Foster home youth are so helpless when they face the forced leaving from the foster care system at the age of 18. Without family support, they cannot help asking “where can I live?”. Is there a way out?
Service Objectives
The program targets to help these youth how to face challenges of residence, self-reliant living, further education and employment, provide life nurturing and career planning to help them developing a second life, encourage them to become self-reliant youth with continuous improvement and contribute to the society.
Service Users
- Foster home youth aged 18 to 29, when they age out from foster care while returning home to live is impossible; or in lack of family or other financial support
- Have work motivation or short-term work experience, or part-time students
- Referred by institutional social workers or church staff, such as: children’s home, youth home, schools, Social Welfare Department and social welfare organization etc.
- Physically and mentally healthy, no bad habits
Service Elements
- Transitional Accommodation Support
Youth Home – The hostels include units located at the Evangel Children’s Home extended building and the co-living social housing in the community. This is provided at a low rate to support young people transit to self-reliant living. - Career Development, Counseling and Advance Training
Explore and set up employment directions, provide individual career counseling, pre-employment internship, career development workshops and industry visits, line up with different parties to explore internship and job opportunities; set up a subsidy fund for study/further education and professional training to encourage young people to actively pursue their studies, improve their work abilities, and increase employability. - Personal Growth and Self-Reliant Living Training
Provide life coaching, self-help cooking, take turns on household chores, help set savings plans; participate in growth and development groups to enhance self-awareness, interpersonal communication. - Establish Support Network
Life Coaching – Support and care groups are established for those youth by pairing up with life coach with rich life experience. They can be a role model and walk with the youth together, like a friend, for growth and development.
Extended Community Support – Be connected with community resources, expand the community network. - “Start-Up” Assistance
The project provides start-up funding to relieve needs of those youth who are in difficulties facing unstable situations. This is to help our youth, to be pillars of the future, stand firm under unstable situation during the transition.
The service brings to the youth elements such as residency, career development, knowledge, connection, support and hope, and with the funding from the community and all walks of life, homeless youth can have a bright future.
The beneficiaries enjoy also the Deprived Youth Career & Personal Development Integrated Service – “Stand by You” Project.
Growth Planning Meeting
In order to help the holistic development on life care, interpersonal relationship, career planning, etc. of those youth, ECH regularly meets with the youth and related parties when necessary, including referring social workers or pastors, guardians, family members, etc., to review the growth and development.
Service Fee
Service and accommodation fees must be paid, please ask ECH for details.
Service Period
2 to 5 years (subject to the need and individual situation).
Method of Application
- Fill in the “2nd Chance in Life -Transitional Youth Sponsorship Program” application form (and send it by post, fax or by hand with relevant documents);
- For those who are eligible to apply after preliminary assessment, the referee must also fill in the “Referral Form for Youth Accommodation” for reference and evaluation purposes;
- Please contact our Youth Home staff to get the application or referral form, fill in and send to ECH by mail, fax or by hand. The forms are in Chinese only.
Service Termination and Withdrawal
- The relevant procedures can be carried out after discussions with ECH staff and related parties. There will be a one month’s notice. (ECH reserves the final rights to terminate the service).
- Under reasonable circumstances and evaluation, both parties can apply to withdraw / terminate the service.
For inquiries about the “2ndChance in Life – Transitional Youth Sponsorship Program”, please contact us at at 2323 8224, extension 232/242.
Funding
This is a non-subvented service and relies fully on the donation support from business or other sectors from the community, and individuals to help homeless youth for a transition.