materials, but has numerous other
the nationally recognised qualification. A visit is benefits including encouraging the young people
again arranged by a BET representative to give to plan ahead and be creative, encouraging the
talks to the participants and answer queries, also young people to take their participation on the
young people taste the cuisine of the host coun- project seriously, nurtures skills such as budgettry, learning in an entertaining way, furthermore, ing, action planning, team building and entreprethey learn from peers who have already visited neurship. The fundraised budget
remains with the team leaders at all times often once agreed is also transferred to the host partas the group are marginalised and with limited ner no later than 10 days prior to the placement.
resources, the fundraising is important as it allows the participants to take ownership. More
information in our Fundraising Guide.
Important
If deemed necessary the UK partner can also
Please keep in mind that the preparation
phase is absolutely crucial for the project.
BET recommends that you pay special attention to it. Weak preparation can lead
to many problems including unhappy participants, lack of discipline, drinking problems, early returns culminating in an unsuccessful project
organise a residential – a 2 or 3 day seminar
involving all participants and team leaders, the
aim of which will be to comprehensively prepare
the participants and encourage team building.
Simultaneously in the hosting country our partner would be communicating with the social institutions that is to host the participants, book accommodation, local travel and make all logistical
arrangements for the placement, including study
and presentation rooms, excursions, research
places for purchase of materials, etc. Welcome
packs with essential information and a timetable included would be printed, in readiness to be
distributed to participants upon arrival. The host
partner also prepares the budget and emails it
to BET.
In our back office the resource centres and welcome page for this specific group would have
been finalised, and work starts on preparing
the CV for each participant in conjunction with
their full enrolment form, Europass Mobility
Documents and Bhagavat Certificates would
be generated and printed and in general the
Recognition Folder that is awarded at the end
of the placement would be ready. Participants
would have also been registered online to the
EC Mobility Tool; and indeed reminders sent to
join the project Facebook group. The budget
3
Placement
As soon as the group arrives in their host country
they are picked up from the airport by the Host
Partner and taken to the project venue.
Accommodation and meal arrangements vary
according to the placements time and location,
but in the general case participants are accommodated in at least a 3* hotel chosen by the host
partner and on which they undertake a comprehensive risk assessment and an accommodation checklist; ensuring that such accommodation adheres to our minimum standards.
Important
Due to the nature of the placement. i.e. “Team
Challenge” we felt it was best that the whole
group stay in the same hotel, rather than accommodating the participants in different flats
around town. This would also not be possible
due to the vulnerable nature of our participants
and the need for supervision and support by the
team leaders. Furthermore we always try and
ensure the participants are on the same floor,
with a member of BET staff remaining with the
group 24/7. To ensure safety the fire escape instructions are provided in the sending countries
language, ashtrays, contents of the mini bar and
telephones are removed.
The team of participants and accompanying
people eat together during meal time in order
to catch up and socialise. During the project we
also provide the participants the opportunity for
eating out, which many of them have not
experienced before due to their disadvantaged
socioeconomic background. Lunch is normally
organised at the social institution itself, allowing
two different participants to be in charge of the
preparation, purchasing and budgeting contributing to the smooth running of the project, thus
reinforcing participants‟ empowerment.
Apart from the mandatory logistical elements
such as food, accommodation and transport,
BET also provides all it‟s participants with a personal allowance (pocket money) which varies
according to the country of the placement and
the overall placement budget. Allowances are
handed over to the team leaders, who would
than distribute them to the participants on a daily
basis, ensuring a signed copy for receipt is retained.
“It was a big step for me as I am
battling with drug addiction but I
have to say the people at BET and
RV Projects were fantastic in their
support of me. I have since moved
out from my parents and I am living independently and I have went
back to college.”
Karen Johnson , participant
The first day of the placement is dedicated to
welcome meetings, orientation in the local area,
reinforcing the rights and responsibilities, team
building and activities exploring the issues of
intercultural communication and identity. Language Learning is also an important topic of that
first placement day. For further details please refer to the model timetable
of warm, cosy paint would be applied, followed
by murals, wall stencils and cartoon pictures.
Other jobs have included gardening work, renovation of benches, gazebos and outdoor playgrounds. The interaction with the residents is
also a central theme, several sports events or
picnics are organized where everybody has fun
together. Often we find that the staff of the institutions are enthused by the project and continue to paint morals on the windows to brighten
the institutions.
A recent development has also been to introduce the concept of SME’s8 (small managed
enterprises), where by BET with aid of the
UK teams and the cooperation of the Hosting
organization establishes workshops such as
candle making, these items are produced and
the items sold and the funds reinvested in the
project. The participants learn new skills orientated towards entrepreneurship, including
selling items, costing and pricing etc.
The following day the group makes their first
trip to the social institution hosting their placement, after an introduction by the director they
would meet the residents (typically – orphaned
children in Bulgaria or street children in Turkey)
and have a thorough inspection around the
place. After consultation with the director, priority areas of work are identified, through a team
meeting the actual work to be done by the team
during the two weeks is identified. Typically in
the past such jobs have included painting and
renovating common areas such as corridors,
entrances, stairs, playrooms, libraries and dining rooms – after some skimming a fresh lick
BET provides a representative that speaks
the host country language accompanying the
group 24/7; acting not only as interpreter, but
also mentor, social worker and coordinator,
this person has a wealth of experience and
is totally familiar with the needs of the participants.
Debriefing sessions are held at the end of
every day, this allows discussion of events,
progress and work distribution, but more importantly it allows participants to raise issues
and concerns, preventing little problems growing bigger.
Working
Excursions are organised so participants can
learn more about the host country, meet it’s
people and enjoy it’s culture – for instance to
the UNESCO World Heritage Site Rila Monastery in Bulgaria or the magnificent historical
Istanbul in Turkey.
hard in an orphanage in
Elin Pelin, Bulgaria
In the middle of the stay the careers seminar is
held, where the participants not only learn about
job searching, interview techniques and career
progression, but also identify their desired next
steps after they return home. Typically these
have included joining a college or vocational
course, finding employment in a certain sector
or continuing with overseas or UK based voluntary work (as an opportunity to learn and gain
experiences). Alongside the relevant learning
record units the young people complete the following questionnaires: Bright future, Career
Questionnaire and “Next steps Questionnaire and Feedback” which our experts (a psychologist and a career advisor) utilise to make
enquires and schedule appointments for them
after returning home.
Towards the end of the second week the work
is usually completed and a small celebration is
organised for the orphans, who in turn organise
From educational perspective we have adopted
a little farewell show for the UK participants, this
the blended learning approach as it gives paris quite an emotional moment, media and local
ticipants an environment to learn more effectiveVIPs are often present.
ly. Taking into account the needs of the young
people we mix different learning environments
Important
including face-to-face instruction (one to ones),
group activities, work placement & vocational
Due to the nature of our target group
tasks (learning by doing), peer-to-peer learning
we have experienced some problemas well as computer-mediated instruction (onatic situations with participants in the
line researches & resource centres) & individual
past – alcohol consumption, problemassignments to complete. Time is put aside for
atic behaviour, homesickness, etc.
qualification work at regular intervals. As most
of the participants are NEETs (Not in education,
Advice and guidance on how to deal
employment or training), we embrace their enwith these can be found in our Dealthusiasm while on placement and this manifests
ing with Problems section of the Host
itself in the participants completing a comprePartner Information Pack.
hensive learning record.
The same evening in the hotel the final evalua-
facts say it all...
tion takes place (this is undertaken using a variety of methods depending upon the group spe-
In order to guarantee proficiency and efficiency BHAGAVAT conducts a research as a
means of understanding the impact of the project on participants every year. A question-
cifics and dynamics but also during this evening
the mandatory Participant Report that is required
to be sent to the National Agency together with
the final project report is completed), also during
naire was developed by our national agency
the event the Recognition Folder is awarder to
ECORYS,
each participant, containing the certificates and
gain feedback about what participants gained
documents already mentioned, plus the sum-
reports
BET,
from their time on the project.
The
so as to
serve to set out the results of the question-
mary of appointments made for each individual
naires, whilst also offering an analysis on
participant. It is also at this point where partici-
our findings.
In 2012 BET hosted several
groups- in Bulgaria and Turkey. Owing to
the great results we have every year, BET
becomes a CERTIFICATE holder, which not
only shows trust and reliability, but also it’s
pants sign the Allowance Sheet. After emotional speeches the farewell feast begins.
The next day the groups are taken to the airport
also a recognition of the successful project
and depart home.
Each
and distributed by
section contained a selection of open and closed questions, relating to the participant’s
satisfaction regarding certain aspects of the project, as related above.
ECORYS
provided us
with the following abbreviations, which will be used as a means of evaluation throughout this report.
Participants were asked if they were satisfied:
*To a very small extent (Tvsm)
*To a small extent (Tsm)
*To a high extent (Thigh)
*To a very high extent (Tvhigh)
*Totally accomplished (Tot)
*Not Applicable (NotApp)
Q9 Overall satisfaction regarding support from host
organisations for practical arrangements
(PractHostSupp)
50
40
37
30
* The chart shows the overall satisfaction
received from the host organisation of all
young people participated in the
project in
2012 .
35
1
28
2
20
3
10
4
0
-10
0
0
1
Tvsm
0
2
Tsm
5
3
4
5
THIGH
TvHIGH
T oT
6
4
Post Project
In the host country within 10 days of the group Back at BET UK an evaluation meeting is held
departing the host partner would fill in the Final to assess the placement and the lessons learnt
Statement of Expenditure and email it to BET identifying further improvements; furthermore all
UK, who would than authorize payment of a bal- paperwork is scanned to our secure server.
ance if needed. All host partners are required to
store the original invoices, receipt, tickets and all At relevant interval team leaders are contacted
financial documentation relating to the group for to provide updates with regards to participants‟
a minimum period of 5 years (in case of an au- outcomes and status post placement, evaluation
dit).
surveys including soft skills are completed, contributing to the final project report.
From the participants perspective – the placements are 2 weeks long. However – the actual
duration of the project for an individual is indefinite, the support and advise offered in post
placement phase is indefinite and this will continue regardless of future Leonardo funding. An
experienced member of staff assist with the post
project phase and often becomes their mentor.
The follow-up phase focuses on participants:
√ Reflecting on their European placement.
√ Gaining accreditation.
√ Following up on the next steps identified.
√ Attending appointments in the UK and
starting employment.
√ Volunteering, education, employment
or apprenticeship.
√ Communicating with participants on regular bases
via FACEBOOK
√ Contacting them prior to after appointments
√ The young people return in their home country as
AMBASSADORS- they share their experience and
tell others about the project
Facts say it all...
The
feedback questionnaire that helps
BET
to evaluate the impact the project has
on young people is sent to participants and completed within thirty days of them
completing their time abroad. It was broken down into several sections relating to
different elements of the project:
-
Preparation;
-
Content;
questions relating to predeparture preparation, language learn-
ing and quality of information received before travelling, etc.
questions about the placement duration, activities participated in and
provision of equipment, etc.
Evaluation; the participant’s overall satisfaction with the project, its relevance
to their qualifications etc.
- Certification; list of qualifications obtained during placement, including Europass Mobility documents
- Learning outcomes; focusing on post-project language skills, professional
skills, self-confidence, future employment prospects etc.
- Practical arrangements; questions regarding satisfaction with the grant provided, transport arrangements, accommodation, personal safety, etc.
-
Q4 I feel more confident
Over 90% of the participants go back to school,
01
college or university or are more intrested with
34
31
Tvsm
Tsm
THIGH
TvHIGH
34
ToT
their studies.
They
show motivation and willing-
ness to build a career and stabilise their lives
(data from 2012).
Although the remaining 10% do not progress into
education or employment, the project still ben-
efits and lifting them a tear from being homeless.
This as a result will allow progression at a later
date
Q6 I am more interested in my
training than before
We
as
28
Tvsm
Tsm
THIGH
TvHIGH
41
Maslow`s Hierarchy
of
needs, believing our projects touch all involved
2
2
27
are an advocate of
ToT
Maslow
wrote,
`We
are not in a position in
which we have nothing to work with.
We already
have capacities, talents, direction, missions, callings.`
Qualifications and career
seminar
“
“
Our members consistently say that new recruits do not
have the skills they need to enter the world of work,” says
Richard Lambert, director-general of the employers’ body,
the CBI. “Firms are having to spend time and money they
can ill afford teaching new starters basic ‘work etiquette’.
Peter Kingston, The Guardian,
Tuesday,10th February 2009.
The idea for the present qualification was born
many years ago when Bhagavat Educational
Trust realized how much the work skills are important for the participants in the project for building a career and also for making progression in
the right direction. The lack of well-developed
work skills is the barrier to further progression
from poverty not only in UK but all over the world.
The target jobs for the young people that Bhagavat Educational trust is recruiting before the project are usually low –paid, low- skilled and insecure jobs just because they couldn’t find the
possibility to spend time developing their work
skills and therefore gain better paid job. The relatively high concentration of such “job openings”
offers very little hope for individual progression.
Bhagavat’s strategy was to embrace their enthusiasm while on placement, emulating a true
working environment, enlisting on a nationally
recognised qualification and the career seminar.
The most expedient way of doing this was to include a career seminar in the middle of the project (the beginning of the second week). Often
these participants being NEET’s had dropped
out of education at an early age so it is crucial we
embrace their enthusiasm while on placement The work skills in every single person can be deand nurture their academic abilities adopting a veloped, practiced and used. Therefore the career seminar and the further qualification can be
blended learning approach.
considered as a huge step in the right direction
In the 21st century the natural resource is the not only for the young people but for Europe as
people, especially the young people. Bhagavat a whole.
Educational Trust believes that their potential is
untapped and vast and that helping those peo- Certificates
ple to develop the work skills will only unlock this
potential. The prize for this will be phenomenal- The career seminar and the qualification are a
higher productivity, creation of wealth, social jus- tool the young people can use to find better paid
tice. Without increased skills we are hindering position and therefore a tool to further progress
the economic growth and declining the competi- from poverty and make positive steps in their
tiveness. This is why Bhagavat believes that the lives.
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case for action should be compelling and urgent.
The Career Seminar
The careers seminar initially was emphasiz- ising. The young people not only helped those
ing the possibilities that the young people have in need but also started to realize that finding a
back home for employment, education or vol- job is not simply something you do to pay your
bills, but also a big step that leads to a career.
unteering in UK or abroad.
The participants are offered the opportunity to
The role of the Bhagavat team was to show the be guided by a career advisor and work closely
options, to discuss their dreams and desires with a psychologist who assists them in nurturand try to make appointments for every particiing their career points.
pant for a job, course or for a volunteering program. Soon we realized how much more these After extensive research in the field it was depeople could be helped and along with the op- cided to offer to all participants in the “Living
tions for employment we started to discuss with and Learning Abroad program” Entry level 3
them the interview, interview skills and play Diploma in Personal Development and Emmock interviews. The results were very prom- ployability.
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Why Diploma in Personal Development and Employability?
Our course includes
the following units:
This very specific qualification from City and
○ Self- assessment
Guilds has been developed after extensive re-
○ Working as a team
search and consultation with employers, training
○ Positive attitude and behaviour at
providers, schools and colleges.
work
○ Searching for a job
Many employers want graduates with a positive
○ Applying for a job
attitude and wider employability skills to succeed
○ Preparing for an interview
in the workplace. According to many researches
○ Interview skills
made in this field and according to Bhagavat the
○ Career progression
employability skills should include: general communication skills, team working, and positive attitude these skills and more are gained through
this qualification.
The aim of the course is to deliver the skills that
will help people progress on their career path. The qualification is quite diverse and appeals to
The units build on the skills already taught in a number of different learners, both adults and
schools and colleges, and offer the opportunity to 14- to 19-year-olds. Adult learners can include
recognise these skills with a formal qualification. job seekers, parents returning to work, graduate
The qualification encompasses work placement, trainees, offender learners, and people who are
interview techniques, teamwork and vocational looking for a complete career change.
skills, as well as the soft skills that employers
look for such as adaptability, eagerness to learn
and a can-do attitude.
Why delivery Abroad?
The participants taking this qualification can in- The project requires participants to spend two
corporate City and Guilds in to their 2 week chal- weeks abroad, it is the desire of BET to put the
lenge, adding a further work-related qualification young people in a fresh new environment, where
to their CV and enhancing considerably their ca- they have better chances to develop their skills,
reer opportunities.
study and gain confidence without the burden of
negative past associations. While aboard, the trainers and peers. The result of this way of departicipants are working with a Psychologist, livering is phenomenal. The results are actually
Career advisor, Project Coordinator, qualified what motivated BET to support this way of learnteachers and trainers, and personal guide- trans- ing and working with the young people;
lator who are at their disposal all the time. The
experience that BET has in the field exceeds 10 5_The different atmosphere, the different culture
years, accordingly over 80% of the participants and the different style of living the young people
upon their return enter into employment, training are placed in are motivating them to give a new
or volunteering. These facts can only motivate meaning to their lives. They are in a position to
Bhagavat Educational Trust to continue sending help those that need help, while being helped,
participants abroad and not only that, but also and this is what BET calls Mutual Assistance!
enrol them on a course that helps them develop
a better future.
6_ After witnessing the deprivation of the orphans or street children, participants appreciate
The learning process abroad we believe is far more the opportunities they have and are far
more successful for the young people for more receptive to new ideas.
several reasons:
1_The young people are in a new environment;
they don’t have any distractions and are helped
to focus on the subject studied;
2_The project itself is an activity adapted to the
course they are taking, which motivates them to
practice what they have learned in real time;
3_They are surrounded by professionals in the
field who are helping them nurture their skills
and start to build a career in the area they desire;
4_ The participants are put in a non- formal environment, but still academic in nature, where they
feel relaxed and supported by their teachers,
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Facts say it all...
Bhagavat
educational trust is promoting volunteering, education and future em-
ployment opportunities among young people for over
10
years now. It's our policy
to encourage everyone to pursue a career or find their own path.
Volunteering on
a worldwide project abroad provide many benefits for the participants- helps bring
learning to life, opens new opportunities for the young people, shows them a different reality, helps them define their career path ...
Taking 12 British (10
participants
+ 2 Team Leaders)
volunteers off the beaten
track and letting them see first-hand the issues faced by the orphans in
Bulgaria or
Turkey, give them a real insight into the struggles of daily life in
another reality, so much different than the one they live in, encouraged them to put
their lives at home into context. They live 2 weeks together in a local hotel, surrounded by local people and BET representatives. They help renovating an orphanage and interact with the orphans; they participate in a career seminar and undertake
a qualification in Personal development with the Furness College.
street children in
Q1 Overall satisfaction
regarding recognition of my
Mobility
60
50
Tvsm
The 2 weeks experience does not only have a positive impact on the social institution or the local community,
40
Tsm
but also on the group dynamics and on the individuals
THIGH
30
50
20
21
10
0
TvHIGH
0
Tvsm
The
ToT
29
0
0
THIGH
project with
ToT
Bhagavat
themselves.
the beginning to the end of the pro-
fidence, they gained new skills, they developed their
NotAPP
ability to work in a team, and they were shown and
No answer
introduced to more volunteering options and advised
0
No answer
by a career specialist:
allowed the young people
to interact with marginalized groups in a way that no
other travelling experience or project can.
Whether
they are on a renovating an orphanage project in Bulgaria (as this group did) or participating in a workshop for candle making for an example in Turkey, in
both cases working together as a team to improve community facilities, communication skills or simply gain
experience spending time with the locals in a social institution, their volunteering experience gave them an
insight into a culture that would just not be possible
by simply visiting the country as a tourist.
From
ject we all noticed a big leap in the participant’s con-
Q1 I learned new
professional
skills
+info SME’s
40
35
30
25
20
15
30
36
30
10
5
0 0
Tvsm
2
THIGH
ToT
Q1 I
learne
d new
profess
ional …
SME’s
Items produced during the 2 weeks project
A further development of the project “Living and mas, appropriate items will need to be made such
learning Abroad‟ has been to introduce business as Christmas cards etc.
ethics in to the organizations. Capitalizing on ear- BET fully agrees with the aspirations of the EU
lier experience gained from running the “Help To- 2020 strategy and its objectives for which we feel
day Hope Tomorrow‟ project, SME‟s (Small Man- the project helps address the first 3 - employment,
aged Enterprises) are being introduced, and the education, social inclusion
idea is for the enterprise to emulate a business.
Once the items are sold, the income will need to
Typical examples of such SME‟s include Candle be reinvested in to the project in order to cover fumaking in the Bulgarian Orphanage Elin Pelin and ture materials and contribute to overheads.
also with the Roma community in Izmit Turkey.
The young people from the sending organization Each organization will have the opportunity to reand the hosting organization will be encouraged to tail the items on the mutual assistance website.
participate in making the candles and encouraged Thought will need also to be given to the organizato participate in the costing and pricing of the items tion and its young people, their resources, abilities
after considering all costs both variable and fixed and time availability of the staff. When the „Help
overheads.
Today Hope Tomorrow‟ project was run, the young
A further element will be to assist with the market- orphans would take every opportunity to particiing of the items, packaging and presentation will pate in the project, nurturing their artistic abilities,
need to be considered along with the most appro- several organizations reported that the project had
priate outlets.
a calming effect on the young people; often they
Planning will also need to be given to production
would participate in selling the items themselves
of the items for instance in the run up to Christ- and even set up their own stalls.
Evaluation, Monitoring,
Dissemination
3
Evaluation
All the staff of BET are responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of programme
activities. These activities allow us to continually appraise the project, seeking innovative ways of improving and learning early mistakes that are being made and
potential problematic areas. The following procedures are used to evaluate project
activity:
 Quality Group meetings are held with Bhagavat Educational Trust
support staff to monitor the programme. The initial assessment process
creates a profile of each participant involved, in conjunction with their
Learning record.
 We encourage team leaders upon return to the UK at relevant intervals to acquire feedback from the available participants measuring distance travelled and recording positive outcomes; furthermore a random
telephone survey of participants is undertaken at relevant intervals after
the programme has finished.
 Essential element of evaluation is to ensure that information is provided & acted upon in a timely fashion. Daily reports are compiled from the
de-briefing, where the day is evaluated & any problems - highlighted.
Another key part of the ongoing evaluation are the meetings between
BET representative, accompanying people and the host partner, in order to discuss the progress of the project and to identify any potential
problems; such meeting is formally held once a week, and informally
- as and when required, potential problematic areas are immediately
drawn to the attention of the BET management staff.
 During the final dinner, an opportunity is given to the participants and
accompanying people to present their feelings and impressions about
the projects, feedback forms are provided for the recording of this information, contributing to the final placement report.
 Continual contact is maintained and feedback gathered with the participants via facebook.
BET continually searches for innovative ways of
improving the project and evaluation is a crucial
tool in implementing improvements & project adjustments.
To further supplement this - Bhagavat Educational Trust has recently become an accredited
sending EVS organisation in UK. This way we
would be able to offer direct assistance with this
very popular programme to all returning particiValidation of skills is one example where evalu- pants.
ation has assisted the project. BET wholly concur with the concept of encouraging participants
through recognition of their non-formal learning, In addition BET is also a partner in several Euroculminating in the awarding of the Europass Mo- pean projects, which offer overseas placements
bility Certificate. After participants’ evaluation it for the participants, as an example participating
was realised that Europass is not that well rec- in an ecological venture in France for up to a
ognised on the UK labour market. Consequence year.
of this evaluation was to introduce a nationally
recognised qualification to further compliment Evaluation also happens in an informal way on a
the Europass.
continuous basis. Through the establishment of
our online forum and through the constant post
The qualification is another invaluable evaluation project contact with BET staff.
tool ensuring the participants compare not only
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the host country with the UK, but their dreams,
desires, attitude and behaviour prior to and after
the placement.
Another typical example is the follow up activities
for participants. Evaluation showed that approximately 15% of participants choose volunteering
abroad as their next step in life, and we have offered comprehensive assistance to such participants through our wide network of partner EVS
organizations as part of the post project phase.
Monitoring
The progress of each participant is rigorously monitored to ensure the project
is delivered effectively and efficiently to
meet the needs of each participant.
young people with high support needs for
whom it is essential to be accompanied
by accompanying people who understand
and are sympathetic to their needs – professional, academic, personal and emoIn addition to the dedicated member of tional.
BET staff, each participant is allocated a
support worker responsible for monitoring As we are aiming at mixed-gender teams,
the progress of the participant in the host an essential requirement is to have mixedcountry. This includes:
gender accompanying people, thus ensuring the young people do not get into
unwanted situations while on their placement in Eastern Europe. Bhagavat Educational Trust does this to ensure that
√ Liaising with supervisors of the
participants receive the appropriate level
work placement
of support they need and their progress
√ Daily meetings to discuss
progress informally
could be suitably assessed.
√ Formal review meetings once
The qualification work is assessed by the
a week
external verifiers, which ensures inde√ On-going work to complete
pendent and objective monitoring.
their Individual Learning Record
The participants are supervised constantly
while on the placement; at no time for instance will a participant or accompanying
person be allowed to be on their own with
BET also operates an open door policy the vulnerable children in the orphange.
whereby our staff are always available to The director and staff of the project, the
the participants and team leaders
host country staff, the accompanying people and staff from our organization ensure
At the end of each placement support this.
workers in the host country complete a
feedback form.
Accompanying people from UK monitor
the placement and support the participant.
On our projects there has always been accompanying people with the participants we would like to reiterate that BET targets
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Dissemination
BET disseminates the project at various
levels including local, national and international. Examples of local dissemination
include:
Production and distribution of newsletters, info packs, posters and presentations.
A celebration event in the UK held after
each successful placement enabling staff
and participants to demonstrate the benefits of the programme, share best practice, promote the project and disseminate
information to stakeholders.
All participants returning from the project receive regular newsletters from BET
with information as to their next steps in
life.
The participants can popularise their
experiences and the advantages of participating on this programme via the internet they are able to publish memories and
pictures
Dissemination strategies at
international level included:
Participation in contact seminars, popularising the project
 Invitation to present our project as part
of the best practice modules in the March
2010 conference in Brussels for combating
poverty and social exclusion.
 In the host countries, media and local
VIPs are often present on a small celebration the host partner organises at the end
of the placement
 In the host country appearing in National
radio, national TV, local newspapers
 An essential part of BET policy is to disseminate the project in the host country to
appropriate authorities, who can offer advice. i.e. – Ministries of education, Ministry
of labour and social policy, British embassy,
local municipalities, etc.
Presenting at the World Skills Exhibition
held in London 2011
An article has been submitted on our project for
From past experience and in conjunction with our inclusion in the 15th birthday celebration for our
National Agency it is evident the project would National Agency.
benefit also from dissemination at national and
international levels. Examples include:
 The inclusion in a BBC documentary
 National awards, including finalist of “Social Enterprise of the Year” for the last 5
years.
Furthermore the returning participants became
ambassadors of the project amongst other young
people in their local communities.
Due to the beneficial nature of the project and
that of mutual assistance and empowerment often returning participants including team leaders
become ambassadors for the project and encourage other organisations to undertake similar projects, for which we have often been approached to act as consultants.
Further evidence of the quality of the project is
the fact that many UK partner organisations do
reoccurring team challenges as they have seen
the benefit to the participants.
Dissemination is also an important element in order to attract new and diverse UK partners to the
network, ensuring we continually reach the most
disadvantaged in society.
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DOCUMENTS PRODUCED DURING THE LIFETIME OF THE PROJECT
PLEASE FOLLOW THE LINKS:
ITALY
1.
rESEARCH AND NEEDS ANALYSIS
2.
Communication is Key- adapted
3.
LOGO COSVITEC
4.
Questionnaire (the 37 questions for
selecting participants)
5.
Leaflet Cosvitec
6.
Bulgarian course_Cosvitec- power
point presentation
7.An example CV of a young person
8.pREPARATION ACTIVITIES AND CAREER SEMINAR
9.ASSESSMENT OF YOUNG PERSON
10.TARGET GROUP
11.
PRESS RELEASE
TURKEY
1.Research on Social services
2.
Social services in Turkey
3.
Questionnaires for participants
4.
Profile of a likely disadvantaged
participants
5.Leaflet
6.Communication is key
7.
Before/ After test revised
spain
1.RESEARCH AND NEEDS ANALYSIS
2.Questionnaires
3.Communication is the KEY adapted
4.
Overview Communication is the KEY
5.Fundraising project
6.Report on preparatory seminar
7.
Global report
8.
BG lessons
9.TOI Leaflet
10.
Magenta intro brochure
11.
Preparatory seminar TOI
12.TARGET GROUP
13.
Questionnaires professional template
14.
PROFILING A YOUNG PERSON
15.
Bulgarian for beginners
16.Flexible qualification
17.Evaluation tools
18.
Seminar materials
BULGARIA
Conclusions
4
This booklet is written by Bhagavat Educational
Trust to give better understanding of the “Living and Learning Abroad” Project. The essence
of the project is “Mutual assistance” where by
one marginalised group assists another, typically marginalised groups from UK will include,
the homeless, former substance abusers, exoffenders or those in or leaving care, while marginalised groups from the host country include
orphans in Bulgaria or street children in Turkey.
The project requires participants to spend two
weeks abroad, it is the desire of BET to put
the young people in a fresh new environment,
where they have better chances to develop
their skills, study and gain confidence without
the burden of negative past associations. While
aboard, the participants are working with a Psychologist, Career advisor, Project Coordinator,
qualified teachers and trainers, and personal
guide- translator who are at their disposal all
the time. The experience that BET has in the
field is over 10 years, over 80% of the participants upon their return enter into employment,
training or volunteering. These facts can only
motivate Bhagavat Educational Trust to continue sending participants abroad and not only
that, but also enrol them on a course that helps
them build a better future.
The target group Bhagavat Educational Trust focuses on face many obstacles to obtaining work
and to fulfil their lives. Before their participation
in the project, the unemployed young people, the
exoffenders and these in or living care often
feel abandoned, insecure and hopeless. They
have lost their motivation; they often start using
drugs or commit crimes. Although Great Britain
provides many programs for the people at risk,
the young people do not always appreciate these
opportunities. All disadvantaged young people
and exoffenders face a range of barriers before
they participate in the project, such as:
Poor basic skills
Low self- esteem
Behavioural and health problems.
These barriers are also compounded by a lack
of recent work experience. The 2 weeks abroad
are often described by the young people as “a
life changing experience”- they help them increase their self- esteem, focus their attention
on people in need, increase their motivation, receive professional help.
Accordingly the statistics that Bhagavat keeps
on the past projects, evidences on the positive
effectiveness of the project are the better motivation of the participants, their willingness to
take a step in the right direction or their ambition to pursue a career. Findings include that
soft skills can not only improve employee performance and satisfaction but can also prepare
technical workers for promotion into supervisory
roles. Considering the target group and low level
of proficiency participants have prior to the project, the effectiveness of the project is tremendous. Our research shows that the positive effect of the project for the young people is very
high. The participants feel more confident, more
satisfied with themselves with improved motivation and self- esteem.
Facts*:
○ 100% of the young people are more
motivated after the project.
○ 92% of the questioned team leaders
think that the team challenge in Bulgaria
helped the young people to be more
organized and work harder.
○ 100% of the team leaders state that
after the project the young people are
more sociable and they are trying harder
in their career.
*In house statistical information 2010- 2011
Important
These results can only motivate us to keep
improving and now transfer the knowledge for this so effective program for the
young people to other countries. We believe that it is our duty to be able to prove
the hard facts we are referring to in this
guide. Therefore we feel obligated to provide statistical information to our partners.
Please find attached to this guide:
Case studies of participants
 Soft skills review
 Satisfaction survey
 Quotes from Team leaders and participants
Case Studies
5
Bulgaria
Case Study by
Rachel Vincent,
1st price in the written category of the
“Broadening Horizons – My Leonardo Experience”competition 2011!
I went to Bulgaria in October 2009 for two weeks, through these two weeks we worked in an orphanage. We decorated one off the corridors but before this we met the young children, the kids it
seemed only had one emotion and that was aggression, but as the two weeks went on the whole
off my group all pulled together and showed them that we were not there to cause trouble or anything like that they soon become polite but very frustrated, as they were talking to us but we could
not understand them, it was also frustrating on our part. Through the two weeks we got to learn
basic Bulgarian which was very hard for all of us because it seemed that everything that was said
was backwards i.e. yes was a shake off the head, and no was the nod off the head.
As the two weeks went on decorating got a lot easier as the young kids were helping out they
were not getting in the way they were trying to help. Our group integrated very well, we all seemed
to know where we fitted without been told and got on with things; this made things a lot easier. As
you can imagine, like any group who where spending twenty four seven together got very agitated,
very easily, but what was said at the time was took and never carried on.
When we were on breaks we played a lot of games with the Bulgarians, they were all very high on
football and they were very good so we had a bit off competition, through our basic Bulgarian we
were able to communicate with them, which we all very much enjoyed.
On the last day off working in Bulgaria the kids done a little show for us and we took cakes and
sandwiches and things like that to them. The Girls did dances which was amazing to see the different variations of dancing in different cultures. And the boys played football, whilst the boys were
playing football, a couple off the girls in our group showed the Bulgarian girls songs like if your
happy and you know it clap your hands and they picked it up really fast and wanted to sing it over
and over again which was very nice for us to see cause we felt we had taught them something it
was a big achievement a bigger one that doing the hall cause we had actually taught them some
things. When it was time to say by it was very emotional, all of us had tears in our eyes not so
much the boys but you could see they were sad to. The kids came to our bus stop with us and
waved us off.
Before I went to Bulgaria my career prospect was not that high nobody seemed to be hiring me. As
I had no past job experience, when we were in Bulgaria we had like an employment seminar which
I benefited from greatly and it proved it cause as soon as I got home I got a job. Adding the trip to
Bulgaria and what I did helped me get the job I have, as soon as I mentioned what I had done I
could see the smile in the employers eyes and she probed for more information, and I still think to
this day that is why I got the job.
Although I was happy to be home I was missing seeing all the faces on the Bulgarians, I found myself telling everyone I knew how lucky we are, I found myself telling people off for whinging about
what they didn‟t have when we have a hell of a lot more than those poor kids in Bulgaria, that has
dwindled down a lot now, but there is not a day that goes by that I don‟t remember what I do have
and when I am feeling slightly un-grateful I think off those little kids who have hardly anything in
a different country . Although they are only three hours away on aeroplane it is such a different
country to ours and it is still going through its changes if I was given the opportunity again I would
bite my right hand off to do it.
Bulgaria
Case Study by
Shane Dawson
Chantry YMCA Group
21/06/2010 to 05/07/2010
Vratsa
My life was going no where be for i went to bulgaria just doin the same
stuff everyday then i got the oppertunity to do some thing to change the
way i lived so i went to bulgaria with ymca youth group. i did not no what to
exspect but i went ,when we got to bulgaria it was compleatly different to
england the buildings were run down and there was people rooting throug
bins,stray dogs every were i could not belive it was like this but then we
arrived in vistra it was a nice place when we got to the orphanage it was a
shock to see all the kids with notheing and it made me realize that in england i take things for granted like food money and having a family just the
small things really i didnt evan care about the things i had back home because i had them but i soon started to think different when i saw the kids for
the first time it nearly brought me to tears i didnt imagan i would have felt
that way but the experiance changed the way i fink about things and people from bulgaria i got intouch with an organisation called evs (every thing
is possible) and now i am makeing a change in my life i am in italy at the
moment doing volantering and hopefuly in january i am going to jamacia
to build a school just to try give someone the oppertunity that i have taken
for granted all my life i want to try and make a difference to someones life
evan if it just a little bit but i would never have done this in the past i always
thought of my shelf so thanks to the team at bhagavat they have changed
the way i think and act and i hope to return to bulgaria to see how the kids
are and hopefuly make a difference to someone elses life like they have to
mine
thanks for the oppertunity and hope to do some more work with you in the
future
Brodeaning Horizons – My Leonardo Experience
Case study by
Susan Backhouse,
3rd price in the written category of the “Broadening Horizons
My Leonardo Experience”competition!
My name is Susan backhouse i went on the living and working abroad programme with the
Blackburn YMCA last year where we went to Bulgaria two a little town called Razlog. This was
the most amazing thing i ever got to do in my life. before we went me and a couple of my friends
went in more depth and researched about the country and tried to learn a lot more about the
background of the country and the way it is run. When we out in Bulgaria we got to see a total
different way of living to what we do in the UK.
The new skills i developed while on the programme on the programme was that i got a change
to learn a different language which was really good i still know some of the phrases now. i got a
chance to get some experience on my qulaficail i did when i left school as i am fully qualafical
painter and decorator and what‟s what we did when we was out there. i got a chance to learn
how to work as a team better and i got a chance to learn some leadership skill which i really
enjoyed and did really well at which lead do know what i wanted to do which is run my own business which i am awaiting starting my next course with the prince's trust programme.
My Personal development has developed by i have become more confident was different people and their different ways of thinking i have learn how to take different people opinions when
working as a group. As well as that i learn how lucky are in this country compared to others.
This experience affected my future career and life choices because i before i went on this programme last year i was only interested in getting drunk and take drugs and all looking where
the next party is at but now i don‟t really drink and i don‟t take drugs i waiting at a course on the
prince‟s trust programme to start my own business.
I have already told others there should do it because i is a once in alive last opportunity which
will chance your life for best.
Bulgaria
Case Study by
Steven Wilkes
12 to 26 January 2009
Pernik
Participant of BET LLA project hosted in the town of Pernik, Bulgaria from 12 to 26 January 2009
During my two weeks in Bulgaria, I experienced a different culture, food and living. When we
arrived it was -10 and the ground was covered in snow. We met the translators off the plane who
where called Vyara and Andy also with them was the main organizer of our trip Stefan.
On our first night we took the coach to a little restaurant on the out skirt’s of Sofia, on our
table when we arrived was a lovely looking salad which we found out was the traditional Bulgaria
salad called shopsta which had tomato’s, cucumber , black olives, onion and white cheese in it . We
also had a dish which was called Kiufte which was beef meatballs which was more in the shape of a
burger
.
We arrived at the hotel in Pernik it was located on Krakra Square in the middle of the town centre.
We got acquainted with the hotel and our translators and had a coffee in the hotel lobby with them
until we all went bed ready for a big day in the morning.
We all woke up and had breakfast around 8 o’clock. It was a bit of a challenge but in the end I
think we all got what we wanted in the end. At 9 o’clock we got the tram from the town centre to
the orphanage which was about 15 minutes away. When we arrived there we could see some of the kids
we would be helping out and also we could see the challenge all of us had to do, we entered the
orphanage which is also used as a school for kids that arrive in the morning and leave around 4.30.
When we got in we were not surprised by what we saw the wall’s were
uninviting and flakey we could see that this was going to be difficult
that we would succeed in our task , we all got together and we set a plan
going to do , we decided to make the walls brighter using reds, yellow’s
wanted to replace the lino which was completely battered.
a state and the paint was
but we all felt confident
of action of what we were
blue’s and purples we also
The next day I was quite ill with a throat infection which put me out for the week, which I was
quite disappointed about because I wanted to do my bit but I was so ill I was not able to , but I
did hear that they got started with stripping the wall and gave the walls a coat of white paint so
the top coat would go on easier , I also heard that they had snowball fight with the orphans and
got completely battered but I guess they get a lot of practice as there is nothing to do there
accept to make your own fun .
On Saturday We all met up down stairs where Stefan and Andy had prepared a presentation for us. we all sat
down an Andy gave us a talk on the Options we would have when our project in Bulgaria, some of them included doing more overseas volunteering which
grabbed my attention also there was language courses, armed forces, and appretiships we all had a think and he
asked us what we would like to do and he made a list so he could arrange for us for to get in touch with people who
could make these options a reality. We got together into groups of two and we got up and said what we wanted to
do so everyone in the group would know what we wanted to achieve and why. After that went on an excursion to
the outskirts Pernik there was a festival of masquerade games where a lot of the locals dress up and wear mask’s
which are believed to scare off all the bad demons and spirits. We all were treated to an amazing show it was very
noisy also as a lot of them had bells attached to them while there where dancing around to the beat of the drums,
when it got dark we were all treated to a fire show where there was a small bonfire which was surrounded by people also there was a big firework show which was amazing and we all took photo’s to remind us of the amazing
day. After we left the show which I was sure would go on for a few more hours at least, we went up to the mountain to this very posh restaurant which had this lady singing Bulgarian songs which I did not understand at all .
Our first week was coming to an end but we all enjoyed it and we were all looking forward to the week ahead.
Monday arrived and we all started our day we could see what difference we had mad already the walls
where brighter and you could see the effect we where having on the kids, as well as refurbishing the orphanage we also spent time with the kids there was a language barrier but we all felt a connection with them
, it was quite fun we met sum great kids and if was a lot of fun teaching them English and they also were
trying to teach us Bulgarian even if sum of the words were quite rude. But my favorite was Carl teaching
them to say “Holy moly donut shop” they could not stop saying that for the whole time we where there.
Our project was coming along nicely and the walls were painted so we decided that we were going to do
some murals from cartoons like Winnie the pooh and lion kind, so we borrowed a projector so we could
project the images onto the wall so we could trace the outline of the characters which I did myself and was
very proud of even thought it was traced it still looked pretty impressive . We also had a delivery of the lino
we would be putting down you could tell the difference in quality from the English stuff but part of the task
was working with what we could get our hands on. Anyway we did well with what we had we got on our
own little project’s Ricky, Pete, John and myself got on with painting the mural’s Andy Parr got on with his
favorite job which was glossing the door’s but beware if you got your fingers on it then he would go nuts, and
everyone else just helped us out . We also had to one by one go to see Andy so he could ask us for information that he would use to put together our CV and information pack. After that was all done we had the floor
to lay but I was confident as I used to be a carpet fitter so I was in charge of that, we decided that we were
going to leave 2 inches of lino up the wall, because the glue was not top grade and if would probably go bad
if the water from the staff moping the floor got to it so we managed to do that with minimal problem’s. We
could see after floor had been laid that we had done an amazing a professional job and it look amazing compare to the state it was in before and I think the whole group was proud of themselves of what we achieved.
It came up to the last day at the orphanage; we would just do the final touches to the place and tidy up our
mess. After that we where invited to upstairs to the children’s television room where all the children had got
together to give us a send off. A few of them got up and recited famous Bulgarian poems and the director of
the orphanage said thank you to all of us for a excellent work and the time we put in she said she was very
impressed with our work . After that the children came up to us and gave us pictures that had draw for us , it
was a very emotional time because we got so attached to the children and we knew we had to say good bye we
gave them our presents that we brought from England and a load of sweets for them to share, it was amazing to
see the effect we had on them you could see that they where so happy and it was a great feeling to know that .
It is one of the proudest things iv'e ever done and I would recommend it to anyone. But the time had come to
say goodbye , it was hard but all good things come to an end but this as opened a door for a me and has helped
me make a few decisions that could change my life , funny how an experience like that can change your view on
things and make you want to be a better person .
On the final Saturday we went to the capital city of Bulgaria which is Sofia, we went there on the train which
took us around an hour to get there. Andy our interpreter took us on a guided tour of the place and we all got
to see some beautiful building including the parliament buildings and very old church. After all that we had
something to eat a restaurant, we all went off in our own little groups and discovered the city. What I did not
realize is how big the place is me, Carl and Ricky was looking everywhere where we could buy a drum and bass
cd packs so we could have a little so venir of Bulgarian drum and bass. We must have got lost about 5 times, but
I was surprised how many people spoke English. The city is such a nice place and has a lot of different variety of
shops and they have something for everyone , the main high street is the 22nd most expensive in the world
but off it you can find some good bargains they are not short of shops that sell the odd fake watch or jewelry.
But over all I enjoyed being in Sofia it a great capital city full of culture and amazing buildings. On the Sunday it was a free day but most of us decided to get ready and start reluctantly packing our bags and making
sure we had all our documents. Later at around 7 O’clock we all met up in the hotel restaurant where we had a
goodbye meal and so Andy and Stefan could give us a talk. He explained that he was very proud of our work
and team ethic and that were a very good group he also had told that us that he had prepared us a folder we
could use as a future reference , and he continued to hand them each to us one by one , the pack contained
our euro pass cv, a green certificate which explained our achievement in Bulgaria, a postcard from pernik , a
little wooden tube which contained this traditional perfume and a cd with all of the information just in case
there was any thing we needed to change and there were also photos of us to remind us of our trip to Bulgaria.
Our last day we got up a 6 o’clock in the morning already packed and ready to go, some of us happy to go some
of us sad to leave including myself. We caught the coach up to Sofia airport at 8 o’clock which took us an hour
from there we boarded the aero plane and said good bye to Bulgaria.
The whole point of our 2 week journey to Bulgaria was to give our help and friendship to children less fort
nate than us , and also to help ourselves develop as people and we all achieved that some of us in different
ways but everyone came back a better person and a proud person , proud that we could say that we took our
time to go to a different country and help people less fortunate than us , and seeing the children’s faces after
we finished our job is an image that will stay with me for ever. I will use that as inspiration to motivate me
for targets I have set myself and goals I want to achieve. Hopefully I have the chance to do this again and give
my help and support to people who need it, and I have applied to do more volunteer work in Europe possibly
for a year in the very near future.
6
Quotes
“I think the certificates were very
good and all people on the trip are
very proud of them. I also found the
possibility of further work abroad interesting. I hope to put the certificate
to good use in the future”
Darren Hill,
20/04/2009 to 02/05/2009 Bulgaria.
“The group is now making positive steps in
developing their lives; some are attending
college; others are in work, either temporally or in permanent positions. This can
only be described as miraculous.”
Terrence Bradley, Team leader.
“This experience has changed
my life I am now working as
an outdoor instructor with
young people and the confidence I got from this project
certainly helped me.”
Simon Wright,
08/03/2010 to 22/03/2010,
Bulgaria.
“On returning home I was able to
gain job interviews and at those interviews was more confident. I was
able to sell my abilities of team work
and motivation througt talking about
the project. I now work full time a my
local supermarket.”
John Pasthletwaite
12/10/2008 to 26/10/2008, Bulgaria.
“This was one of the best things I had
experienced in my life as it gave me a better
outlook on life and gave me real satisfaction
helping others. It was a very powerful experience and leaded to further volunteer placements in the same year- 10 weeks in Nepal
and 4 weeks in Italy and all this was down
to the 2 weeks I had in Bulgaria.
It was fantastic experience.”
John Norman Abbott
12/01/2009 to 26/01/2009
“It was a big step for me as I am battling with drug
addiction but I have to say the people at BET and RV
Projects were fantastic in their support of me. I have
since moved out from my parents and I am living independently and I have went back to college.”
Karen Johnson , participant
”I was really rewarding seeing a project like the
one that we did take shape, and then seeing the
appreciation that the kids and the teachers had
for what we had done was amazing. Bulgaria
was the first country I had ever been to abroad
and that trip has definitely made me want to see
more of the world”
Nick Clough,
04/09/2008 to 17/09/2008,
Team challenge in Bulgaria.
How good was the project for me?
“This experience really built my confidence and
helped me to appreciate working especially to help
other people. This will help me with my work life
because it gave me a real drive to work hard and
succeed. For the same reason it will also help my
personal life” Billy Kilpatrick,
04/09/2008 to 17/09/2008
“I now work with people with learning
difficulties and this project helped me
realize that was what I wanted to do”
Kathryn Towle, 12.08.2010
“I will never forget my time
in Bulgaria, it will always
be a part of my life I will be
proud of it.” John Pulford,
12/10/2008 to 26/10/2008
“Its allowed me to experience a different way
of life and learn new skills. It will be a lasting
memory that will help me when applying for
jobs or other opportunities. Its opened my
eyes for the better” Mark Gregory, 9/9/2010
“It has made a huge difference on my life.
It’s helped me make up my mind on what I
want to do in my future.” Sean Mccafferts,
23/01/2010
How I spend my time in Bulgaria, what I learnt?
“I am so happy with all my
certification that I gained. I was
rather surprised of how many
certificates that were given to
me. Am so thrilled of all of them
and seen that people have saw
that hard work that me and the
group have done. Am so grateful for my certificates.” Jodie
Gardiner 09/09/2010
“I feel it was good to gain
the certification as most
volunteer places don’t
recognize what you do
and it made me proud
of what I have achieved
from doing this project”
Sarah- Louise Kennedy
9/9/2010
“I really enjoyed the experience it gave me the confidence to apply for work
away from where I live
which is quite remote. I now
work and live at an outdoor
centre in the Lake District”
Tony Swales, 11.08.2010
“I have learnt a lot of Bulgarian language. It has boosted my
confidence. Learnt to work better
as part of a team and individually
on my own initiative. I have learnt
about different cultures and ways
of life. All of the above and more
will help me a lot while seeking
employment. I also understand
more about …”
Jason Brown, 04/09/2008 to
17/09/2008, Bulgaria
“The Certification I received
have been an essential part
of my CV and enabled me to
access future training, personal
development and employment
since the project. They are also
a reminder of the work I did
and all I accomplished”
Rebecca Britton
20/06/2009 to 04/07/2009
“I feel I learnt how to work as
a team and was able to meet
and interact with some amazing
people espetially the children
at the orphanage. I feel very
honoured to have had this opportunity and will take away a
greatest knowledge and understanding of volunteer work and
project” Leanne Crow 9/9/2010
“I gained a lot of things from
this project- confidence in
my own abilities to work
away from home, since
returning to the UK I have
had employment which has
involved staying away from
home”
David Coleman,
13.08.2010
PARTNERS
7
Cosvitec- description
FUTURE IS YOUR MIND
Cosvitec University and Enterprise is a “società consortile a responsabilità limitata”; it was born as a Consortium in 2001, through the evolution of the Territorial Interest Group (GIT) Agrimed, promoted and
made up in collaboration with MIUR and University of Naples “Federico II”.
The University participates to the Socrates/Erasmus exchange programme and has signed five hundred
and six agreements with more than three hundred universities and colleges throughout Europe. These
agreements have so far, allowed nearly 3,500 students to attend courses abroad. These courses were
mainly in Engineering and Technology, Language and Philological Science as well as Medicine. At the same
time the Federico II University has received approximately 1,600 foreign students from all over the world.
Our collaboration with University, Research Centers, High-Tech Companies and SMEs has the specific aim
to offer technological transfer services to sustain innovation, but also to develop and manage Reasearch
an High Education projects at national and international level.
Cosvitec is improving the quality of life by promoting technology transfer and scientific cooperation.
TRAINING
Over the years, COSVITEC has helped to enhance its presence in the area, creating a Network of Associations of Employers, public bodies, companies and schools, serving as a reference point for universities,
business, governments, students and professionals. The consortium operates successfully in the following
areas:
•Higher Education and Master
•Scientific and technological
•Technology consulting and management
•International cooperation for the transfer of science and technology
•Chemical-physical and microbiological
Cosvitec is involved in the Regional Project “PAS”- funded by European Commission.
The specific aim of this project is to organize vocational training courses for dropout young students in
order to increase their level of employability.
Our programme is developed by a team of expert teachers and psychologists and it is focused on professional, technical and soft skills required by the labour market.
USEFUL LINKS
FACEBOOK GROUP
FACEBOOK PAGE
COSVITEC MUTUAL ASSISTANCE
COSVITEC TRANSFER OF INNOVATION
Set up in 2007, Magenta Projects has two distinct areas of expertise; working with companies to develop
and deliver corporate responsibility and philanthropy programmes; and with charities and not-for-profits,
maximizing revenues and creating social impact.
Magenta’s focus is to encourage companies, individuals and communities to work, together and separately, to deliver tangible business results and positive social change.
Magenta Projects offers a combination of skills and experience; creativity and flair balanced by pragmatism
and attention to detail. We do strategy, thinking and implementation, drawing on our collective expertise.
About Magenta
From developing capital campaigns, to creating CR strategies for a FTSE 100 company,
Magenta has worked hard to deliver excellence for all our clients, large and small. All our work has come
through personal referrals.
Magenta is able to call upon on the expertise of a wide range of experts. Magenta is set up with a view
to offering clients a cost-effective and efficient operation using her networks of contacts and associates
built up over 13 years in fundraising and charity management, and another 12 years in corporate communications.
Operating a virtual office they tailor the team to the task at hand. Their network includes fundraisers, CSR
experts, researchers and strategists; social media and digital experts; web, brand and communications
gurus.
The things Magenta does:
Social impact;
Managing risk;
Enhancing reputation.
For Charities and not-for-profits Magenta’s services include:
Fundraising audit and strategy development
Volunteer leadership fundraising
Designing charity partnerships
Corporate partnerships strategy and planning
Capital and revenue campaign strategy
Organisational review, training and development
Social impact audit and benchmarking
T.C.
İZMİT BELEDİYESİ
IZMITMUNICIPALITY
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND EU UNIT Izmit Municipality undertakes all local services effectively, efficiently and in harmony within its
boundaries with its 980 municipality personnel.
As a centre City municipality, it has several functions and responsibilities in substructure, superstructure, health and environment. Izmit Municipality prepares many projects related education,
culture, sports for women, youth, disabled and disadvantaged people, children as a target group
to ensure realization of all kinds developmental implementation.
Izmit Municipality is the first municipality in its region, hosting and sending volunteers under European Volunteer Service Program and develops projects related to Youth Program. Izmit Municipality representatives also participated many international EU projects all around Europe and invited
over 50 organizations to Izmit in several projects.
In all over Turkey, Izmit Municipality is one of 2 municipalities that is local relay of Eurodesk Turkey. As International Relations and EU Unit, we are organizing several conferences and trainings
for young people to let them know about European opportunities. Last year more than 2.000
young people benefited from these activities.
Izmit Belediyesi Dış İlişkiler ve AB Birimi
Eurodesk Türkiye Yerel Temas Noktası
Izmit Municipality International Relations and EU Unit
Eurodesk Turkey Local Relay
Omeraga mah. Abdurrahman Yuksel Cad.
Belsa Plaza No:9 Izmit 41300
Kocaeli TURKEY
Tel: +90 262 318 00 00 / 1454
Fax: +90 262 318 00 36
URL: www.izmit.bel.tr
BHAGAVAT EDUCATIONAL TRUST BULGARIA
Bhagavat Educational Trust – Bulgaria is the Eastern European
fully endorses Bhagavat UK’s ethos and ‘Modus-operandi’.
Management, resources
Africa, Eastern Europe
and expertise are provided by
and
UK.
Since 2007 Bhagavat Bulgaria
headquarters for
Bhagavat UK
Bhagavat Educational Trust – UK. Bhagavat Bulgaria
who has a wealth of experience in running similar projects in
EVS (European Voluntary Service) organisation and has the potential to host
We have more recently hosted hundreds of participants
“Living and Learning Abroad” projects (since 2008).
is an accredited
participants and provide positive work and training activities for them.
companying people in the framework of our
Bhagavat Bulgaria
India,
foreign
and ac-
(as previously mentioned the network was
“Help Today Hope Tomorrow” project), where the placements of the Leonardo Mobility participants are being hosted. Institutions include orphanages, social homes for disabled children, half-way homes and sheltered accommodations for youth
at risk, day centres for children with learning disabilities, etc.
works with an extensive network of social institutions across the country
established during the earlier
The
main aim of the placement in
Personal
- soft skills
Bulgaria (as
indeed in
Turkey)
is to develop the participants in
3
main domains:
and social abilities, through team work and benefiting a marginalized group in the hosting country, but also through the
cultural experience of living and learning abroad.
and entrepreneurship are
nurtured.
Through the establishment of Social Enterprises in the hosting countries business skills
Academic
- through the recognized qualifications they can complete as an added value while on placement, which awards credits and is very often
the first step on the academic ladder for most of the participants. The qualification is very practical and orientated towards employability
and life skills. It is important to realize that the qualification is actually based on the placement activitie i.e. it requires the young people
to record their experiences while in Bulgaria, but also what they learned during preparation activities, etc.
Vоnational
- tasks and work in the social institution to be undertaken by the group of participants are identified prior to the group arriving, taking into account their individual needs and abilities and conveyed to the Accompanying People Should the accompanying people not have
the relevant experience in the specific vocational field - a skilled person is identified in the host country to teach the participants the
necessary skills.
Most
of the orphanages already have vocational workshops, implemented through previous projects
participate in artistic works, handmade crafts
&
-
we encourage the participants to
other vocational activities including painting on silk/scarf, pottery
&jewelry.
The training content also is aimed at benefiting the host country marginalised group – should the orphanage for instance require tiling
– the participants are trained accordingly, then encouraged to undertake a “course project” – for instance tile a corridor, demonstrating
their new skill. Other typical projects have included painting and decorating, plastering, gardening and landscaping, masonry and carpentry, laying floors, producing playground equipment, etc.
An
– where the young people explore topics such as career progression, job
CV writing and how to be successful on a job interview, presentation skills; but also work on their desired next steps after
placement, which are regularly being followed up in post project phase.
important element of the project is also the careers seminar
searching,
the
The above is complimented by cultural visit and excursions to interesting and unique places (i.e. the UNESCO World Heritage Site –
Rila Monastery in Bulgaria), language training and orientation exercises, budgeting and managing own and other people’s funds, being
charge of the whole project for a day.
We
believe it is the combination of all these that make the placement a real
“preparation
for life and work” experience, boosting their
self-confidence and esteem, equipping them for the challenges they will face on their return.
contact details:
e-mail: [email protected]
Phone: (+359 2) 8577188
in

“ ” Bhagavat Educational Trust (BET)

Transcription

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