KRIŠTOF project on employment and  integration of homeless.
Project has been supported from EU funds.

Reasons of difficulties to employ homeless people.

On client's side

• Consequences of life in the street:

    -   addiction and diseases
    -   long-term unemployment and  loss of  working habits                              
    -   problems of internal character: long-term loss of safety and sureness, psychological frustration and stress, repeating failure, weak self-confidence, resignation and low motivation to work following from that

• Debts
• Low level of education or practice
• Uncertain lodging (problems of hygiene)
• Criminal record
• Age and health condition

On employers' side

• Prejudices: - unwillingness to employ homeless people
• Unpreparedness of employers to employ socially disadvantaged groups

• Default on laws - illegal work
• prejudices from the side of work team

Starting points of the project

• Homelessness is a complex problem

and most of homeless suffer from various combination of problems
Initial problem : problem to keep a job - many homeless, who succeed to get a job come back

and at the same time

   In order to prevent mutual recurrence of problems, it is necessary to sort out basic problems simultaneously

1. Long-term individual social work

• Limited number of clients: one social worker works profoundly with 10 clients
• for minimum 6 months up to several years, according to the need of client and continues after his successful employment as well
• he makes up a plan, set reachable objectives and leads them to strengthen their own capacity to sort out their problems
• Cooperation with other services or institutions

2. Complex offer of services

• Protected lodging program - sure and adequate  lodging (lodging house, flat)
• Protected employment programme - work skills aquirement (protected workshops, other form of work)
• Overcoming barrier programme - social skills aquirement (trainings)
• Preventive programme - support of employed client´s socialization and prevention of return to the street

Number of participating clients

• 70 clients participated for 2 years, whom 3 social workers worked with profoundly
• More problems at a time were solved with 60 of them
• During the project common consultancy was provided for other clients of Proti prúdu NGO 

The way of client selection into the project

1. In 2 phases through selective procedure (like at a job – precondition for high motivivation

2. Through applications for housing benefit 

The most frequent services provided in Krištof project:

• Protected employment, or  job procurement (provided to 30 out  of 51 clients)
• Protected lodging – assistance at lodging through benefit of  2000 Sk and lodging procurement in lodging house , in later phase  of the project in a flat (pprovided to 34 clients out of 51)
• Social welfare (social befenits, pensions...) ( provided to 21 clients out of 51 )
• Provision for papers (provided to 12 clients out of 51)
• Health problems and addiction assistance  (provided to 31 out  of 51 clients)
• Assistance  to personal and family problem solution (provided to 25 out  of 51 clients)
• Solicitorship (provided to 14 clients out of z 51)
• On average more than 3 services have been provided at a time.

Result of the project:
Out of 60 clients who were worked with profoundly and were provided multi-bed assistance, currently 20 clients have been employed

• 19 out of them  work 3 and more months
• 11 out of them  work 6 and more months
• 4 out of them  work 1 year and more