ESC: Making a Difference: Volunteering Activities with Children

Associação Juvenil de Peniche was founded in 1990 and since then we have organized many projects in the social, cultural and international areas: Cultural - We develop "cultural weeks", book markets, fashion shows, recycling workshops, theatre and dance workshops and national exchanges. Social - We organize and are responsible for holiday camps, an after school program for 50 children from 6 to 12 years old and we also have created "SPOT", which is a project in the IT area for youngsters from 13 to 18 years old. International - We have developed a lot of work in this field, like Exchanges, Seminars, Study visits and European Voluntary Service. The aims of AJP are: - To support the development of children and young people by promoting the artistic sensitivity for areas such as dance, music, drama and visual arts. - To motivate the children and youth for the acquisition of social competences and healthy habits. -To promote social integration through the implementation of preventative work and to influence attitudes in relation to avoidance of social exclusion. We regularly have projects for children and youngsters every day: - After school Program - 50 children from 6 to 12 years old. - SPOT is a project for 20 youngsters from 13 to 30 years old. In both projects we have developped activities connected with sports, education, environment, arts and social skills. These activities take place in a building that belongs to the city hall. We are part of some local organisms such as: - ADEPE - Organization for the development of Peniche; - CPCJ - Comission for the protection of Peniche's children, with some social situations being taken care by us. - Social Networking - We are also members of the board of this organization, which is responsible for all the social projects and structures in the city of Peniche. In our activities we are supported by the City Hall, Sports and Youth Portuguese Institute and local enterprises. Associação Juvenil de Peniche also has a wide experience in planning and implementing International Youth Exchanges, Seminars, Workshops and specific training activities in Peniche, Portugal, as well as in participating in the same type of projects in other countries. When we don't work as the hosting/coordinating organization but as a partner, we always contribute with our own experiences and know-how.