Good mood, mulled wine and delicious food, made by the young people at the observed home, and catering from HOPe Restaurant welcomed the guests at the celebration.

Stoyan Stoyanov, Manager of “House of Opportunity” Sofia shared more about the results from the past twelve months and the goals that the team has set for the future, while the ex residents of the social service, who now live independently, shared their experience during and after the observed home.

Today we celebrated the first anniversary of “House of Opportunity” Varna observed home. This is the latest fifth house that the “Foundation for Social Change and Inclusion” has opened as part of its programme for young people, grown up without parental care.

As the other four, the observed home offers more than housing tp the adolescents. The appartment provides crucial support in finding and keeping an appropriate job, building a healthy social environment, gaining essential social, domestic and work skills, that the young people haven’t been able to develop at the institution for children.

Here is what Boryana Madzhova, the coordinator of the “House of Opportunity” programme at FSCI shares about her work with the young people, the goal of the programme and the feeling of being part of the positive change for tens of young people, leaving social institutions every year.

“A year ago we opened “House of Opportunity” Varna. This was another serious challenge for the foundation in its noble cause for equal and dignified life for young people, leaving institutions for children deprived of parental care or foster care. The “House” gave a new chance to some of the hundreds of disadvantaged young people to take their life in their own hands and to grow up as contributing individuals and citizens.

The efforts of the team for prevention of social exclusion and involvement in different criminal structures have always been in the focus of our work.

Thus far, 12 young people have gone through “House of Opportunity” Varna and at the moment 5 of them continue developing their social and work skills under the roof of the observed home.

Apart from having an expert approach, the FSCI family and the teams working directly with the young people also put heart and soul into their work. They go together with the young people through their daily challenges of patience, through change, happiness and disappointments. Together we all continue learning to listen, to understand, to accept the others the way that they are.

We encounter difficulties on many levels – finding acceptance and understanding from the neighbours, patience from the employers, finishing education. What proves to be a serious challenge for us once more, is confronting the public attitudes and raising the sensitivity of the people around us towards the problems of the young people in the programme. There are also financial challenges, since the foundation relies entirely on support from partners and individuals for its financing.

We receive support from the local social structures and the help of employers and (un)ordinary people who reach out to us, ready to get involved in our cause depending on their own availabilities and understanding– with job offers, donations, but above all with empathy and acceptance.

However, the good results and the positive stories and cases are worth the worries and the efforts. I think that it is exactly here where the key for success is hidden in this work – in perceiving even the smallest things as accomplishments and in making young people believe in themselves and continue walking their path towards their better future.

Because this work is a mission and the boys and girls, who have grown up without the warmth of a real home or without parental love and support deserve to be given trust and a chance. Because the way public attitudes portray the young people is not a result of the young people’s personal choice, but a consequence of circumstances which don’t depend on them. This is something that we should all comprehend.

You can find more about the “House of Opportunity” programme here .

The first working day of the Svetogled public support centre was traditionally welcomed – with sprinkled water for good luck, plenty of flowers and hope for an even more successful upcoming year for the Roma children and their parents.

We invited Anna Ilieva who is the coordinator of the Early Years Education Programme in vulnerable communities to talk about the last two years and the future of the Svetogled centre.

“It’s difficult for me to summarise what we have achieved during the last two years. So many things have happened – we opened the Centre based on the Early Years Education Programme in vulnerable communities, we have worked to promote it in the local community, particularly among parents and families who really need this service. These past two years we have worked with two groups of children – one for each year. The work is carried out according to the approved programme by the Ministry of Education and Science and follows all the educational activities set out in the curriculum.

We are proud to announce that for the last year 11 children went on to attend school, which means that we managed to motivate not only the children, but their parents as well, which is essential for the enrolling process.

Not everything is measured by numbers. For us it is extremely important to see positive change in the children, in their behaviour, their knowledge and their language skills. Most of the children come to us with serious behavioural problems and no knowledge of the Bulgarian language. Thanks to the work of the teacher, the children have developed a lot of their skills and parents have realised the importance of education. Indeed, the parents see the change in their children and feel very proud of them and their achievements.

The tasks of the centre are numerous and they might be quite ambitious, but we are working on community development and focus on school dropout prevention. We help build trust and strengthen the relationship between families in the community, organise local activities and campaigns, support people when they need assistance in preparing different types of documentation, organise events for the children and their families in the Centre. Most of our work is done on the ground when we travel locally to establish dialogue between the community and the local institutions.

Even though the classes didn’t begin on 15 September, the spirit of the first school day was in the air and excited both children and staff.

The public support centre has a very important mission – here children get the opportunity to adapt to the learning process so that when they start school they can be on the same level as their peers of Bulgarian origin. In the Centre the children learn about good behaviour, healthy habits as well as what it means to be part of a team. The Centre even tries to lay the foundation for their cultural interest in music and arts.

This year we have two more goals beyond working with young children – deepening our work with parents from the Roma minority as well as enrolling children of school age.

For the fifth consecutive year, the passion for football gathered the young people from the Houses of Opportunity, the team of FSCI, young inmates from the youth prison in Boychinovtsi as well as volunteers.

Due to the extremely high temperatures, the match took place under the shade of the tress, very near to the building where the young inmates live and study. The audience consisted of the youth from the youth prison, the staff of the institution, members of FSCI and volunteers.

The match lasted an hour and a half, and the three teams needed to play against each other in order to see which one is the best. Even though the young guys from the youth prison were very talented, the winner of this year’s football match was the FSCI team.

In order for this event to take place, FSCI relied entirely on the donations from Bulgarian citizens. The amount which was collected was 1,177 lv. was used to cover the expenses for food for the young people from the Houses of Opportunity as well as for some presents for the inmates: school material, packaged food and cosmetics.

One goal of the “Football Summer in Boychinovtsi” initiative is to show young people deprived of their freedom that there are other alternatives to the criminal life, that they are not alone and forgotten, despite the wrong choices they made in the past, that there are people who are willing to help and support them once they leave the institution if they wish to change their lives. The other goal of the initiative is to provide opportunity for young people from the House of Opportunity Programme, managed by FSCI, to see the youth prison from the inside, to have a feel for it and hopefully to prevent them of ending up in one of those places in future.

How can you possibly manage to build a home when you have never had one?

30 young adults succeeded, thanks to the programme House of Opportunity and text messages from thousands of people.

In each House of Opportunity there is one room for girls and one room for boys

Close your eyes. Now imagine that you are very young again and you are at home. Can you smell the aroma at home- the combination between your mum’s pancakes, your dad’s aftershave, the flowers in the garden?

Now imagine what your life would you be like without this aroma – how would you live without this place that smells of home?

Well, this is the life for hundreds of young adults who leave institutions for children, deprived of parental care.

Abandoned by their own parents, the only aroma they could smell throughout all their childhood was the one of the social institution – a place that never felt like real home for them.

However, when they turn 18 they are expected to leave and suddenly become independent and able to create their own home.

How do you create a home when you have never had one before?

The people from the FSCI team are looking to answer this question. It gives young adults who are leaving social institutionsa chance to live in one of the family-style homes all around the country until they get more independent, finish their education and find a job.

The people from FSCI insist that this is the only way to stop the vicious circle of abandoned children who grow up and in turn abandon their own children.

First attempts at cooking

In the House of Opportunitythe young adults learn how to cope with life after the social institution. They stay in the flats for two years while receivingtraining and support in finding and keeping a job, developing work habits, personal finance and household management, adequate care for personal health, developing social skills and skills to create long-term positive relationships.

The aim of all of this is that the young people can start an independent and fulfilling life with the help of the FSCI team which fully supports the young adults until they leave the flats.

That’s why it is not surprising that DMS DOM is one of the most popular text messages received by the number 17777 and the House of Opportunity Programme is also one of the campaigns with the highest number of regular donors for 2016. This is thanks to the support of VIVACOM and their campaign Operation “Yellow Coins”, which has supported the House of Opportunity Programme for the last three years.

Within the framework of the campaign, FSCI and VIVACOM managed to raiseover BGN 170 000 in the form of financial resources, products and volunteers to support the programme.

With the financial support two new Houses were opened – in Sofia and Varna, which provide five places for young adults who have left social institutions.

Thanks to the generosity of the thousands of people who supported the campaign, these young adults along with the other 25 young people across the country are supported by the Foundation and will get a chance for a fresh start in life.

Young people, who have been raised in institutions without parental care, were given the opportunity to gain essential financial knowledge.

The education is part of the combined project “Adopt a house” between The Foundation for Social Change and Inclusion (FSCI) and Experian – the global leader in information supply, analytical decisions and marketing.

Twenty-five current residents of the House of Opportunity Programme, as well as former residents and vulnerable young people from different social institutions, took part in the training in Sofia. The interactive training, which aims to raise the financial awareness of the young people, was led by volunteers of Experian and some of the questions that were discussed were: when is it good to get loans; why do people get loans; who is eligible for a loan; what credit accounts exist and what are the conditions of getting one. The following topics were discussed in detail: interest rates, credit fees, credit cards, monthly interest as well as monthly installments.

Special attention was paid to different marketing techniques, which are often used to attract more customers. The staff explained what the meaning is of interest free rate for the first 3 months, credit and debit cards, quick money withdrawals, personal data, savings accounts, the difference between banks and financial institutions which are not banks.

The young people were given the chance to become bankers who needed to decide which of the clients are trustworthy to receive a loan, based on their history.

There were plenty of discussions at the end and some of the young adults shared their personal experience with various financial institutions.

“Adopt a house” project

This project is the first joint project between Experian, a global information services group and the non governmental organization Foundation for Social Change and Inclusion.

Experian is getting involved by financing one House of Opportunity, which is a small group home for young adults, who have grew up in institutions. Thanks to the joint initiative, the Foundation will be able to partially cover the running costs of the first House of Opportunity in Sofia for a period of one year. This initiative will help support six young adults; it will also pay for two training sessions for 30 beneficiaries from vulnerable backgrounds.

In addition to this financial support, the Foundation, which has been working with young care leavers since 2008, will rely on its partnership with Experian in the form of mentoring and volunteering.

The House of Opportunity network, managed by FSCI, not only provides young people with a place to live after they leave the institution, but also gives them invaluable support by helping them to look for jobs, to develop social and working skills as well as any additional skills to cope with real life.

FSCI is responsible for a network of five Houses across the country- Varna,Burgas,Ruse and Sofia (Druzhba and Lyulin).

More than 130 young adults have been benefited over the years form the House of Opportunity Programme, which started in 2008. Out of all 130, 63% have started work, 27% have kept their work for more than six months, 74% have improved their social skills, 25% have improved their level of education, 60% have built up positive relationships with members of the local community thanks to the programme, 78% have a place of their own to live after the programme, 100 % have preserved or improved their health.

You can get involved too! The information is on our FSCI website or you can email us at office@fcibulgaria.org or call the FSCI team on +359 878 664851.

60 participants from all across the Balkans came together to learn more about Inspiring civil society for good during this year’s Network Conference in Sofia. Everybody enjoyed spending time with people who share a similar vision and values about social change and inclusion.

Highlights of this year’s conference were interviews with former House of Opportunity residents, contributions by Bulgarian business people on why they support FSCI and what they look for in NGOs, and stories about the work of FSCI’s partners from all across the Balkans. The workshops provided a good opportunity to ask questions, exchange ideas and experiences and share good practice with each other.

Find out more about FSCI’s Development Programme here.

The national donation campaign, created by VIVACOM Fund, helps young adults without parental care

VIVACOM’s 2016 “Yellow Coins” campaign collected 92,629.96 lev for the work of FSCI, including support from over 35 business and media partners. The campaign also received the personal endorsement of the legendary Jordan Jovchev and Beloslava – they became ambassadors for the campaign, attracting thousands of people to its cause. The funds raised will be used to create a new House of Opportunity.

At the age of 18, adolescents, who grew up in institutions or foster care, need to find a new home. Many simply have no place to go. FSCI gives them a new home through its House of Opportunity Programme (HOP). These family-type homes provide safe places for young people, helping them to learn to live independently and adapt to lifeafter state or foster care. Specialist staff at each HOP support the young people – helping them to work through their individual development plans, continue their education or search for employment.

VIVACOM’s “Yellow Coins” campaign has been supporting HOP for three years. Thanks to donations, received from the public and businesses by the campaign in 2014 and 2015, the number of HOPs, provided by FSCI, has grown to five, with two in Sofia and one each in Gabrovo, Burgas and Ruse. The funds raised from the campaign in 2016 will be invested in the creation of another HOP in the city of Varna.

“Yellow Coins” is a national donation campaign and was created by VIVACOM Fund in 2010. The funds are raised in VIVACOM shops and partner outlets and through text giving– providing for a highly accessible campaign. VIVACOM matches the amount of money donated through its stores and each partner also contributes further to the cause.

Partners ofthe 2016 campaign were Ciela, Cinelibri, Colibri, Dental Clinic Petar Duchev, DHL, Domino’s Pizza, Burger King, Grand Optics, Inmedio, KOM, Miele, Mr. Bricolage, Nike, 1 minute, Praktis, Relay, Renault-Nissan, SDI Broker, Sport Depot, Texas Chicken, Cinema Arena, Hypermarket Metro, Optics Joy, Supermarket Piccadilly, and FSCI. The campaign’s media partners contributed enormously to its success – they were Nova TV, dir.bg, Darik Radio, Radio FM +, Radio Star, magazines Elle, Journal for the woman, My child, Rosalie and Standard newspaper.

FSCI would like to say a big, big thank you to VIVACOM and its partners and to the public, who have been so generous in their support for this year’s Yellow Coins appeal!

A true celebration of good food and good causes was the theme of an event to launch FSCI’s ambitious new social enterprise – HOPe Restaurant.

The event was held on February 9, in House of Moscow in Sofia, and special guests were Her Excellency Ms. Emma Hopkins, the Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Bulgaria, and Mr. Joerg Schenk,counsellor in the Embassy of the Federal Republic Germany.

After an inspiring opening speech from Ambassador Hopkins FSCIand Rotary Club Sofia International, HOPe Restaurant’s official project partners, talked more about the concept of social business and its value to vulnerable young people and society.

After the presentations the guests had the opportunity to dive into the diverse culinary world of HOPe Restaurant, meet the young people who it supports and, of course, sample the menu!