Good Practice Criteria

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

The practice is designed to be accessible for different groups of people, bringing the local community together with the migrant community to promote the development of their personal networks. It does this through a ‘matching process’, wherein mentor-mentee pairs are created on the basis of personal characteristics.

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

This practice is a good example of one that promotes the active involvement of the receiving society. It works to meet a need only partially addressed by the national reception system, involving local volunteers to do so. Its success in involving the receiving society is reflected in the ever-increasing number of locals requesting to volunteer. Feedback is collected from both mentors and mentees and taken into account in order to improve the practice, and new activities can be suggested by any pair.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

In keeping with the national reception system model, beneficiaries are at the centre of practice planning, monitoring and delivery processes and are actively involved in designing its activities.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

This practice supports refugees during a period of transition, and fills gaps in Italy’s national reception system. Refugee and migrant social networks alone are often not enough to promote an individual’s full integration, so with this in mind the practice works to offer migrants the opportunity to also develop social networks with local residents. The strengthening of personal networks with local people is seen as a way to not only improve integration, but also to promote independence and autonomy.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

✓ Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

The main objective of the practice is the strengthening of migrants’ personal networks. Adopting a long-term perspective, the practice aims not only to offer new integration opportunities but also to create favourable conditions for the initiation of independent initiatives and to prevent dependence on services.

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Ensure that services contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of migrants/migrant communities.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

– Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

The project is aligned with and designed to complement EU- and national-level policies, priorities, and strategic goals.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure that all actions are in line with international and European human rights standards.

✓ Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

– Make sure that the services offered contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of relevant institutions to support future development.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

The practice has been developed and refined through several project phases, some of them still ongoing. The first of these, Ancora, developed and tested the model in different contexts. In the following phases the model was further developed to be shared with other actors. In monitoring and evaluating the practice, CIAC uses a set of integration indicators. Mentees must fill out a questionnaire at the beginning of their involvement and at the end. Objectives, methods and strategies have been streamlined over the course of three projects: Ancora, Ancora 2.0 and Community Matching. All projects offer training activities.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

✓ Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

✓ Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

The practice has developed tools to monitor its implementation and evaluate its results, collecting data throughout the various phases as well as after completion of activities. This includes the creation of questionnaires for both mentors and mentees, which ask questions on the development of social networks and participants’ views on their own empowerment.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

− Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

– Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

The practice relies on different sources of funding. The initial phase, involving the Ancora (2016-2018) and Ancora 2.0 (2018- on going) projects, received funding from the EU’s asylum, migration and integration fund (AMIF). In the framework of these two projects, the practice was developed and tested in other areas. Aware of the relevance of the practice, CIAC is self-financing part of the activities at the same time as working towards recognition and promotion by the national reception system.

Good practice checklist

– Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

✓ Identify new EU and national funding opportunities for long-term integration (e.g., shifting from project-based initiatives that are limited in time or dependent on one (external) donor to a comprehensive, multi-year strategy based on secured funding or diverse funding opportunities).

✓ Diversify funding opportunities and identify options for self-financing through business activities or social entrepreneurship.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

The practice has developed an important partnership with UNHCR which serves to further strengthen its intervention model.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

CIAC actively contributes to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies, for example through the testing of its model in collaboration with other NGOs, the development of partnerships with relevant stakeholders such as UNHCR, and presentation of the practice at national level.

Good practice checklist

✓ Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

The project has a focus on newcomer asylum seekers, but there are no specific criteria for the involvement or recruitment of beneficiaries. Activities are designed and implemented on a case-by-case basis to allow for a particularly inclusive and adaptable approach. The project relies on a web platform – connected with a network of partner stakeholders – on which activity information is promoted and disseminated. Migrant artists have their own profile, space, and events section on this platform. Equality and diversity are key principles in the ways in which the project is designed and implemented (recruitment; operating principles; stakeholder partnerships), as well as in its intended outcomes (artistic productions; co-creation).

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

Homelands is a project that puts the receiving society at the centre of the support it delivers and the activities it runs. The overall point of the project is to connect non-migrant actors working in cultural institutions with migrant artists.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

Homelands is designed to ensure that migrant artists (beneficiaries) are the main actors in the design and implementation of project activities. Participants are not financially compensated, but involvement in the project offers them the possibility of starting or resuming their artistic career in the receiving context. Great importance is given to ensuring an inclusive and participatory feedback mechanism, in order to ensure that the voices of all the actors involved in the project are listened to.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The objectives of the project are highly relevant to the needs of migrant artists, particularly those that relate to their integration and skills development, their establishment of a social and professional network within the cultural sector. The project aims to fill certain gaps in the local and national cultural sectors of Belgium by fostering the integration – and boosting the career – of migrant artists.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

– Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

The practice is extremely relevant to the empowerment and long-term integration of migrants, particularly as newcomers struggle to forge careers in arts and culture in the post-COVID-19 context. Socially speaking, the practice can help to mainstream a positive narrative around migrants and their capacity to interact with locals and be a part of public life.

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓Ensure that services contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of migrants/migrant communities

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

– Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

Ensuring diversity in the cultural and artistic sector is a national priority for Belgium. By focusing on the individual careers of migrant artists, and targeting newcomer refugees, the project represents a step forward in the traditional policy/practice scenario in Belgium (in which there is usually strong emphasis on diversity in the cultural offer, while concrete action in support of ‘diverse’ cultural actors is weak, particularly at the grassroots level).

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure that all actions are in line with international and European human rights standards.

– Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

✓ Make sure that the services offered contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of relevant institutions to support future development.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

Homelands relies on consistent planning of training, preparation/co-creation of project activities, implementation, dissemination and evaluation. The project demonstrates clear planning of its potential impact on the target group of beneficiaries, as well as on the cultural stakeholders involved as partners and the general public. Recruitment of staff members is conducted on a case-by-case basis. One of the project’s objectives is to enhance the capability of partners to work with immigrant artists. The practices is built around an integral communications strategy.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

✓ Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

– Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

✓ Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

The practice relies on systematic monitoring of its beneficiaries. Qualitative data on implementation and impact are collected, analysed and reported at different stages, and monitoring and risk-management mechanisms – such as constant interaction between beneficiaries and stakeholder partners to facilitate necessary adjustments – are embedded within its activities. Beneficiaries remain in close contact with coordinators after their involvement has ended, and they have a personal page on the practice’s website.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

✓ Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Is the practice prepared to sustain its positive effects after completion?

The practice is designed to ensure that both beneficiaries and partners develop the connections and skills necessary to continue to benefit from their participation in the long term. Further, a key aim is that partners and other stakeholders will adopt innovative approaches as a result of their involvement in the practice, thereby extending its reach and impact. The practice also contributes to the creation of business opportunities for artists and cultural stakeholders in the long term.

Good practice checklist

✓ During the design phase, anticipate opportunities to continue the intervention after completion.

– Prepare and apply a well-defined sustainability plan to ensure the continuation of positive effects / outcomes.

✓ Devote resources to building capacities during the implementation phase, in order to ensure that the necessary human resources, expertise and infrastructure are in place to sustain the services upon completion of the action.

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

Homelands has the potential to attract structural funding from cultural institutions and other important stakeholders, as well as to generate its own resources through monetising the work of its artists (e.g. through a programme of paid performances). Furthermore, by using its network of participating partners, the practice can potentially access a wide range of private and public funding and other support.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

– Identify new EU and national funding opportunities for long-term integration (e.g., shifting from project-based initiatives that are limited in time or dependent on one (external) donor to a comprehensive, multi-year strategy based on secured funding or diverse funding opportunities).

✓ Diversify funding opportunities and identify options for self-financing through business activities or social entrepreneurship.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

Public authorities (such as cultural policy makers) and cultural stakeholders among institutions and cultural hubs are in constant communication with the practice, if not directly involved in it.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

The project contributes locally to discussion on improvements to integration support policies, particularly in the cultural sector. The potential for successful representation and advocacy depends on the involvement of important cultural institutions and stakeholders.

Good practice checklist

– Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

The project aims to support and empower vulnerable and isolated migrant women, women with disabilities and women who have experienced trauma. These women are linked with a group of ‘Neighbourhood Mothers’ – women from the local community – who offer their support in better understanding and navigating society and their children’s needs. The approach is accessible in that it is multilingual, and it relies on ‘peer-to-peer’ delivery, for both groups and individuals.

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

One of the main goals of the project is to build a bridge between participating migrant women and local or state authorities. For some local groups the municipality is an active partner, and for most groups the local housing administration is a key stakeholder. An important part of the project is the building of social and referral networks for migrant women, which reinforces their capacity to actively participate in society.

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

Group activities are designed and delivered at the local level, and a national secretariat coordinates all local groups. Participants are all able to provide input on relevant project strategies. Project delivery is overseen by a leading group of seven people who are democratically elected every year.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The project aims to empower both the Neighbourhood Mothers and participating migrant women. The education services focus on improving these women’s knowledge of society and their children’s needs, which benefits both the women and their families in the short and long term.

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

✓ Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

The practice empowers its participants and strengthens their capacity to self-support, building on the understanding that a mother is often instrumental in the social and cultural integration of her whole family. The social networks and personal connections built during participation in the practice, as well as the building of knowledge at the individual level, serve to strengthen the integration of migrant women in Danish society

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Ensure that services contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of migrants/migrant communities.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

The project aligns with official integration goals at both national and local level, such as the better inclusion of refugee and migrant women in society. During the education courses human rights and conventions are discussed, with particular reference to Denmark’s rules around secure rights for children, gender equality and equal rights for sexual minorities. Participants are expected to respect these rights and rules in their meetings with women under the project, even if they do not agree with them on a personal level.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure that all actions are in line with international and European human rights standards.

✓ Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

– Make sure that the services offered contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of relevant institutions to support future development.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

The large-scale project has been running for many years and generally sees positive outcomes, although improvements have been suggested (some of which have already been made). Each Neighbourhood Mother fills out a questionnaire every year about her own personal achievements, and keeps track of every conversation or meeting with migrant mother participants.

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

– Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

✓ Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

Several independent evaluations of the practice have been carried out, with the most recent taking place in 2016. Since then, an internal evaluation system has been in place. Each Neighbourhood Mother is asked on an annual basis to identify personal changes that have taken place as a result of her participation in the project, and to take notes on every conversation or meeting she has with migrant mother participants. The success of local groups is measured according to ten different indicators, and any problems identified during this process are discussed at annual network meetings.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

✓ Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Is the practice prepared to sustain its positive effects after completion?

The effects of the practice – increased knowledge and the development of various social networks – are self-sustaining. Project financing is stable and will continue in the long-term. The effects of the practice – increased knowledge and the development of various social networks – are self-sustaining. Project financing is stable and will continue in the long-term. 

Good practice checklist

✓ During the design phase, anticipate opportunities to continue the intervention after completion.

✓ Prepare and apply a well-defined sustainability plan to ensure the continuation of positive effects / outcomes.

✓ Devote resources to building capacities during the implementation phase, in order to ensure that the necessary human resources, expertise and infrastructure are in place to sustain the services upon completion of the action.

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

The project already attracts funding from large and stable sources, but there is no potential for the development of a business model except in the sense that local municipalities may offer sustained support. The whole project relies on various degrees of partnership or collaboration with social housing companies and municipalities.

Good practice checklist

✓ Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

✓ Identify new EU and national funding opportunities for long-term integration (e.g., shifting from project-based initiatives that are limited in time or dependent on one (external) donor to a comprehensive, multi-year strategy based on secured funding or diverse funding opportunities).

– Diversify funding opportunities and identify options for self-financing through business activities or social entrepreneurship.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

Key stake holders such as municipalities, civil society and housing companies are already an integrated part of the project.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

This project does not have many means of influencing national integration policies, but is able to effect change in local approaches to integration through its embeddedness in local communities.

Good practice checklist

✓ Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

Meeting the specific needs of LGBTIQ persons in all matters related to asylum is the core objective of the Queer Base project. Information is available in English, German, Persian, French, Turkish, Kurdish, Russian, Ukrainian and Arabic, via a multilingual telephone hotline and contact form. Project services are delivered by mixed teams and interpreters with experience of the asylum procedure, in order to ensure both accessibility and suitability for the target group.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

Queer Base follows the innovative approach of community organising with the local LGBTIQ community: the “Friends of Queer Base” platform connects the target group and local civil society via a buddy programme.

 

Inspiring tools:

the Friends of Queer Base platform.

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

Queer Base is a grass roots organisation wherein activities are planned and implemented by both beneficiaries and organisers. The practice is innovative in its combination of professional support, other service provision and grassroots organising, and the interpreters hired tend to be queer refugees themselves.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The project was conceived in response to the overwhelming and well documented need for support of the LGBTIQ migrant community. Besides the provision of individual counselling and support, integral objectives of the practice include structural lobbying, awareness-raising and capacity building.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

✓ Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

Queer Base takes an emancipatory approach, working to empower LGBTIQ refugees with the involvement of receiving communities. Ensuring that their asylum applications are professionally dealt with guarantees a refugee individual access to a residence permit, which is essential to their long term integration and reduces the time they are required to spend in temporary reception facilities.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

Ensure that services contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of migrants/migrant communities. 

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

Queer Base cooperates with all relevant stakeholders in the asylum sector and beyond, to ensure the mainstreaming of support for the particular needs of LGBTIQ refugees. It also takes into account EU standards for the inclusion of particularly vulnerable groups with specific needs. Further, it participates in discussion fora and lobbying, and writes position papers on legislative and policy amendments. In 2017 Queer Base provided substantial input to expert recommendations on first interviews in asylum procedures, and a position paper on fair and high quality asylum procedures.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure that all actions are in line with international and European human rights standards.

✓ Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

✓ Make sure that the services offered contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of relevant institutions to support future development.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

he project is a reaction to the well-documented need for individual and structural support of LGBTIQ refugees, and was planned within the community and in consultation with relevant external stakeholders. Statistics in the annual report show the impact and relevance of its support (legal; administrative; psycho-social). Given the sensitive context, knowledge and understanding of the particular needs of the target group is a prerequisite for all staff, and is key to ensuring the trust of participants and the effectiveness of the work.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

✓- Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

✓ Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

Regular monitoring and evaluation of project results is not only key to ensuring the functioning of its services, but also forms part of its annual planning and reporting. Positive feedback from beneficiaries, ongoing cooperation with partner NGOs, and consistently high demand for the project’s counselling and support services shows that the outcomes of the practice are so far successful.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

✓ Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

✓ Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

After an initial phase built on crowd-funding and other donations, the project secured structural funding from the municipality of Vienna. It remains in need, however, of more structural funding and new sponsors.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

✓ Identify new EU and national funding opportunities for long-term integration (e.g., shifting from project-based initiatives that are limited in time or dependent on one (external) donor to a comprehensive, multi-year strategy based on secured funding or diverse funding opportunities).

– Diversify funding opportunities and identify options for self-financing through business activities or social entrepreneurship.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

Cooperation with all relevant actors in the field is necessary not only to support individual cases, but also to work towards structural change and the sustainable integration of LGBTIQ refugees in Vienna / Austria.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

The organisation regularly takes public positions and cooperates with other actors to highlight areas in which improvement is needed to ensure the better inclusion of LGBTIQ refugees. While the project is primarily focused on securing access to safe legal status for its participants (as a foundation for long-term-integration), as well as on developing safe reception environments, broader educational and support activities are also offered depending on available resources.

Good practice checklist

✓ Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

This project focuses specifically on fathers with ethnic minority background in Denmark, including refugees and migrants. Within this target group, all languages and cultures are welcome. Flyers and two brochures have been produced to inform people about the project and recruit new participants. Equality, diversity, diversity and participant feedback are all integrated parts of the project concept. Only a basic level of understanding of the Danish language is necessary for participation in the project, and participants often help each other to translate words or expressions they are not familiar with.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

The receiving society plays an important role in the project, including employees of local administrations as well as other relevant local actors. The project concept relies on peer-to-peer support and volunteers, forming local participant groups of fathers with minority background. The relevant municipality or housing company usually pays for the course and start-up of a local group, and meetings at the local level are an important part of the project. These meetings promote better understanding between participating fathers and social authorities, which in turn can affect relevant policies and administrative decisions.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

The Baba programme was developed following a large number of interviews with fathers from a minority background. The coordinators play a key role in the programme, providing regular input on its design and development. Beneficiaries are constantly involved in all activities, and their feedback is seen as important to the programme’s evolution.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The programme focuses on the three issues of education, crime and well-being. In these three focus areas, children are found to fare better if their father is engaged and active in their lives. The three areas and related objectives were decided upon following interviews with potential participants, who expressed related needs for support. Most of the gaps identified during the interview and design stages need to be resolved through national policy development, but those which can be tackled at the local level are often discussed at project meetings.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

✓ Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

Evaluations have shown that participating fathers benefit from improved relationships with their children and from the building of a network of other fathers, as well as from better mutual understanding with local community professionals. This promotes their longer term integration and serves to improve their children’s lives in a sustainable way.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Ensure that services contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of migrants/migrant communities.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Effectiveness

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

The project started in 2014 and was evaluated in 2017 and 2021. Overall, assessments have been very positive. Coordinators have a key role in the programme, which was found to be both a strength and a weakness, and efforts are being made to ensure that they can provide the necessary information while allowing participating fathers to define their own roles.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

✓ Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Is the practice prepared to sustain its positive effects after completion?

The project is ongoing with no end date anticipated. At the individual level, though, fathers are able to sustain the positive effects of their participation – including through continued coordination of their own social networks – after they have completed the project

Good practice checklist

✓ During the design phase, anticipate opportunities to continue the intervention after completion.

✓ Prepare and apply a well-defined sustainability plan to ensure the continuation of positive effects / outcomes.

✓ Devote resources to building capacities during the implementation phase, in order to ensure that the necessary human resources, expertise and infrastructure are in place to sustain the services upon completion of the action.

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

Project funding is stable, with the secretariat supported by the state and the courses paid for by local municipalities or social housing companies. There are no immediate options for generating resources from the project. Close relations with local municipalities have been established since the beginning of the project, as one of its goals is to facilitate dialogue and improved understanding between participating fathers and relevant authorities. The project does not currently seek funding from outside Denmark, but would be interested in the development of a ‘sister project’ in another EU country.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

One of the three main focus points of the project is to build trust between participating fathers and the local authorities through its meetings method. Project courses are often financed by the municipality or local housing company.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

The project does not focus on changing integration policies, but on creating better mutual understanding between local authorities and migrant families and on strengthening participants’ networks and their roles as fathers. An important part of the project is collaboration and meetings between local authorities, local civil society and the participants. Review, feedback and evaluation of relevant policies is part of this.

Good practice checklist

✓ Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

The practice’s services are accessible and responsive to the needs of the defined target group: young people who are disadvantaged due to their socio-economic status, learning needs or immigration background, including – but not limited to – refugee students. Access for these young people is facilitated by cooperating organisations. Diversity is ensured in the sense that the ‘buddy teams’ that form part of the programme usually comprise both locals and newcomers. Buddy teams shape their own activities according to individual needs.

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

The receiving society is significantly involved in the practice, via the buddy teams, and service delivery starts from an understanding of integration as a two way process. Evaluation of the practice indicates that this leads to greater intercultural exchange and understanding, and promotes the development of acceptance, tolerance and empathy. These effects have been mentioned by participants both with and without a refugee background.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

Beneficiaries are systematically involved in evaluation of the practice, but their participation in the design of the practice is more informal.

 

Good practice checklist

– Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

– Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The objectives of the practice are relevant to migrants and are continuously adjusted according to migrant participants’ needs, which are identified based on evaluation findings and the previous experience of implementing organisation Stiftung Bildung. Initial creation of the practice came about from the identification of a gap in integration support.

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

– Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

Evaluation findings so far indicate that the practice facilitates refugee students’ adjustment and orientation in Germany, promoting their sense of belonging, personal development and development of personal relationships. The practice does not specifically foster migrants’ community engagement, but this could be considered a secondary outcome. Through the personal relations that they develop, migrants’ language and educational outcomes are also improved, and generally speaking buddy teams contribute to decreasing prejudice, developing mutual understanding, and strengthening cross-cultural awareness and appreciation.

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

– Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

Through its close links with national ministries, the practice contributes to national integration frameworks. It also strengthens the capacities of cooperating organisations.

Good practice checklist

✓ Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

✓ Make sure that the services offered contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of relevant institutions to support future development.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

The practice is adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design. The objectives and planned results are clear and are regularly assessed through internal evaluation. The indicators used are measurable and relevant. The main aim of this programme is to facilitate the arrival of newcomer children and youth through personal interactions with local youn people, and evaluation findings indicate that it is successful in doing so.

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

– Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

✓ Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

Implementation is regularly monitored, and – in addition to internal evaluation – external evaluations are conducted annually. Training and supervision regularly take place for those involved in delivery of the programme. Stiftung Bildung offers supervision, seminars and information events to support buddy teams.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

− Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

National funding is already being used by the practice, strengthened by contributions from sponsoring associations which might facilitate continuation of the practice after the primary funding ends. Due to the nature of the practice model, it is unlikely that it could become self-financing.

Good practice checklist

✓ Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

✓ Diversify funding opportunities and identify options for self-financing through business activities or social entrepreneurship.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

Communication and coordination with other relevant stakeholders, especially with the implementing organisations, is established to foster the integration of newcomers. Multiple types of stakeholders are involved in the implementation of the practice, including schools, language course providers, sponsoring associations, parents, youth, policy makers, and kindergartens.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

The contribution of the practice to the integration of newcomers is being reviewed in conjunction with cooperating organisations and policy makers.

Good practice checklist

– Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

KIDEAK promotes the development of egalitarian relationships based on respect and good treatment. The programme focuses on issues relevant to its young (mostly male) participants in the prevention of sexist behaviour and aggression towards women, addressing among other topics the construction of new masculinities, diversity and equality, and egalitarian relationships. For young women participants, programme activities are designed to promote personal empowerment in the face of sexist behaviour and aggression. Intervention plans are tailored according to the needs and experiences of individual participants.

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

The programme’s social mentoring activities are beneficial for the volunteer mentors – who are often members of the receiving society – in that through their participation they improve their communication and intercultural skills, increase their awareness of the reality of young migrants, and question the stereotypes they hold. The mentor-mentee relationship also encourages greater sensitivity towards the “other”, which promotes the young participants’ autonomy and contributes to greater mutual recognition between the receiving and migrant communities.

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

Beneficiaries are involved in most of the programme development process, and their feedback is vital to its well-functioning. Mentoring is carried out in a cross-cutting manner during the 6-month matching phase, with face-to-face meetings being held once a week between the mentor and the mentee. Volunteers are trained in social mentoring awareness workshops.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

– Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

This practice addresses the needs of young migrants as they work to secure full autonomy under equal conditions within the receiving society. It employs an integral approach and personalised intervention plans to achieve this, aiming to fill gaps in integration support through its mentoring activities.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

– Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

The idea behind the programme is that an initially artificial relationship, formed through the mentoring activities, will over time become an effective relationship outside the constraints of the programme. This develops broader “affective galaxies” for the young migrant participants. Through mentoring the practice increases migrant engagement with the local community, thereby strengthening their autonomy and promoting their long-term integration.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

Ensure that services contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of migrants/migrant communities.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

The entire practice was designed in line with international, national and local guidelines on integration.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure that all actions are in line with international and European human rights standards.

✓ Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

✓ Make sure that the services offered contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of relevant institutions to support future development.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

The practice is well-designed and thoroughly planned. It has achieved observable outcomes in young migrants, who have developed self-confidence and self-esteem, as well as observable outcomes – in terms of improvements to linguistic and cultural competence – on the part of both young migrants and the host society.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

– Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

The programme strategy includes an evaluation and monitoring system, and uses results from this to carry out necessary adaptation. Further evaluation and monitoring is carried out as part of reporting associated with receipt of both EU and national funds.

 

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

− Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

✓Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change. 

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

In addition to using young people to translate for and encourage the participation of others, the practice utilises a cross-cutting participatory approach to gender and celebrates diversity. Activity schedules are adapted to the needs of participants, ensuring diversity of participant groups.

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

The practice runs specific activities aimed at the public. The course “Agents for the prevention of Islamophobia and discrimination on religious grounds”, for example, works with local people to discuss and address common prejudices. The practice also provides training for intervention professionals in the prevention of Islamophobia and religious discrimination.

Inspiring tools:

Online course; video discussion on being a Muslim woman in Spain.

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

The practice uses a methodology of shared work and feedback. Individual participation is scheduled according to discussion with participants at the beginning of the year, and adjusted when needed. Following feedback, safe spaces of belonging are being created within the practice so that young people feel comfortable to express themselves freely.

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The specific objectives of the practice are adapted on an ongoing basis according to the needs of its young participants. A clear indication that the practice succeeds in meeting these needs is that young people continue to participate in the activities and have generated their own networks of belonging, beyond the realms of the project itself.

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

✓ Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

The practice empowers young migrants through its support for the development of their self-awareness, and its provision of specific tools and information. It offers training sessions on religious rights and relevant available services, which both strengthen their autonomy and promote their long-term integration.

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

The practice takes into account the broader social inclusion framework, including relevant policies, working with other actors – such as universities, municipal police, associations and religious groups – to consolidate the integration support being delivered.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure that all actions are in line with international and European human rights standards.

✓ Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

The practice is comprehensively designed in order to promote improvements to society as a whole. Those involved in intervention activities receive professional training, learning skills that they can also use within wider society, and the young people that participate are trained, empowered and encouraged to become key agents of social change.

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

✓ Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

✓ Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

The practice has developed its own process for monitoring its actions and results. Regular meetings are held to discuss existing and potential challenges, and the practice’s wider network is regularly consulted for support. All training courses have a feedback period in which participants can give suggestions for improvements and future focus areas.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

✓ Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

Until 2022 the practice was funded by the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration and by FAMI (EU). It is now funded by the Ministry of Social Affairs and Agenda 2030. Additionally, funding has been received from the Valladolid City Council, and plans are in place to charge fees for some training courses, in order to further generate income.

Good practice checklist

✓ Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

– Identify new EU and national funding opportunities for long-term integration (e.g., shifting from project-based initiatives that are limited in time or dependent on one (external) donor to a comprehensive, multi-year strategy based on secured funding or diverse funding opportunities).

✓ Diversify funding opportunities and identify options for self-financing through business activities or social entrepreneurship.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

The practice is always seeking new ways to promote intercultural and interreligious encounters, including by bringing together its partners with its young participants during certain training sessions.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

The practice is designed to meet the diverse needs of a specific target group in a specific region, and to be easily accessible for those belonging to this group. The project website provides information in both German and English, and those who participate in the programme receive information through a variety of different channels. The practice offers tailored opportunities and individualised learning plans, taking into account the diverse composition of the students attending the programme, and combines practical work experience with relevant theoretical learning.

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

The receiving society – particularly companies and collaborative actors – is actively involved in practice delivery. Work experience placements are offered by companies aligned with students’ interests, and advice and support is given by relevant professionals to promote participants’ access to higher education and the labour market.

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

Beneficiaries are partially involved in the design and implementation of the action, in that feedback is collected from them on an ad-hoc basis.

Good practice checklist

− Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The objectives of the practice are very relevant to the needs of the specific target group (migrant students who have difficulties in following classroom-based teaching methods). A needs assessment was carried out during the initial design of the practice to ensure relevance to existing needs, and a Productive Learning approach is used to give students an improved, inclusive learning experience

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

− Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

Evaluation of the practice shows that it promotes the empowerment, autonomy, and long-term integration of young refugees. It also supports them in developing a sense of direction, defining their personal goals, and improving their German-speaking skills. Participants continue to receive support after they have transitioned into vocational training or other educational institutions.

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Ensure that services contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of migrants/migrant communities.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

The practice is adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design that is continuously adjusted according to evaluation outcomes and emerging needs. Outcomes among the target group, especially the results of individual learning plans, are monitored to ensure that goals are being achieved. The practice also provides qualifications and counselling to the teachers and education assistants that work with the students, to ensure comprehensive support, and relevant stakeholders are regularly consulted.

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

✓ Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

✓ Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

Implementation of the practice is monitored and regularly evaluated, and participants’ levels of skill and knowledge are evaluated before and after their involvement in the programme, in order to assess progress. Progress is also monitored and evaluated at the individual level on an ongoing basis, according to participants’ personal learning plans.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

The practice has established strong ties with other actors that foster the integration of refugees. Key stakeholders – such as companies, schools, and NGOs – have been actively involved since implementation began: their inclusion in the practice is a key part of its strategy for the promotion of integration.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

The practice contributes to discussion at the local level on improvements to integration support policies. It is a key player in local integration strategy, due to its supervision by the Berlin Senate for Education, Youth and Family, and relies on input from its local partners when reviewing operations, practices and outcomes.

Good practice checklist

✓ Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Inclusivity & Participation

Does the practice ensure that its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups?

In the beginning Kicken ohne Grenzen was designed as a project for refugees. Today, the organisation appeals to teenagers and young adults from diverse backgrounds, including refugees, other migrants, and Austrians. Now counting several former participants as employees, it holds weekly open training sessions for girls and boys, working to empower girls through additional individual training sessions in swimming and cycling. To encourage engagement it conducts outreach among teenagers in schools and via NGOs, offers flexible hours to accommodate for school schedules, and provides a “pick-up from school” transportation service to ensure younger children can reach the training.

Inspiring tools:

The project has a useful webpage available in both German and English.

Good practice checklist

✓ Adopt a participatory, gender mainstreaming, age sensitive, inclusive approach and secure equal opportunities for beneficiaries.

✓ Make sure to provide precise and accessible information on how to access services in different languages, formats and through different communication channels

✓ Ensure that equality and diversity are an essential part of how services are delivered, taking into consideration different needs and capacities.

✓ Make reasonable adjustments to service delivery in order to take into account particular needs of the target group.

Does the practice involve the active participation of the receiving society?

Specific projects are designed via cooperation with both the local community and participants, and everyone is free to participate equally. While at the beginning the project was run solely by volunteers, it now also has paid employees. The receiving society is also involved through the project’s cooperation with schools and local businesses (which offer employment support and experience to participants).

Good practice checklist

✓ Consider integration as a two-way process, and aim for change on the side of the receiving society.

✓ Foresee an active role for the receiving society in the design and implementation stages of the practice, and involve actions that encourage native communities and beneficiaries to work together.

Does the practice consult its beneficiaries and involve them in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the action?

Participants are actively involved in implementation and evaluation. This includes, for example, co-creation of the annual ‘Girls Cup Vienna’, and responding to regular participant surveys and analyses. The project also runs a youth leader academy which trains young people to become peer mentors and soft-skills coaches in the sports sector, and these young people are then able to provide better-informed feedback. Football coaches and those providing educational support and translation services are compensated for their time.

Good practice checklist

✓ Organise consultation activities with migrant beneficiaries in order to co-create actions where possible and secure their feedback on the design and evaluation of the action.

✓ Provide appropriate feedback mechanisms by which beneficiaries can safely express their opinions on service quality.

✓ Use flexible and interculturally-adapted formats and compensate participants for their contribution.

Relevance & Complementarity

Are the objectives of the practice relevant to the needs of the migrants?

The practice ensures its relevancy to the needs of migrants through regular assessment and impact measurement via participant feedback, and exchanges with relevant NGOs and school authorities. The project harnesses the unifying power of football to promote and facilitate the social involvement of young people from disadvantaged communities, empowering in particular migrant girls to engage more readily in the use of public space (such as football cages).

Good practice checklist

✓ Identify and analyse the needs of the relevant migrants and prioritise methods which directly ask them about their needs.

✓ Identify and analyse gaps in integration support and design actions to fill these gaps.

✓ Aim for systemic improvement, satisfying the needs of the majority of target groups in the target area.

Is the practice relevant to the empowerment of migrants, the strengthening of their autonomy and the support of their long-term integration?

The empowerment of young adults, especially migrants and girls, and promotion of inclusivity and equality are the main objectives of the project. The football training sessions foster self-confidence and leadership skills, encourage girls to make us of public spaces, and facilitate engagement with the local community. Involvement in the project is free, which further facilitates involvement on the part of migrants, who are often underrepresented in such sporting activities due to financial and other barriers. As well as sporting activities the project runs a ‘learning café’ and group workshops on topics including CV and job application creation and labour laws, and offers employment experience in conjuction with local businesses.

Good practice checklist

✓ Devise actions with the overarching goal of providing positive feedback and making migrants more confident, autonomous and independent.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Contribute to migrants’ engagement with the community for the common good.

✓ Include (or create the preconditions for) actions that facilitate long-term integration.

✓ Address discrimination and information gaps as obstacles to long-term integration.

Does the practice align with the priorities, strategic goals and policies of other relevant stakeholders, and contribute to the wider integration framework?

The project is an active promoter of children´s rights and opportunities. It seeks to strengthen children´s rights in football at both the national and international level, ensuring that team members are educated in child protection, participation, and gender and diversity, and that they focus on these themes when developing new guidelines and activities. All trainers, employees, partners and visitors must comply with the project’s child protection policy, as well as the Sustainable Development Goals.

Inspiring tools:

A handbook with recommendations for policy implementation.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure that all actions are in line with international and European human rights standards.

✓ Employ regional/local, national and EU/international level integration-related guidelines and tools.

✓ Make sure that the services offered contribute to the strengthening of the capacities of relevant institutions to support future development.

Effectiveness

Is the practice adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design?

The practice is adequately planned and based on a comprehensive design, the project webpage is informative and the social report is exemplary in its presentation of project planning and outcomes. At the individual level the project empowers participants, increases their self-confidence, and reduces school dropout rates. At the community/institutional level, the project increases gender equality and inclusivity, promotes collaboration between schools and locals, and fosters awareness of the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. The practice is based on specific and measurable indicators, and is evaluated and monitored regularly (e.g., according to number of participants, percentage of female participants, and success of trainings, tournaments, and workshops). The organisation is run cooperatively, with employees assuming different roles within the project according to experience and interest.

Good practice checklist

✓ Aim for actions that achieve observable outcomes among the target group or contribute to changes during the implementation of the action.

✓ Make sure that the objectives and planned results of the activity are feasible and clear.

✓ Develop a communications strategy during the design phase of the action and pay attention to communication with host communities and local authorities.

✓ Ensure the practice is based on indicators that are measurable, achievable, and relevant.

− Develop a staff management plan to identify team members with the right skills to work with beneficiaries, and their needs for training and further qualification.

Does the practice regularly monitor implementation and evaluate its results?

Evaluation of the project takes place regularly, and is published both on the website and in the annual social report alongside relevant financial data. Achievement of intended outcomes is measured via both a survey distributed among teachers and participant feedback. Proof of its success can also be found in its securing of new funders and supporters.

Inspiring tools:

The project developed a toolkit on developing the future prospects of participants.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure regular monitoring of action implementation and compare actual performance to goals set during the design phase.

− Anticipate obstacles that might occur and plan alternative scenarios during the design phase of the action.

✓ Ensure achievement of intended outputs / outcomes.

✓ Determine whether practice outcomes are considered successful by beneficiaries, the host and practitioner communities, funders, and policymakers.

− Assess whether interventions contribute to long-term sustainable change.

Sustainability

Is the practice prepared to sustain its positive effects after completion?

Kicken ohne Grenzen is well established and has the funding and plans in place to continue its projects for at least another three years. It attracts sponsors and has established sustainable cooperation between stakeholders (NGOs, schools, and football players, for example). Furthermore, sustainability of the activities is secured through the training of former participants in coaching, and their eventual hiring within the project.

Good practice checklist

✓ During the design phase, anticipate opportunities to continue the intervention after completion.

✓ Prepare and apply a well-defined sustainability plan to ensure the continuation of positive effects / outcomes.

✓ Devote resources to building capacities during the implementation phase, in order to ensure that the necessary human resources, expertise and infrastructure are in place to sustain the services upon completion of the action.

Does the practice attract structural funding and support from new sponsors and individuals, or have the potential to develop a business model to generate its own resources?

Kicken ohne Grenzen is funded by donations, foundations and public funds, including the sports division of the Austrian federal ministry. It has developed partnerships with various foundations, and receives donations from professional football players.

Good practice checklist

✓ Develop partnerships and relations with relevant stakeholders at the early stage of the action to ensure that the practice has strong support and potential partners for after the primary funding terminates.

✓ Identify new EU and national funding opportunities for long-term integration (e.g., shifting from project-based initiatives that are limited in time or dependent on one (external) donor to a comprehensive, multi-year strategy based on secured funding or diverse funding opportunities).

✓ Diversify funding opportunities and identify options for self-financing through business activities or social entrepreneurship.

Partnership & Collaboration

Does the practice establish communication and coordination with other relevant actors to foster the integration of migrants? (e.g., migrants, civil society, public authorities, businesses)

Kicken ohne Grenzen collaborates closely with schools, NGOs, and football professionals, and some of its projects also involve local businesses and international stakeholders. Its partners include Teach For Austria, FARE (Football Against Racism in Europe) and the streetfootballworld network.

Good practice checklist

✓ Ensure the involvement and participation of key stakeholders in the development phase and create strategies to involve them in the action.

✓ Include multi-stakeholder consultation with professionals, institutions, and citizens, in order to promote the meaningful participation of refuges and migrants and support a joint sense of ownership of decisions and actions.

Does the practice contribute to discussion on the improvement of integration support policies?

Kicken ohne Grenzen is an exemplary project promoting increased social participation, children’s rights and education based on football.

Good practice checklist

✓ Seize opportunities to contribute to the development of comprehensive integration strategies involving EU-level/national/regional/local authorities, service providers and civil society.

✓ Work with relevant partners to jointly review operations, practices, services, and integration outcomes.

Consortium

Non- EU Partners

Associate

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