Assisted living

Youth Care’s assisted living facility offers a place for 9 to 12 youths from Bonaire, St. Eustatius, and Saba every year. These are youths who find themselves in one of Youth Care’s long-term social programmes, and who are ready to take the next step towards more independence. They cannot go back home because the circumstances, despite the best efforts of social services, remain unchanged in the home environment. It is often the case that problems have piled up in the home environment, meaning that these youths cannot count on the necessary support for the transition from being a youth to an adult.

Intensive counselling

The purpose of the assisted living programme is to enable youths to give direction to their own lives independently within two years. The counselling focusses on:

• Increasing self-reliance
• Independence
• Self-sufficiency
• Learning social, relationship, and practical skills

Counselling ties in closely to Youth Care’s existing social services. Based on a personal plan of approach, youths in the assisted living programme go through three phases. Each phase has its own personal development objectives, and the counselling programme tailors itself towards them. Counselling in the first phase is very much focused on direction. Youths are encouraged to go to school and find a part-time job. In phase two, counselling shifts towards coaching. Youths are given a workshop on work ethic and are properly coached to develop a sense of responsibility and a good work ethic. In phase three, counselling focuses on offering advice. Youths go to work independently and receive advice on issues they face in the workplace.

Accommodation and progression

A two-year pilot programme for assisted living was launched on 15 March 2021. The facility was initially located in an apartment complex at the Kaya Sabana on Bonaire. Together with the housing association Fundashon Cas Bonairiano (FCB), the possibility of developing a new building to continue the project in the future was explored. This has now been achieved, and since February 2024, assisted living has been located in a new building at the Kaya Mendelssohn 20A.

There is a fixed agreement with FCB regarding the progression. After completing the assisted living programme, the youngsters are allocated a residence. During the programme, they have already worked on their independence and are now ready to live independently. The youngsters receive outpatient counselling for a period of time that suits their needs, to support them in this new phase.