Good Practice Criteria

Inclusivity & Participation

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

The practice works to erase all obstacles to information about COVID-19, as well as to its prevention, detection and treatment (including vaccination). The involvement of local communities is an essential part of the INTERSOS approach, and awareness-raising is at the centre of this vaccination intervention. Timetables for services and focus group discussions have been diversified in order to facilitate the participation of all groups, and to accommodate limitations imposed by third parties (women victims of sexual exploitation, for example, have a regularly scheduled day for medical visits).

Inspiring tools:

Inspiring tools: INTERSOS report.

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 views its interventions as temporary and functional, empowering local institutions, services and individuals and helping them to interact with each other independently. INTERSOS actively supports public institutions in their efforts to improve intake capacities and to overcome bureaucratic, cultural, linguistic, and practical barriers to accessing healthcare. The training of community-based organisations reinforces this.

 

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 INTERSOS community-based approach involves beneficiaries in the implementation of its practices.

In each informal settlement, some beneficiaries are trained to support the service in reaching potential beneficiaries and collecting relevant information and feedback.

 

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 supports the most marginalised migrants to improve their health conditions and protect their rights. The involvement of volunteers and the use of focus groups helps in the identification of needs and design of actions.

 

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 active involvement of migrants is a constitutive element of the INTERSOS intervention model. In this way individuals are empowered, and supported for further intervention where needed. Awareness is at the centre of the vaccination intervention process: the aim of the practice is not persuasion, rather increased awareness. This can be achieved only in the long run, through small steps and the establishment of mutual trust (and this mutual trust in itself promotes integration in the longer term). The involvement of local institutions in the practice is pursued in order to improve public services in the long run.

 

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 practice aims to strengthen the services of public institutions, rather than to substitute them. Such institutions are supported to increase their intake capacities and to overcome bureaucratic, cultural, linguistic, and practical access barriers. Since the beginning of the vaccination period, INTERSOS has carried out related advocacy at both regional and national 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 practice is monitored in a systematic way, based on analysis of previous interventions. Specifically-determined indicators are used to monitor two of the three main activities: information dissemination and practical support.

 

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 actions of INTERSOS and the community-based organisational partners are monitored on either a weekly or a daily basis. Previous experiences and relevant expertise was taken into account in the creation of the practice, and it was designed to be flexible enough to accommodate new elements as needed.

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?

Since the initial design phase, the practice has improved the ability of both local communities and public services to accommodate the needs of migrants and others who are socially excluded. INTERSOS aims to make relevant actors autonomous as soon as possible, in order to better sustain the practice 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?

In the INTERSOS approach, interventions are temporary and local institutions and actors are trained to ultimately become autonomous. To achieve this, different sources of funding are utilised and responsibilities are transferred. For example, multicultural mediators are now used at the Foggia health institution, thanks to a project funded by Fondazione con il Sud (a banking foundation).

 

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)

Along with being involved in advocacy activities itself, INTERSOS works to involve relevant local actors in the process as much as possible.

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?

Participating in different clusters and networks at national and regional levels, INTERSOS contributes to the exchange of information and the improvement of integration support policies. At every site where INTERSOS is operational, its staff members create new – and work to enhance existing – coordination groups so that they might collaboratively review operations and outcomes, and advocate more effectively at local and regional 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 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 intercultural services of the practice were available to all foreigners in the city. They were delivered by intercultural workers, who are people with both a migration background and knowledge of the languages of the largest migrant communities in Brno. Information about the services was made available through various channels, including online publications, social media networks, printed brochures and institutional leaflets. Services were provided at public institutions and via community outreach, at times that suited the needs of their migrant 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 aim of the project was to reduce communication barriers in public administration institutions, especially in the municipality of Brno, between foreigners (beneficiaries of public services) and civil servants of the receiving society (providers of public services). The work remit of the intercultural workers was based on a needs analysis carried out among both foreigners and civil servants. Civil servants were required to participate in a training programme that strengthened their intercultural competences and their understanding of the rights and duties of foreigners.

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 implementation of the project was continuously evaluated through interviews conducted with intercultural workers, officials (civil servants) and foreigners. The intercultural workers regularly collected feedback from beneficiary individuals and institutions, in person via community outreach as well as by telephone and online. New activities were decided upon in consultation with migrant community representatives. Both participants and intercultural workers were given the opportunity to discuss the practice at city level, via various platforms focused on the integration of foreigners and community planning.

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?

Intercultural workers, as employees of the municipality, are familiar with the needs of both the institutional environment and the needs of migrants. They worked to identify and remove barriers in migrants’ access to public services, and to adjust the services of the practice as necessary to meet migrants’ needs. Community outreach, interviews with beneficiaries and other forms of direct communication were used to map needs, ensuring the relevance of the practice.

 

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?

Before the practice came about, migrants in Brno usually turned to informal and non-professional intermediaries to solve their problems. The practice then became the ‘missing link’ between migrants and public service providers, working to strengthen migrants’ ability to communicate autonomously with public institutions and to deal with their problems independently. The involvement of intercultural workers and active migrants in planning processes and public administration platforms strengthened the ability of migrants to participate in decision-making, creating the conditions for improved quality and accessibility of public services for foreigners and, in the longer term, promoting their integration. The wider increased awareness of migrant integration as a result of the project also supported 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 practice aligns with Czechia’s national integration policy, which promotes the use of intercultural workers. Intercultural work at the local government level represents a systemic change in the approach to integration: it enables municipalities to identify emerging problems early, thematise them in the public service planning process and contribute to finding systemic solutions.

 

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 was adequately planned according to a needs analysis. The results of relevant evaluations show that it contributed to better information provision to migrants and their ability to deal with problems, to the reduction of barriers in interactions between officials and foreigners, to a decrease in officials’ fear of dealing with foreigners, and to increased openness towards migrants. An intercultural training programme has been developed based on the practice’s competency model for interculturally responsive local government, which defines the knowledge and skills necessary for the qualified performance of intercultural work. Since its completion, the outputs and results of the practice have been published on the websites of both Brno city and the ESF

 

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?

Practice implementation and impact was regularly monitored and evaluated according to various indicators, and reports were made to the donor. Any problems or questions were addressed through consultation with representatives of cooperating organisations also focused on foreigners. As well as through the results of regular evaluation, the success of the practice is evidenced by the fact that it has received international recognition, and that Brno City Council continues to provide intercultural services via a follow-up project.

 

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 has the potential to be transferred to other cities. One of the outputs is the “Competence model of interculturally permeable municipality”, which defines the range of skills of an intercultural worker within the municipality and sets out a training plan for municipal employees. A follow-up project was created, and a comprehensive meIntercultural work is now incorporated into the city’s strategic and planning documents, and is used and supported by other actors in the field of integration. Funding is currently provided by ESF to a follow-up project, and other possible sources include the Ministry of the Interior and the European Social Fund Plus. Potential funding for intercultural work is available from the state budget through the regional integration centres or from local authorities. thodology for intercultural work in local government is also being developed.

Inspiring tools:

 Competence model of interculturally inclusive municipal authority.

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?

Intercultural work is now incorporated into the city’s strategic and planning documents, and is used and supported by other actors in the field of integration. Funding is currently provided by ESF to a follow-up project, and other possible sources include the Ministry of the Interior and the European Social Fund Plus. Potential funding for intercultural work is available from the state budget through the regional integration centres or from local authorities.

 

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 relevant actors in the field of integration was established in the preparatory phase of the practice. Intercultural workers and foreigners participated in the community planning process for social services in Brno, and contributed to the development of the city’s strategy for the integration of foreigners and its related action plan. The intercultural workers are also building a broad network of cooperation based on case management, which is steadily growing and includes a wide range of local organisations and public institutions.

 

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 brochure for municipalities issued by the practice gives relevant practical examples and suggests solutions for local governments working with foreigners. The practice has been presented at a number of conferences and professional platforms in Brno, Czechia and abroad, and has already inspired other cities and organisations in Czechia and Slovakia to implement similar activities.

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 Centre for Foreigners provides comprehensive integration services in the Ústí nad Labem Region, combining standardised services provided by all regional integration centres with additional, local-level activities. The centre’s services are easily accessible. Relevant information is made available online in several languages, in printed format via leaflets distributed at institutions that handle foreigners’ issues, and verbally through active community outreach work. Services are personalised to meet the individual needs of 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 integration centres offer a wide range of activities to both migrants (social and legal counselling; Czech language courses; adaptation and integration courses) and the receiving society (a regional advisory platform; monitoring of the situation of foreigners). The Centre for Foreigners also actively responds to the needs of local institutional actors (methodological and advisory support to schools; support with increasing the intercultural competences of public administration institutions) and involves host society volunteers in its activities (tutoring of foreign children; advice on grants processes to migrant associations).

 

Inspiring tools:

Inspiring tools: Advisory and educational activities for public institutions in the region.

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?

Migrant integration is coordinated at the regional level by regional advisory platforms involving institutional actors and migrant representatives. The Centre for Foreigners also maintains regular contact with representatives of migrant associations. Individual service users are consulted as much as possible on the content of services (e.g. the design of leisure activities and the focus of specific language courses) and on their quality.

 

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 relevance of the integration centres’ services and their complexity is positively evaluated by other service providers, the NGO sector, individual users and external evaluators. The services are personalised for their users according to a mapping of each client’s needs carried out during their initial interview.

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 integration centres provide social counselling to migrants on the basis of an individual plan, the implementation of which requires the support of the service provider, and the effects of which promote migrants’ long-term integration and strengthen their autonomy. Migrants are also involved in regional advisory platforms, which allows them to develop their networks and promotes their social inclusion.

 

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 regional advisory platforms, organised by the integration centres, are a tool (in line with national integration policy) for identifying systemic solutions to gaps in the integration infrastructure at regional level. In addition, the Foreigners’ Centre responds to the specific needs of local actors in different areas of integration, especially in education.

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 services of the regional integration centres (including the Centre for Foreigners) are provided as comprehensively-designed one-year projects. They are built around the state integration policy, and their success is measured by internal, quantitative indicators. Complementary services provided by the Centre for Foreigners respond to the local context, and are again measured according to quantitative indicators. Service impact is monitored at the individual level, for example through evaluation with individuals receiving social counselling. The Centre for Foreigners also monitors the effectiveness of the Czech language courses by means of an entrance and exit exam and course attendance, and conducts its own internal evaluation of course implementation. Training is organised annually for new employees of the integration centres.

 

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 activities of the integration centres (including the Centre for Foreigners) are regularly monitored and evaluated, and feedback is requested from beneficiaries. External evaluations that assess beneficiaries’ satisfaction with the services have had positive results, and the Supreme Audit Office of the Czech Republic found that the practice meets state integration policy objectives.

 

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 network of integration centres is designed to be run on a long-term basis. Its operation has been secured since 2020 by the national act on the residence of foreigners.

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?

10 of the 14 integration centres in the Czech Republic are financed by the state budget. The remaining 4, including the Centre for Foreigners, are financed by annual AMIF projects. Additional activities run by the Foreigners’ Centre are funded on an ad hoc basis by available EU, national, regional or corporate resources.

 

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 key partner and creator of the integration centres concept is the Ministry of the Interior (which is responsible for the implementation of state integration policy). From the beginning, integration centres have been developing relationships with local actors dealing with foreigners’ issues, as well as with local governments, labour offices and schools within the framework of regional advisory platforms. The staff stability of the Centre for Foreigners allows for the development of long-term personal, informal relationships with key individuals within migrant communities.

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?

Some integration centres have been involved in the development of regional/local integration strategies. In addition to organising regional advisory platforms, the Centre for Foreigners participates in other professional platforms in the region (such as one for community planning).

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 applies multiple strategies to ensure its services are accessible and responsive to diverse groups. Some services are open to all groups; others are aimed at specific target groups such as women, children, and families. A large variety of inclusive, participatory activities is offered, all of which are delivered in such a way as to ensure equal opportunities. Some activities are aimed particularly at children, families or women. Basic information on available services is provided in several languages and formats. Efforts are made to actively include the target group (refugees and asylum seekers) in service delivery (through cooking, translating and so on). Adjustments are made at the individual level to ensure the accessibility of basic reception and counselling services for all at the refugee reception centre, from where people are referred to more specific services. Childcare is offered at certain hours in both the reception and service centres.

I

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?

Several activities raise awareness of the situation of refugees and asylum seekers at the local level, and their needs are met though collaboration with local institutions. The involvement of local volunteers is a guiding principle of the practice, and beneficiaries are also involved as volunteers.

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.

Relevance & Complementarity

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

The objectives of the practice are relevant to the needs of its target group of refugees and asylum seekers, and its delivery is flexible in order to respond to emerging needs. Relevant needs are identified by employees and volunteers through their daily work with beneficiaries, and integration support measures are designed around this. In exceptional situations, beneficiaries are consulted to ensure full understanding of their immediate situation. Systemic improvement through collaboration with relevant stakeholders is a goal of the practice’s public and policy outreach 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 practice works to empower and strengthen the autonomy of its participants, mainly through information provision, counselling, and teaching and tutoring activities. Beneficiaries are supported to actively help themselves, for example though explanation of relevant options and procedures and referral to relevant responsible stakeholders. Activities that bring beneficiaries and the receiving society together, such as cooking, cultural and artistic activities, aim to foster these two groups’ joint engagement. Discrimination and information gaps are partially addressed as part of other activities.

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 practice contributes to the wider integration framework at both the local and national level. It is not in a position to effect immediate change within institutions, but through its outreach activities it is able to connect with policy makers, politicians and institutions in order to raise awareness of key issues affecting refugees and asylum seekers and to offer support in the implementation of processes that meet the needs of project beneficiaries.

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 action is based on a comprehensive design and is able to respond in a flexible way to emerging needs, ensuring successful outcomes at the individual, community, and institutional level. Employed staff members are selected based on their skills, and the effective delivery of most project activities relies on the involvement of volunteers. Project ccommunication processes use a variety of channels to connect with both host communities and authorities.

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?

Project monitoring is mostly guided by the requirements of different funders, with annual reports providing records of overall project performance. Project coordinators, the board and its working groups ensure the achievement of relevant goals. There are no structured or consistent strategies for identifying the successes of the practice, rather situational consultations, feedback and regular observation is used for this purpose.

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?

Structural funding has been secured for individual parts of the practice, including for core staff positions, and it has the potential to attract new sponsors. Long-term partnerships to ensure its continuation have been established, and additional funding opportunities are being sought. A diverse funding model has been established which includes a form of social entrepreneurship.

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)

Multiple stakeholders are involved in the project, including via multi-stakeholder consultation. The practices provides training to professionals, runs discussion events on relevant specific topics, and organises awareness-raising events.

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?

Through multi-stakeholder collaboration and policy and stakeholder outreach, the practice contributes to the development of comprehensive integration strategies at the local and regional level. It works with multiple partners (e.g. NGOs, universities, public and local authorities, the municipality) to review practices and integration 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?

One of the core aims of Cepaim’s strategic plan is to build an intercultural, equitable, just, and inclusive society. These principles form the foundation of all its projects, including New Paths. The New Paths project ensures that its services are accessible and responsive to all target groups, with the flexibility to meet specific needs and make reasonable adjustments when necessary to ensure access for specific individuals.

Inspiring tools:

Inspiring tools: Cepaim’s Strategic Plan.

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 follows a programme of active engagement with local authorities, communities and beneficiary families in order to ensure their participation. The entire local community is involved in promoting social inclusion through the sponsoring of migrant families.

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?

Individuals and families are involved in the design of their own participation strategies, in order to promote their successful involvement. Flexible and interculturally appropriate approaches are taken for the training, and a comprehensive feedback mechanism is in place by which beneficiaries can share their opinions on project design, quality and evaluation.

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?

Through this project, Cepaim aims to provide a two-way response to the problem of depopulation of rural areas, as well as to the social and employment difficulties faced by many migrants, who are also at risk of social exclusion in urban environments. The project is designed around an interview process in which beneficiaries are given all the information needed to take the decision to move to a rural municipality. The project is evaluated and adjusted accordingly on an annual basis.

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?

This project furthers integration by increasing the ‘employability’ of its participants. It is built on an understanding of migrant family units as agents of rural community revitalisation, and an assumption that employment will promote their longer term integration. Extensive work is carried out to inform migrants about and prepare them for insertion into their new rural communities.

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 applies annually to a national call for proposals within the broader integration framework. In addition, it is co-financed by the European Social Fund (ESF) and therefore ensures its actions comply with the ESF integration guide. As well as working with local authorities, Cepaim advocates at regional and national level for better funding for integration and improved integration policies.

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 project has a strong, comprehensive strategic framework which has been extended to multiple regions. It includes achievable and observable outcomes, as well as clear and organised activities that meet SMART indicators. Moreover, in accordance with the requirements of the Ministry of Labour’s call for proposals, Cepaim has developed a solid staff management plan. It also has a strong communications plan, designed to meet the requirements of its ESF+ co-funding.

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 in place a clear monitoring and evaluation process that includes mechanisms for gathering beneficiary feedback. In addition, risks are anticipated and identified through various mitigation measures. Training courses are continually improved as needed, and a magazine is also published regularly which promotes the project and shares relevant outcomes. Cepaim conducts follow-up activities with programme beneficiaries to ensure the sustainability of its outcomes.

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 designed to be sustainable in the long term, and relies on partnerships with relevant stakeholders to ensure this. Adequate training of the technical team also ensures its continuity.

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?

Partnerships developed with relevant stakeholders are maintained and renewed each year to ensure structural support. Diverse funding is one of the strengths of the project, as it is co-funded by the Spanish Ministry of Labour and the European Union. It is a project with a long-term perspective.

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)

Nuevos Senderos ensures that key stakeholders – including a network of municipalities interested in receiving migrants and interested parties in the employment sector – are involved at every stage of the integration process.

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?

Building on the long-term success of the Nuevos Senderos project, the practice contributes to discussion around improvements to integration policies through advocacy and awareness-raising at European, national and regional 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?

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?

Participation is considered the basis of the entire project, which is designed to be accessible to all, with individual focal points set through activity selection. Services and activities are open to everyone, including hotel guests, residents, asylum seekers, volunteers, locals and internationals. The restaurant is the main meeting point of the project, and works to bring people together against a backdrop of different cultures and related foods. The project’s framework and activities are flexible and can be easily adapted to the needs of 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?

The receiving society can participate in the project – in so doing benefiting from the cultural exchange – if desired: it is open to everyone and offers many opportunities for (passive) participation. Both building residents and guests can contribute creative ideas to further develop the project.

 

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 project is designed to encourage strong collaboration between and input from asylum seekers, hotel guests, neighbours, and volunteers. The active participation of all those staying at the hotels is explicitly welcomed.

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

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

The practice strengthens the autonomy of its migrant participants through early integration measures such as language courses and support with the search for accommodation. The involvement of migrant participants in the design of the project and its services also serves to empower them, as well as reducing the costs involved for the government in maintaining accommodation.

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 practice aligns with common integration measures and strategies and contributes to the wider integration framework. It collaborates with the migrant counselling service of welfare organisation Diakonie, for example, as well as the government of Swabia, and offers practical support with key integration-related issues such as housing and language. The practice is well-known in the integration environment: it has received much media coverage and has been granted various awards.

 

Good practice checklist

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

✓ 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 was planned via a comprehensive design process involving many actors. It aims to promote new ways of cohabitation and to bring together different parts of society, including through collaboration with local authorities. At the project’s inception, the local community was engaged in discussion around its design and objectives.

 

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?

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?

According to the available information there is no structural funding, but the practice receives project funding and generates its own income through the hotel/hostel, the restaurant, the kiosk and its (online) shop. It also receives support though its long-term cooperation with the local government and Diakonie, although this does not finance the activities and services of the Cosmopolis Grandhotel.

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.

Inclusivity & Participation

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

The practice is focused on refugees and asylum seekers with psychotherapeutic needs. Accessibility for a range of groups is ensured through collaboration with and training of language mediators, interpreters and health mentors who are familiar with both German culture and the culture/language of refugee and asylum seeker communities. This approach is an essential component of the project, ensuring high cultural sensitivity and adaptability. Another key component is its strong collaboration with relevant local institutions.

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 involves and collaborates with relevant local institutions, authorities, and professionals (including counselling services, health actors, therapists, professional networks, volunteers, and the University of Konstanz). It aims to secure simpler, more regular access for refugees and asylum seekers to the public health system (specifically to psychotherapeutic care) by filling certain gaps, such as those relating to interpretation services and cost.

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 carries out regular evaluation of its services and gathers feedback from patients and health mentors, in order to adapt as needed. Health mentors are paid for their work, and refugees and asylum seekers benefit from free access to professional psychotherapy.

 

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 aims to build sustainable cooperation structures between relevant stakeholders, including local health actors, that will enable better analysis of migrants’ specific needs and improve capacity to address them. It is also creating a coordination office through which it will be able to expand its activities.

Good practice checklist

✓ 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?

Migrant patients are empowered through improvements to their psychological health, as well as to their understanding of and access to the German (psychological) healthcare system. In addition, the practice’s health mentors are empowered through greater experience of the treatment of trauma and the specific needs of migrants that have experienced trauma.

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.

✓ 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 promotes and secures the right of migrants to access psychological healthcare. Collaboration with relevant actors promotes integration measures.

Good practice checklist

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

✓ 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 with a clear objective and involves relevant actors from different sectors, ensuring comprehensive support. Since the project is evaluated in scientific studies, indicators are likely to be measurable and achievable. Measures were developed in strong cooperation with the district and the local administration. It employs well-trained professional staff (e.g. psychologists), operates a coordination office, and coordinates the recruitment, training, work and supervision of health mentors and interpreters.

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 project is scientifically supervised and evaluated, including at the individual level in terms of treatment success among patients.

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?

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.

Consortium

Non- EU Partners

Associate

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