Beschreibung der Einrichtung

The “AWO Refugium /Marie-Schlei-Haus” is a home for refugees in need of particular protection. It was opened in April 2013 as the first facility of this kind in Berlin.
According to Article 17 of the EU-Guidelines refugees in need of particular protection are:

• Challenged persons
• Elder persons
• Pregnant women
• Single parents with minor children
• Minors
• Persons who underwent torture, rape or other forms of physical, psychological or sexual violence
• Persons with signs of psychological problems
• Victims of human trafficking
• Victims of female genital mutilation

Our Refugium offers accommodation to 190 persons. Currently we have rooms with 2, 3 and 4 beds on 6 floors. The house is barrier-free.

Our aim is to motivate and help the refugees in their daily life with the challenges there are facing.

Currently we have a team of 5 social workers who support the residents of the Refugium in all kinds of daily and administrative matters. We can offer support in German, English, French, Arabic, Turkish, Kurdish, Serbo-Croatian, Farsi and Urdu. For our Russian residents there is an interpreter twice a week.

In General we have two main fields of action:

1) Children and Youth care.
In the Refugium live about 112 minors. They can use their own playrooms for children and young persons, community facilities like table-tennis room, garden, playground, sportgrounds, etc. Within the Refugium we offer quite a few activities and organise excursions etc. The team is supported by honorary helpers and volunteers.

One of the main focuses is to integrate the children of the refugees in normal kindergardens schools, local clubs and the neighbourhood. Here we support the parents, also with language problems etc.

2) The other field of action is the “Sozialbetreuung”, meaning Social Support.

Here we support refugees for example in the communication with the administration, we help them searching for doctors/psychologists or to find lodgings. When there are questions about their legal status, we help to find a source of advice. We support the refugees when they have to attend important or obligatory appointments in the asylum procedure.
Our intercultural team is giving advice, help and support in:

- Socio-pedagogical support
- Providing contacts in the Berlin network of support for refugees in need of particular protection
- Support in finding places in kindergardens, schools and lodgings
- Providing contacts to specialist counselling, legal advice, medical help, etc.

The European Volunteer would be involved in both fields:

Child care:
- Accompany children to their for example sport activities in the neighbourhood
- Accompany the families on excursions (f.e. cinema, stadium, etc.)
- Free time activities, sports, games, chess, scrabble, etc., music, creative offers, etc. Here we are very open to the own ideas and projects of the volunteer!

Support the social workers
- Helping to get official papers like from the registry office (Meldeamt)
- Helping out in the house at the food counter and other basic supply
- Helping in the daily work with the refugees

The European volunteer should bring:

EMPATHY- people had a hard lot in life. And the volunteer should be open to deal with new and difficult situations. To communicate with the residents of the Refugium it would be good to have a good knowledge of English. Knowledge even in Russian, Farsi, Serbo-Croatian, Arabic or Kurdish are helpful of course.

Our aim in the EVS is to learn from each other, profit from diversity, from each other’s cultures, languages, skills etc. We think that working with refugees, helping them in the daily life, is a very challenging but also important, interesting and relevant field of engagement.

Applicants can contact their EVS-sending-organization and/or please contact our EVS-coordinating partner-organization “ijgd LV Berlin e.V”. (2013-DE-119). In general the volunteer service starts each year at the 1st of September. Applications are welcome from January of the same year. The applicant will be chosen by ijgd and the hosting project together. An essential criterion is to be interested in EVS, commitment and the motivation regarding the profil of the facility project. Formal qualifications are generally not relevant. The decision will be made by the application and a personal interview by phone or video-call.