Escale & YIT: the road to autonomy

Coming of age is a challenge for any young person. For an unaccompanied foreign minor or a young person from an immigrant background, that turning point comes with major administrative, legal and personal complexities.

The Escale project, which includes the European YIT scheme (Youth in Transit), is the third and final phase of our support model: after reception and stabilisation, it offers a safe springboard toward successful social and civic inclusion in Belgium.

Escale is not merely a housing project, it is a place of learning where the young person becomes the main actor of their own future. Autonomous, but never isolated: we give them the tools to stand on their own feet, while keeping an educational and caring safety net around them.

Three pillars carry the work. Supervised housing, a studio or a shared flat, for a gradual immersion in everyday life. A pairing of an educator and a social worker, who supports each young person in their life plan. Local roots, connecting them to their neighbourhood, to schools, sports clubs and mainstream services.

Day to day, the team supports participants on four fronts: managing a budget and their health, schooling and employment (vocational training, CV, interviews, student jobs), following up residency files and dealings with the CPAS as adulthood approaches, and finally citizenship and well-being, through group activities and psychological support to face the traumas of exile.

Are you a professional in the sector (Fedasil, CPAS, AMO) looking to refer a young person, or a citizen who wants to support the project? Get in touch with the Escale team.