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The city of Ostend is located in the Belgian province of West Flanders and has approximately 71,647 inhabitants. The centre for Social wellbeing (Onthaal Welzijn) is a collaborative initiative between the CAW North West Flanders and the City of Ostend. This cooperation aims to provide social support and to guarantee every citizen's access to basic economic, social and cultural rights.

Main Areas of Work

  • Children and young people
  • Children at risk of social exclusion
  • Homeless
  • Elderly 
  • People with addiction 
  • People with physical disabilities
  • People with mental disabilities 
  • Mental health
  • Public Health
  • Social justice
  • People who are socially vulnerable
  • People in situations of difficulty or precarity
  • Victims of domestic abuse
  • Gender equality
  • Counteracting and supporting victims of gender-based violence
  • Migrants
  • Social Integration
  • Beneficiaries of minimum income
  • Poverty
  • Recipients of care

Responsibilities/ Services

  • Providing social services
  • Transformation of care models
  • Promotion of systemic change
  • Role of the social worker 
  • Integration of technological tools 
  • Issuing of guidelines and policies for the district’s councils 
  • Capacity building and training 
  • Professional training 
  • Training of social welfare workforce 
  • Research and development 
  • Conducting inspections 
  • Maintaining networks for managers and social workers 
  • Management of public nursing homes and day centres for the elderly 
  • Home care services for the elderly and dependent people 
  • Residential services for victims of gender-based violence 
  • Socio-educational services for children at risk of social exclusion 
  • Specialised intervention services as meeting points for children, victims of violence, and their families 
  • Consulting services and specialised studies for local governments regarding elderly facilities
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City of Ostend