Jongerenloket (the Youth Box, in English) aims to help young people in a situation of social vulnerability find a suitable job or education. It provides a hub of free services where people under the age of 27 can go for assistance regarding education, housing, health, entrepreneurship and other issues. The one-stop-shop concept implies that youngsters can access all of the city’s youth-related social services at one central location, thereby dramatically reducing the bureaucratic complexity from the youth’s perspective.
Impact evidence
- 36,000 youngsters have used Jongerenloket.
- 43% of them have been referred to social services, 33% back to education and 24% have found a job.
Youth can sign up for free and without the need of a prior appointment, and they are automatically assigned a coach who will conduct an intake session to identify his or her basic needs to manage the case after. Two particular tools, the self-sufficiency matrix (ZRM) and the decision tree, help youth coaches in guiding youngsters to the most appropriate project according to their situation. The ZRM is an objective instrument that measures an individual’s ability to cope with his or her own basic needs in 11 domains: finances, time management, housing, household relations, mental health, physical health, addictions, daily activities, social network, social participation, and legal issues. Once they have been referred to other programmes or services, Jongerenloket is still responsible for monitoring their progresses, through additional home visits and school presence. Interventions are considered successful when participants return to compulsory education or are engaged in work or other training activities.
Geographical scope
Estándares Upsocial
Innovación de reformulación
Evidencia prometedora
Adaptación regional
