Seddiner See starts EU-funded project to combat poverty!

Seddiner See starts EU-funded project to combat poverty!

Exciting changes are coming to the community of Seddiner See. On November 1, 2023, the new project “Strong on site – preventing poverty and strengthening youth social work” will be launched. How maz-online.de reports, the municipality is relying on a targeted development strategy to offer children and young people from backgrounds at risk of poverty new life and educational opportunities.

This exciting project is being financed by the European Union and the state of Brandenburg, with the total budget of the project being 431,878 euros. The municipality only covers 86,375 euros as its own contribution, while 80% of the costs are covered by funding - including a grant from the EU of 259,126 euros and a contribution from the state of 86,375 euros. Despite the financial concerns raised in the council, the majority voted in favor of the project with 11 votes in favor and 2 against.

Mobile youth meeting with heart

A central element of the project is the establishment of a mobile youth meeting point that will travel on wheels in Seddin and Kähnsdorf. The existing youth club “Escape” in Neuseddin is also receiving additional staff. In addition, a construction trailer will be purchased as a contact point for the young people, which they can design themselves. Flexible locations, such as the bathing meadow in Seddin or the parking lot of the boulder garden in Kähnsdorf, should be used for the activities.

The creation of two new 0.75 staff positions for youth work shows that there is also a focus on sustainable support. The idea behind it is that mobile social work provides tailor-made offers for the children and young people in the region.

Social challenges in Seddiner See

The challenges associated with poverty cannot be overlooked in Seddiner See. How agj.de confirmed in a position paper, many young people and their families in Germany live in poverty, which leads to social exclusion. In Seddiner See the numbers are alarmingly high: 22.2% of single parents and 15.1% of children under 15 are in communities of need that are entitled to citizen's benefit. At 12.7%, the rate of young people involved in juvenile court assistance cases is also above the district average, which is 4%.

The new project is seen as an important step towards specifically addressing the consequences of poverty. The AGJ also calls for a poverty-sensitive design of child and youth welfare services in order to meet the needs of those affected. The federal government is faced with the challenge of reducing the poverty rate and enabling social advancement - the Seddiner See project could be an important building block here.