Concordia Auvergne is coordinating this EVS project which will be hosted by our partner: the Youth Service of Saint Pourçain.

The association of local authorities of St Pourç ain is a public organisation grouping together 28 municipalities. It manages various departments and policies for the whole territory, including the youth sector.

Its educative project aims to guide people from their childhood, in their familial and self fulfilment. Main goals are:

- Integration of youngsters by informing them about the opportunities they have, and by developing these opportunities locally, particularly in the socio-cultural field.

- Empowerment, raising awareness and prevention of risks toward youngsters.

- Participation and involvement of young people in the actions of the youth sector.

There is a strong will not to substitute the family but to support it in its educative approach.

To implement the district's youth policy, the Youth Service has the equivalent of 10 full time jobs (6 permanently contracted members of staff and some others).

The association of local authorities of St Pourç ain groups together 28 municipalities, more than 16, 600 inhabitants. It is located in the Allier department (Auvergne region), in a rural area.

The main town (where the Youth Service and the volonteer's accommodation are located) is St-Pourç ain-Sur-Sioule. It is a town of 5 200 of inhabitants, 25 km from Vichy (26 000 inhabitants), 60 km from Montluç on (40 000 inhabitants), and approximately 100 km from Clermont-Ferrand (140 000 inhabitants).

Regular bus lines link St Pourç ain and Vichy, Montluç on and Clermont-Ferrand. The closest train station is located in Gannat.

The association of local authorities of St Pourç ain manages various services and policies for the territory, including the youth field. Activities and the hosting of the EVS volunteer are embodied in this policy, directed by the Youth Service.

A school campus gathering 700 pupils (400 in high school, 300 in middle school), plus several primary schools are settled in the territory.

St-Pourç ain-Sur-Sioule owns a wide net of associative organisations (sport, culture, youth, solidarity, etc.), a cinema-theatre, a showroom, etc.

More information on the district is available on these websites: https://www.payssaintpourcinois.fr/ https://www.comcompayssaintpourcinois.fr/ https://www.ville-saint-pourcain-sur-sioule.com/

The main role of the volunteer will be to bring a European and intercultural opening to the Youth Service's actions (and of its partners, particularly the schools).

Furthermore, the Youth Service has been involved for several years in international youth actions (exchanges, workcamps, etc.). Thus the volunteer will be involved in this and will be able to bring a new dynamic to these actions (mobilisation of young people, search for partners, leading of a workcamp, etc.).

The volunteer will have an active role in the project, with a level of autonomy adapted to her/his needs. However she/he will always be supported by a professional of the Youth Service in her/his tasks. The volunteer will have referent persons from the Youth Service and from the school campus, in order to coordinate the project's different activities and to assure her/his well-being.

The main roles of the volunteer will be directly linked to running activities, raising awareness and mobilising the young people of the district concerning specific topics (mobility, european and active citizenship, interculturality, etc.), and federative projects (in particular youth workcamps, EVS, exchanges).

Thus the volunteer will participate in global activities led by the Youth Service. She/he will first take part, then suggest activities in accordance with the Youth Service staff.

Her/his interventions can occur during various times, and mainly:

- in the Leisure Centre for the 3 to 17 year olds,

- in the Youth Meeting points for the 11 to 25 year olds.

Activity times happen mainly on Wednesdays, Saturdays and during holidays. The rest of the time, the volunteer will prepare the activities and study the feasibility of setting up new projects. Indeed, after a period of observation, the volunteer will have the opportunity to suggest his own activities and project which will promote mobility, European and active citizenship.

The goal is to bring open-mindedness towards the world to the young people of the district, and also mobility and interculturality, through regular contact with a young European volunteer and participation in related activities.

Moreover, the volunteer will get involved in youth projects led by the Youth Service, according to her/his wishes and profile. These missions can be:

- Participation in the presentation of workcamps, EVS, exchanges, in the middle and high schools of St-Pourç ain;

- Motivating young people to get involved in the projects;

- Working with these young people in order to involve them in the various steps of the project;

- Preparation of young people for an intercultural exchange.

Beyond these missions, the volunteer will occasionally be able to get involved in other activities. So, during the events of the Youth Service, the volunteer can participate with the rest of the staff in their activities. If some specific topics interest the volunteer, she/he can become more involved.

The volunteer will intervene in some of the district's primary schools in order to present her/his culture, country, and project in France.

The volunteer will be able to discover the different services of the " Communauté de Communes", the tourism service for example. But the EVS project will always stay directly linked to the Youth Service, in every aspect of the hosting.

The volunteer will also have the opportunity to receive a leadership training called “BAFA” (Brevet d’aptitude aux fonctions d’animateur.) In this way, at the end of the volunteering period, she/he might be a leader on a Concordiaworkcamp.

The volunteer will be supported by a professional member of the Youth Service staff in each of her/his tasks.

The first month of service will be dedicated to discovery, observation of how the centre functions and involvement in the staff's actions. Then, step by step, the volunteer will be encouraged to offer her/his ideas which will be carefully considered by the staff. If they effectively match with the Youth Service's goals and are approved by the team, they will be confirmed. The volunteer will be able to manage a personal project and will be supported in creating it, for example during out of school times.

The volunteer will work 30h per week. She/he will mainly work during the activity times adapted to a young audience. She/he may occasionally have to be available on some Saturday afternoons. During holidays also, her/his planning will be adapted to specific activity times.

^Ø Activity period: From September 2016 to September 2017 (12 months)

^Ø Working Hours: The volunteer will work approx. 30 hours per week

^Ø Working and living conditions: Accommodation and food will be provided. The volunteer will beaccommodated in the School campus in St Pourç ain-sur-Sioule, which neighbours the Youth Service. He/she will have his/her own room and he/she will have shared bathroom/kitchen with 1 another young person. In addition the volunteer will get pocket money (115€ per month). Internet access will also be available.

^Ø The volunteer will be individually followed by a dedicated mentor from Concordia (the organisation that also coordinates the global EVS project).

Location of Auvergne in France

Clermont-Ferrand Vichy