ALL INCLUSIVE – Leonardo da Vinci International
collaboration for promoting social inclusion
III
Meeting – 06/09 june 2012 – Baraolt
Laura Ház Baraolt – Daily care centre for disabled
children and young adults
Claudia Piovano visited the center Laura Ház
in Baraolt. Laura Ház is non-profit organization.
It is accredited at the regional level for the
activity whit the disabled.
It is funded in part by public funds and
partly self-financing, and supported by a Dutch non-profit organization.
Working at the center five people, including a
psychologist.
Operators are involved in fundraising,
administrative management, assistance to the disabled, laboratories, kitchen,
meetings whit partents.
A good network of volunteer support center,
for example, there is a minibus service to take users from home to downtown and
back run by volunteers.
The center consist in a small house with a
garden, in the center of Baraolt, accessible only on foot or by car.
It consists of a room to the laboratory (frame
and sewing), a room for interviews and individual development for individuals
or small groups, a small kitchen and services (unstructured for the disabled).
There is a small laundry room.
There is some sort of fitness room in a
separate building in the garden.
The garden is equipped with games and an area
- under construction - to carry out activities.
The house is well maintained, colorful and
comfortable although small for the number of people who attend.
The users are young adults and adults with
mental disability who can not attend school, or adults who are most in school
age (there is no age-limit). At the moment 15 people attending the center.
In Romania it is not expected to be integrated
in school for students with disability.
Users attending the center during the day
(8.00-14.00), only in the school-time. The center is close in the holidays.
The aim of the center is working on the
autonomy of people and develop their skills.
In cases where it is possible Laura Ház
organize paths for entering the labour market in companies in the territories and in
nonprofit organizations.
For example, a person working at a second
hands store as a clerk.
Operators assist these users even when
attending more the center, in an indirect way.
The small size of the city of Baraolt where
relationships are very narrow, making possible this continuous contact between
the center operators, their users and the family and social context of the
user.
The workshops are very focused on crafts and artistics
works. Operators have a great imagination and invent constantly new projects.
In particular, in the sewing pillows are made
with reused materials and fabrics with hand loom.
In the laboratory the atmosphere is very
positive and calm, working in a team with the background music.
Disabled people have a life apart from their
peer, Laura Ház looking for some opportunities to create this contact (for
example, participated in an international youth exchange, organized a fashion
show at a school in Baraolt).
The center collaborates with other similar
centers of the enlarged territory.
Special school – Saint George, Cosvana
Claudia Piovano visited the Special School located
in the city of Saint George, in the Cosvana district, Romania.
Were founded in 1980. It is funded by Cosvana
district.
120 young people with mental disability from
all over the district attend to school, are placed in classes based on age and
ability. The admission is based on an examination by a commission of medical
doctors and psychologists, and the staff kept coming to assess the development
and iprogressi and decide which are the activities and programs suitable for
everyone.
The staff is composed by psychologists, speech
therapists, physiotherapists.
Two
teachers supervise the children in the special classes.
The school does only a little part of work in collaboration with others public
schools, more collaboration there is for younger children in preschool age.
There aren’t
possibilities to integrate young people with disabilities in regular public
schools.
Is not available a bus service, families need
to take the kids.
The property is beautiful. It is a renovated
villa with a beautiful garden around. It is equipped with many classrooms, gyms
for rehabilitation, bathroom, kitchen and mensa. The classrooms are bright and
clean and adequate for wheelchairs. There is no elevator.
The aim of the school is: schoolar instruction,
support the development of motor ability, and social insertion of young people
in society.
There are educational programs and rehabilitation
programs and laboratory such dance,
music and art.
There is a completely equipped for young
people to live in the center (a student residence) at the upper floor. It is
very complete (bedrooms, bathrooms)and nice but unfortunately not used because
there is no funding for staff.
Diakonia Írisz Ház Sepsiszentgyörgy – Daily care
center for disabled people
Ádám Fekete
visited the center Diakonia Íirsz Ház, a daily care center in the town
of Sepsiszentgyörgy, is frequented by people of a large territory around the
city.
The centre is funded by the state, is financed
by foreign sponsors (German, Austrian and Dutch) and from self-financing (sale
of handicrafts products by the users).
The building is modern and nice, has one
floor, is large and has a garden.
There are offices, workshops and warehouses.
There is a shop to sell used clothes.
There are also rooms for rent.
Most of the structure is accessible to the
handicapped in wheelchairs, but not all, for example, the shop no.
The aim of the center is allow disabled people
to work and insert the disabled into the labor market.
The users work in handcrafts laboratories (
whit wood, textiles, gardening etc..)under the guidance and observation of
social workers, who seek to identify areas of possible development for
everyone.
The staff is composed by administrative
employees, psychologists, nurses, social workers and teachers and supporter for
the manual works.
The staff take a lot of energy and passion to
his work, has a lot of creativity and innovative spirit. The atmosphere is
serene and pleasant in laboratories. Unfortunately there is not possibility (as
in the other services visited) for integration of people with disabilities and
their peers.
„Cimbora“ – kinder garden
Ádám Fekete visited the kinder garden Cimbora
in Baraolt.
The school is funded by the municipality,
which covers only the staff’s salaries. The other costs are covered by private
sponsors and a little part from family of children.
The kinder garden is composed by 10 groups,
some group is active from 8 am to 1 pm and somefrom 8 am to 5 pm. Each group has a room. There are folding beds
for sleep time, tables and chairs for the activities. In the room there are
areas for games and toys that are given to children by teachers.
In the room the children play sleep and eat.
The rooms are quite gandi and furnishings and
sufficient clearances.
There is also one garden with games for
children.
For the standard groups the ratio number of teacher-number
of children is quite low, but the staff are friendly, and the atmosphere
positive.
Is given much space to the manual laboratory,
creative: teachers conducts very well and whit a lot of immagination children
to produce small works. It is interesting the use of natural materials.
In total more than 200 children attend the
school, including a group (currently 7) mentally disabled.
Almost the totality of disabled children with
disabilities are in a separate group, followed by a staff of 2 educators and 1
psychologist.
For the childrens in special group is prevue
also the therapy: there is a therapy room for play therapy.
Caring for children with disabilities is good
but there is no integration with other children even if one of the objectives
of the school is to train children to overcome cultural barriers.
Final
Thoughts:
The centers that we visited are for the most
part equipped, in beautiful buildings, renovated, have staff who work with
passion even though they often do not have a specific training.
Children and young people whit disabilities are
assisted with care, at the same time for the personal and social development
and rehabilitation, but unfortunately from the point of view of integration in
society there are few opportunities.
