How a Boarding House in Rotterdam provides a
Base to learn Independence

by J.M. Kurvers

The economic climate in the Netherlands might give one the impression that the country’s youth are swimming in money and material happiness. In fact the opposite is probably true. It seems that many are drowning in their problems and ending up on the streets. According to the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport, there are some 5,000 homeless and at-risk youths between the ages of 17 and 23 on the streets of Holland. The complex problems these youngsters are facing cannot be solved by housing alone, which is why Pension Maaszicht offers them - in addition to a bed, bath and bread - guidance and aftercare : in short, “a place to live, learn and work”.

5,000 Street Youths in the Netherlands

Pension Maaszicht opened its doors in April 1994. For many years, the initiators of this boarding house were trying to have young drifters recognised as a specific target group. According to the Government, homeless youths were only seen sporadically. The problem is that these young people are not recognised as vagrants on the street. Vagrant youths wear normal clothes and don't walk around pushing a shopping cart full of belongings in front of them. However, during the last ten years, the Government has changed its opinion. In 2004 an official count of young drifters was made at the request of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport. The researchers came to a total number of 5,000, though those working in the field regard that estimate as being too low.

Help from Within

In the meantime, Pension Maaszicht has become a leading institute. Many initiators from other towns - even from other European countries - consult with Maaszicht about how they regulate their aid and guidance. It is important that help comes from the inside and that the routes these youngsters follow take place outside. The social workers are part of the Pension’s staff and work in the same building where the thirty boys and girls live. Those providing assistance from the outside (for instance, psychologists and consultants for alcohol and drug abuse) come to the boarding house for individual consultations. A large educational institution provides a schooling co-ordinator weekly.

Former Monastery

The boarding house was actually a monastery in former times, and dates from the beginning of the 20th century. Situated in a residential neighbourhood near the Central Station, the building was purchased specifically for this purpose and is rented by the social housing organisation, Volkshuisvestingsgroep Woonbron. By doing so, this organisation is making an important contribution to a better future for these problem youths.

Spread over five floors, the boarding house has thirty rooms of varying sizes, which means that the residents can progress to larger rooms during their stay. The showers and toilets are located in the halls. The daily meals are prepared by cooks in the large kitchen. The residents can spend their free time in the enormous living room, which is equipped with a television, sofas and table tennis and football tables. During the weekly happy hour, the bar is always open. During the day, it is rather quiet in the building - just about all the residents have a day job or study.

Young Drifters

Studies have shown that Dutch youths typically prefer to live with their parents until the age of 21. They want a home - a safe and secure place where they can be themselves. However, life turned out a little different for the children who are now living in Maaszicht. Some were placed in homes at a young age because of their parents’ incompetence (emotional and physical negligence) and had to move from home-to-home from then on.

There are also those who were sexually abused and those who, because of their own behaviour and shortcomings, became unmanageable and therefore could not be placed anywhere and eventually ended up on the street. All these youths have one thing in common: a very complex set of problems.

At Maaszicht, every youngster has his or her own mentor and an individual guidance plan. Together they look for the right schooling or job. The mentor focuses on things such as their emotional and physical health, control of finance (debts), the settlement of judicial cases, the building up of a normal social network and eventually their own housing.

Millers Restaurant

The objective of Pension Maaszicht is to find the best way for each resident youth to spend his or her day. Holding on to a job is often more difficult than finding one. It’s a question of trial and error. To help achieve this objective Maaszicht manages a project known as “Kijk naar mij en wees trots” (look at me and be proud).

Started in 2000, the project is located in the chic Millers Restaurant, where various boys and girls are able to gain working experience under the supervision of the professional restaurant team. An upmarket restaurant with a broad clientele was a conscious choice. All sorts of people come here to enjoy the French-Mediterranean fare.

The Future

The average length of time the youths stay at Pension Maaszicht is nine months. During the last three years, 70 percent of the young people who left the boarding house were equipped to deal with life. They are able stand on their own two feet and are putting down roots. However, after leaving the boarding house, the trick for them is to be able to keep going and keep their heads above water. The tools, and how to use them, have all been given. How they handle them from there on is up to them.

But being a novice swimmer doesn’t mean you have to drown, because you can always use a life jacket. That is why the management of Pension Maaszicht would like to extend and improve the aftercare by setting up its own “room and training” project. The objective is to help the boarding house graduates to become familiar and comfortable with living independently and slowly let go of the care which they have relied on at Maaszicht. Initial contacts have already been made with social housing institutions and local authorities to establish this scheme.