No wonder! There were more than 23 people from 11 different YMCAs throughout Europe: Belarus, Czech Republic, Iceland, Ireland, Macedonia, Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Switzerland and the UK. The group was truly diverse. Some of the participants were volunteers at their local YMCAs, others were professionals, half of them were women, half men, some younger, some older, some more experienced, some less, all from different corners of Europe. Even our field of work was astonishingly various! Work with homeless people, summer camps, family work, health related projects, environmental protection, scouts etc.
The theme of the training was Supervision in Youth Work. It was led by Dr. Brian Belton, a lecturer and a Professional Practice and Supervision Studies Organiser at the YMCA George Williams College in London, UK. With illustrative examples, discussions and loads of group work we got through the basic steps of supervision. We also got the possibility to try out the roles of a supervisor and a supervisee in practice.
Aims of the training were to introduce and to deepen understanding of the concept of supervision among YMCA youth workers, its advantages and positive impact on youth work, and to enable participants to use the basic supervisory skills in their own settings to the benefit of their YMCAs. We believe, that in the long run, this can lead to improvement in working with volunteers, decreasing their fluctuation and creating more independent and brave volunteers in our YMCAs.
The week was over before we noticed. However, friendships started to emerge long before the end, during late evenings in the geothermal hot tub. We are looking forward to be able to use our practice and training in our daily work for our local organisation. Maybe there will be the possibility to continue with the training one day. Until that day, Facebook and other social media will help to overcome the geographical distances.
The training was financially supported by the grant programme Youth in Action of the European Commission.
Zoe Wunderlin, YMCA Switzerland
Birgir Asgeirsson, YMCA Iceland
Katka Hommel, YMCA Netherlands
If you are interested in supervision, this leaflet can help you start.
