SällBo, intergenerational and multicultural housing to combat loneliness

Publications Bank of innovations

SällBo, intergenerational and multicultural housing to combat loneliness

Helsingborgshem

SallBo Canasta 2 1

Multicultural and multigenerational residential space to combat loneliness and promote social cohesion between generations and cultures. The social housing and integration project provides incentives and areas for residents to interact socially and in company.

The SällBo building, designed by the municipal housing company Helsinborgshem, is intended for people over 70 and under 25. It aims to create a new way of living where the generations can meet within the social life of the center. Beyond that, it is also designed to bring cultures together and promote social cohesion: some of the young people living there are refugees who arrived in the country as unaccompanied minors. The primary objective of the project is none other than to break the involuntary loneliness in which these groups find themselves, especially the elderly and young people who are beginning their process of integration into the host society.

In order to access housing in this building, which is made up of 51 flats for rent, the cost of which is around €400, it is compulsory –and signed by contract– to socialise with other residents for at least two hours each week. Tenants are selected individually through interviews, always prioritising the diversity of profiles and origins.

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

Mixed Living, residents who live with and collaborate with highly vulnerable people

Publications Bank of innovations

Mixed Living, residents who live with and collaborate with highly vulnerable people

Tussenvoorziening

Mixed social housing blocks of flats where homeless and economically vulnerable people live together, which is beneficial for both groups. It facilitates access to housing more quickly for many people while the community activities carried out in the buildings promote social reintegration and break down the social isolation and stigmatisation of homeless people.

Mixed Living is a form of housing in which 70% of the people who live there are on low incomes and in need of social housing and the remaining 30% are people who are vulnerable, usually homeless people who are beneficiaries of the Housing First programme. Both parties must comply with the previously established conditions of commitment and rules, mainly regarding the care of the environment they share. Participating in this social accompaniment programme is advantageous for people in the first group, reducing their waiting time for access to social housing.

It is also clearly favourable for homeless people —and not only, because the programme is also aimed at people with a lack of social network or psychological problems— for whom the contact and cohabitation with other residents facilitates their social reintegration. In this sense, the shared housing enables proximity between the two groups with common meeting spaces that make it easier for them to have coffee, watch a football match or look after the courtyard. The project is supervised by professionals who visit the block of flats at least once a week and are responsible for assessing and managing the functioning of the cohabitation.

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

Mano, an app for social professionals working on the streets and in shelters

Publications Bank of innovations

Mano, an app for social professionals working on the streets and in shelters

Associació AURORE

Free app that facilitates and helps to improve the work of public service professionals working with vulnerable people, on the street and in sheltered areas.

Mano is a freely accessible application for smartphones that allows workers to continuously and closely monitor the people they follow during reception procedures and activities. It also has a web interface for computers. It thus makes it possible to complete and consult the medical-social files of these people, avoiding the loss of information and the need to constantly renew it. In addition, it also allows workers and their respective teams to have all tasks grouped together –those already carried out and planned– and to be alerted to future deadlines and commitments. It also automatically generates anonymous statistics and reports.

All of this guarantees the protection of the data of the people accompanied, which are encrypted and only the people who form part of the monitoring team have access to them. In fact, Mano’s functionalities have been specially conceived and designed by the users who use them and, for this reason, the tool is constantly being improved. The users have been trained by Mano, both on the streets and in the reception areas, as well as in telephone assistance.

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

Résorption-bidonvilles, the digital platform to accelerate slum upgrading and integration in France

Publications Bank of innovations

Résorption-bidonvilles, the digital platform to accelerate slum upgrading and integration in France

Résorption-bidonvilles, Dihal (Interministerial Delegation of Acommodation and Access to Housing)

Information, exchange and management platform promoted by the French government to effectively accelerate the improvement and integration of slums, known in French as bidonvilles. Through this tool, citizens can report on the situation in these neighbourhoods, administrations can follow the progress of the actions being carried out and associations can collaborate in improving the living conditions of their inhabitants. 


This online platform –which is simple, agile and adaptable to the needs of each user– was born out of the realisation that in recent decades, in France, slums have reappeared, where precarious people live in housing that does not meet hygiene and sanitation standards and where basic services (access to water, access to sanitary facilities, waste disposal, etc.) are largely absent. There are currently more than 300 slums in the French Metropolitan Area, where more than 16,000 people live. The social marginalisation of the population living there is alarming: lack of schooling, non-participation in the labour market, neglect and discrimination of all kinds, among others.

The platform aims to transform public action and create a collaborative dynamic, connecting various actors –public administrations involved, landowners, associations that intervene with the inhabitants– that can help to improve precarious neighbourhoods, both at the level of decision-making and implementation. Access to the platform is open, but requests are validated by local administrators. Moreover, actors who have access to the platform can only consult information and report on interventions concerning the territory in which they are registered. Only users registered at the national level –ministries, central administrations or national associative partners– can consult all the data.

However, it is a tool with a global approach that combines social integration, respect for public order and the prevention of resettlement. In this sense, the platform makes the situation of the inhabitants of the bidonvilles visible –although no personal data is ever shared– and strengthens the power of action of each actor on the ground. It also makes it possible to draw up action plans and interventions, facilitate coordination between actors and measure and promote the results of the actions carried out.

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

Startblok, self-managed housing for local youth and young refugees

Publications Bank of innovations

Startblok, self-managed housing for local youth and young refugees

Woonstichting De Key, Ajuntament d’Amsterdam, Socius Wonen

An innovative model that addresses the housing needs of both young people and refugees. It promotes the integration of young people from different backgrounds who have the common goal of an affordable home. It offers them housing at an affordable price and with a secure rent, which allows young people, both locals and refugees, not to be expelled from the city and to be able to access a job or continue their studies.

Startblok Riekerhaven is aimed at Dutch people and refugees between 18 and 28 years of age who want to get actively involved socially. For a much lower price than the market price, Startblok offers self-contained temporary housing –with a kitchen, a bathroom and a toilet– which is variable in size –around 20 m²– and common areas for each residential group, equipped with a kitchen and a balcony. This space allows for the sharing of life experiences and knowledge, thus contributing to the creation of a community respectful of diversity and reinforcing social cohesion. Residents are selected on the basis of their vulnerability and willingness to be involved in the social and cultural aspects of the project and to commit themselves as a long-term member of the community. The maximum tenancy is five years and, when someone moves on, they are replaced by a new resident of a similar profile –gender, age and educational level– to maintain the balance and diversity of the project.

At Startblok, equal and respectful treatment of all residents is key, as well as the coexistence of very different cultures, languages, customs and ways of doing things. The community functions through the self-management and self-organisation of the residents themselves, with spaces to elaborate and implement their initiatives, both for the formation of community and social cohesion and for the day-to-day maintenance of the model, such as the selection of new tenants and the management of applications. It is this way that a comfortable and pleasant living environment is created, where everyone feels welcome, valued and supported; in short, a home. This housing model thus makes it easier for refugees –who have just arrived in a new country– to build friendships and contacts and to rebuild their lives. It is thus an innovative example of how to address the needs of refugees in a positive way, while providing much-needed affordable housing for young people.

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

Espai Obert, an alternative service to institutionalization for people with severe psychosocial disabilities.

Publications Bank of innovations

Espai Obert, an alternative service to institutionalization for people with severe psychosocial disabilities.

Fundació Support-Girona Foundation and Healthcare Assistance Institute (IAS)

Alternative resource to institutionalization for people with severe psychosocial disabilities, which offers them social and health support based on the pact and their free will to use the services of the facility.

It is aimed at people who are in a situation of social exclusion and even homelessness, due to mental and behavioral disorders or substance abuse problems, and who have no family or social support or financial resources,

Espai Obert aims to reduce the stigma of these people and overcome the barriers that stand in the way of their social and community inclusion. The intervention methodology is based on low demand and free use.

As a first phase of intervention, the aim is to cover the basic needs of hygiene and food. Therefore, the service is equipped with a kitchen, living and dining room, washing machines, patio and shower and hygiene areas, and the users participate in the routines of the center (preparing meals, laundry, taking care of the garden…). Once this first phase has been achieved, a bond of trust is built, in order to work on the development, skills and well-being of each person, as well as socialization with other people in the space and other resources in the area.

This pioneering intervention model is one of the tools to be deployed in Catalonia in the process of reconversion and transformation of long-stay psychiatric hospitalization with functional recovery and life project units based on the successful experience of the counties of Girona, where in 2004 the long-stay psychiatric hospital in the former Salt Psychiatric Hospital was closed, generating a network of community mental health and addiction services, with alternative resources.


Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

The Access Hub, a multi-institutional support center for homeless people

Publications Bank of innovations

The Access Hub, a multi-institutional support center for homeless people

Simon Community

An innovative multi-institutional counseling and support center for homeless people. It is a space designed to ensure that users feel that their well-being is a priority and to make it easier for them to obtain the accompaniment and support they need.

The key to the center is the participation of more than 20 organizations, all of which offer their services under one roof. This removes many bureaucratic barriers that often hinder access to critical services. In addition, the organizations’ partners are in contact and work more efficiently, offering solutions with multiple viewpoints, even in the most difficult circumstances. Users can access more than 40 supports provided by a wide range of experts, from financial and legal support, to digital, health or wellness advice.

Just walking into the building, the user meets a person instead of a reception desk. The goal is to offer a space of connection and tranquility, giving a welcoming and comfortable feeling to ensure a safe and comfortable place. To achieve this feeling, the space has high quality furniture and finishes. Colors are chosen in a way that is not over the top, but with originality and awareness.

The center hopes to break the mold of the usual service delivery by offering a space that is easily accessible, modern and adapted to the needs of the users.

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

One View, a predictive and preventative homelessness system

Publications Bank of innovations

One View, a predictive and preventative homelessness system

London Borough of Barking and Dagenham

Predictive system that allows social services to anticipate, prevent and reduce homelessness in the territory.

The One View system analyses the data set related to services for adults, children and homeless people. The analytical model includes data on income, benefits and schools, and obtains a comprehensive overview of citizens and households in the territory in order to identify existing risk situations that may lead to homelessness in the near future.

One View enables this preventive approach by using advanced analytical models to identify people at risk, with the aim of detecting potential problems 6 to 9 months before a crisis. In addition, the service provides long-term monitoring, so that social services can also evaluate the effectiveness of the interventions put in place, and adjust them. The specialised software provides robust information governance and security, with strict protocols that determine access levels.

The service enables the district to achieve three objectives. The first is to improve the quality of life of residents by providing the necessary contact and assistance when needed. Secondly, a prevention of evolving needs with better informed and targeted interventions. In other words, social service professionals in the district have a unique view that allows them to select the most appropriate and effective course of action in each case. Finally, it contributes to the management of the demand for social and housing services, generating savings due to the combination of improved interventions and predictive information to identify at-risk situations.

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

Social Hotel for drug addicts in a homeless situation

Publications Bank of innovations

Social Hotel for drug addicts in a homeless situation

ABD (Welfare and Development Association)

Hotel Social per a persones drogodependents en situació de sensellarisme

Daniela and Paola, two residents of the Social Hotel

A low-demand temporary residential center for drug addicts who spend the night on the street. It is a pioneering and unique residential resource in Spain, which offers accommodation and coverage of basic needs, as well as a space for professional accompaniment to enable supervised substance use.

It is estimated that 30% of homeless people in the city of Barcelona are drug addicts, a fact that prevents them from accessing the network of shelters and municipal housing for the homeless. In addition, living on the street implies a state of enormous uncertainty and precariousness that hinders any voluntary process of abandoning substance use. Therefore, these people find themselves inside a wheel from which it is very difficult to get out. That is why the ABD Social Hotel does not require abstinence from addictions to enter the center, but offers individualized monitoring of each drug-dependent person without imposing any commitment or specific starting point.

The Social Hotel, which at the beginning of 2022 ABD has been moved to a hotel located in the Horta-Guinardó neighborhood of Barcelona that had been closed due to the drop in tourism caused by Covid-19, has a capacity for 50 people and has single rooms, a dining room and multipurpose rooms, among which there is a room open for those residents who need to consume. In the room there are nurses, psychologists and sometimes a doctor, as well as the necessary material to do so with maximum hygienic guarantees. It is, therefore, an environment in which professionals and users establish relationships of trust that facilitate recovery and personalized follow-up.

Another of the innovative aspects of this new Social Hotel in comparison with other resources is that the shelter works with a gender perspective, since 50% of the places are reserved for women and it has non-mixed spaces and groups to work on gender violence. It also has spaces for people with reduced mobility and places for victims of gender violence.

In short, it is a project that works for the social inclusion of people who are doubly socially excluded: homeless and drug addicts.

The Social Hotel opened during the pandemic, in 2020, in a provisional facility, and since 2022 it has a permanent building in a former hotel. After a year and a half in operation and with 200 residents already having passed through, the professionals of the Social Hotel have been able to note a substantial improvement in the emotional state and health of the residents, some of whom have made a satisfactory transition to other, more autonomous accommodations.

ADB Associació Benestar i Desenvolupament

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence

Entourage, a citizen support network for homeless people

Publications Bank of innovations

Entourage, a citizen support network for homeless people

Entourage

A cell phone application that puts homeless people in contact with other people in the neighborhood or city, to break the spiral of loneliness in which they find themselves and their lack of social relationships.

Entourage is a collaborative network that strengthens the community contacts of homeless people, since the lack of relationships, invisibility and little attention are elements that prevent them from living a life of dignity. In addition, it helps to fight stereotypes, fear and lack of knowledge among citizens about how to act in this type of situation.

The application also has a solidarity guide that offers geolocated information on associations that offer services to the group. Entourage does not intend to be a network of only material help, but a network of egalitarian relationships that allows the humanization of both parties.

Entourage also ensures the protection of the data of the people who participate, as well as the obligatory nature of consent when creating a solidarity action towards the people who receive help. In addition, it has a system of moderation and verification of profiles that can delete content if it is not appropriate.

Entourage

Banc d’innovacions

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND, an application to stimulate the social cognition of children with ASD

AutisMIND is a mobile application that enhances the ability to empathize with others in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork, social workers who assist young people through the Internet

Digital Streetwork is an initiative that moves street work with youth to the Internet
BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS, accompaniment to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction

BRUS is an accompaniment program to young people who live in families with situations of drug addiction
App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada, support against gender-based violence for women with disability

App Morada is an application that helps and guides women with disability and victims of gender-based violence