Creativity and inclusion at the Adventure Playground of Péri

Looking for one volunteer

Trip type

ESC Volunteering

City + Country

Liège, Belgium

Dates of the next project

From the 1st September 2023 to the 31th of August 2024

Deadline to apply

4th of June 2023 (11:59 p.m.)

Hosting organisation : Terrain d'aventure du Péri

Le Terrain d’Aventure du Péri (The Adventure Playground of Péri) is an organisation, created in 1977. Passionate people, parents and neighbours offered to children a new space of freedom as an alternative to the technical progress and modernity. It is a place dedicated to self-development and community life, a place where children can learn and experiment without pressure.

Every day, between 10 and 60 children gather there to share outdoor games, table games, sheds building, do-it-yourself workshops, cooking activities, artistic projects and gardening. All these activities must help them to develop their autonomy, responsibility, critical thinking and solidarity.

There are also a lot of external visits, residential camps organized outside of the Terrain: trips to the Northern sea, swimming pool, bicycle trips, camping. In summer period (JULY and AUGUST), the Terrain is especially busy and welcomes up to 60 kids every day.

The adventure playground is open to all young people, from 5 to 26 years old but the majority of children and youngsters are between 5 and 17 y.o.

There is no obligation to be active and there is no result to reach in the adventure playground. The most important thing is to share and to exchange with others.

In order to avoid any exclusion for socio-economical reasons, the access to the adventure playground is totally free of charge.

The team is made up of 8 workers, and often welcomes students.

The playground is recognized as a youth centre by the French community of Belgium. It follows a mission of education to an active and responsible citizenship.

Check them on Facebook !

CBB host in total 26 international volunteers around Wallonia. The ESC team of CBB try their best to connect this network of volunteers together through different collective activities and seminars

Support organization : CBB

In addition to this, the hosting organization is supported by the Association des Compagnons Bâtisseurs, aka CBB located in Marche-en-Famenne.

CBB is a nonprofit, apolitical youth organisation recognized and financially supported by the Wallonia-Brussels Federation. We propose different activities based on volunteering and nonformal education: local and international workcamps, short and long term volunteering services (including ESC), leisure time activities for and with disabled people, camp leaders trainings, etc. CBB is active within the different European programs of volunteering and non-formal education since 1997 and also hosts ESC volunteers each year.

CBB’s role as support organisation is to:

Promote the project and links between local and international associations
Support the selection and preparation of European volunteers before arrival
Manage administrative matters such as budget allowances, creation of bank account, enrollment at the municipality, insurance contracts
Write the activity agreement
Provide pedagogical support for the volunteer and the hosting organisation by ensuring the participation to the NA seminars, organising evaluation meetings with the volunteer and the hosting organization to reflect on learning outcomes
Handle practical arrangements, including accommodation, health insurance, French lessons, online language tools, etc.
Create networking activities with all ESC volunteers of the hosting organisations we support

During the project, the volunteer will be all the time in contact with children and young people. They will launch, lead and follow several activities. These can be various and will depend on their ideas, wishes and skills. They will always suppose democratic participation of the children who have the right to choose and to make proposals.

Usual activities in the Adventure Playground are: artistic workshops (painting, sculptures, serigraphy); creative/participative workshops (cooking, sewing, handicraft, shed buildings, storytelling, wild plants preparations); games (outdoor games, sports games, table games); outdoor activities (nature discovering, gardening).

The volunteer will help in the daily maintenance of the Playground (small reparations, painting, grass cutting, cleaning, tidying, gardening…).

The volunteer will participate and help to organize special events. Their help will be needed in organizing projects with other partner organizations: carnivals, city fests, shed symposiums, residential camps. They will also accompany the children during the visits outside: trips to the sea; bicycle trips and many other things.

Together with workers of Adventure and kids, volunteer will also help in keeping the Vegetable Garden and the Green House made up of plastic bottles.

Accommodation in Liège

The Adventure Playground is located in Liège is the second biggest city of the French-speaking part of Belgium after Brussels. In Liège there are 200 000 inhabitants and almost 450 000 more in its surroundings. Liège is known to be one of the most attractive and lively Belgian cities. The city benefits from a very dynamic cultural life thanks to its various artists and associations. The volunteer can discover cultural activities, concerts, festivals and language exchanges.

Liège is an old industrial city that is changing a lot in its adaptation to the 21st century. Well renovated historical areas are mixed with old industrial buildings and very modern architectural projects. It is located on the border of the river “La Meuse”, close to the German and the Dutch borders.

The Adventure Playground in itself is a wonderful green area of 8 000 m² located on the top of the city, not far from the city centre. The playground is full of grass, trees and sheds built by several generations of children. The Terrain is a very informal space where the children can express their creativity freely… it is what we can call a merry chaos (Fr: “Joyeux bordel”).

The country - BELGIUM

Squeezed between the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg and France, Belgium is one of Europe’s tiddlers. The north is flat, with a beach of 65km along the North Sea full of resorts, except for a few patches of windswept dunes. In the south you will not find mountains, but the hilly forests of the Belgian Ardenne. We have 4 seasons well contrasted, cold winter and sunny summer… But be ready to look up to a grey sky at least half of the year.

Despite the rainy clouds, Belgian people are usually warm. A lot of cultural and free events happen during the year, which makes your journey in this little country entertaining and resourceful.

This project will take part in the south of the country where we speak French. Be therefore ready to learn and speak French! Especially as this project involves kids.

Specialities : FRIES, BEERS and FESTIVALS
AREA: 30,518 sq km
POPULATION: 11.420.163 million
CAPITAL: Brussels (pop: 1.191.604)
REGIONS: Flanders (North), Wallonia (South), Brussels – Capital
COMMUNITIES: Flemish, French and German speaking community
LANGUAGE: Dutch (±59%), French (±37%) and German (±1%)
CURRENCY: Euro

Practical arrangements

Working Hours

During winter time the Playground is open 4 days per week: Wednesday: 12h – 18h;
Thursday: 15h30 – 21h (from 18h, only children 12+ are allowed);
Friday: 15h30 – 21h (from 18h, only children 12+ are allowed); on the 3^rd Friday of each month we organize a “welcome parents night” until 22h;
Saturday : 10h – 17h. During school holidays it is open 5 days per week, from Monday to Friday, from 10 am to 5 pm.

The volunteer will have a very flexible schedule: our working times depend on the children’s free time from school: during the winter there are more “dead periods” while in the summer when the activities increase we have A LOT, A LOT to do !

Insurance

You get covered, throughout the activity period, by the obligatory European Solidarity Corps insurance plan (CIGNA) that the European Commission sets up. This coverage is only complementary to the mandatory coverage of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), which you must obtain prior to departure.

In certain cases, when national rules deprive participants from coverage under EHIC for the duration of the placement, CIGNA will provide full coverage. However, you must provide proof that obtaining the EHIC in your case was not possible. You should contact your National Agency for advice on your specific circumstances. You must read carefully the insurance-related information here.

Accomodation

Accommodation: In Liège the volunteer will share a big house with other people, workers and students. You will have your private room. To arrive at the adventure playground and to the city centre in general, the volunteer will use public transportation or, if they prefer to go on foot, they will have to walk more or less half an hour. They can also go by bike, riding more or less 15 minutes (the Terrain can provide the bike if needed). For the night life lovers, it is also important to know that the night buses stop around midnight.

Language course

Online tools + French lesson. We provide an online language course as part of the budget from the Commission. You will need to complete a level test before the activity starts. We encourage you to join free French lessons given in the municipality or around if possible. We recommend that the participant starts practicing French prior to their arrival in Belgium and that they participate in as many activities as possible in order to get better at the language.

Food

You will receive a budget and will prepare your own meals.

Pocket Money

Participation in the European Solidarity Corps is free of charge, except for exceptional contribution to travel costs. You will therefore receive free board and lodging during the whole activity. In addition, you will receive pocket money for personal expenses throughout the duration of the activity, including holidays.

Profile of the volunteer

Aged 18-30 years old
Open-minded, curious, enthusiastic, empathetic
Able to work in a team, with different target groups, and in a multicultural environment
Willing to learn French
Interested in working with children and teenagers
Ready to propose, take initiative, discuss and give your opinion
Flexible in terms of working hours, which do not correspond to a classic schedule
Before departure, being in contact with a support/sending organisation to receive information and preparation
> Look up for a support organisation in your region via this link
Project open to everyone, regardless of their nationality, religion, believes, diploma, or professional experience
Able to give copy of certificate of good conduct related to the work with minors before starting the activity

Beatrice, volunteer in 2018-2019, and Mehmet, volunteer in 2019-2020

“The Terrain d’Aventure du Péri is a place where children can be themselves, where they learn to share, to respect others, to follow their passions and to express their personality and creativity. The animator job is helping them learn to develop their personality and discover their passions and abilities, according to the world around them.”

Beatrice from Italy, ESC volunteer 2019-2020

How to apply ?

Deadline: 4th of June 2023 at 11:59 p.m. (brussels time).

1. In the frame of the new program of the European Commission, the European Solidarity Corps, you first need to create a profile on the new data base: https://europa.eu/youth/solidarity_en (“JOIN THE CORPS”).

2. Answer the questionnaire below (NB: you will be asked to attach a CV at the end of the form)

3. (optional) if you’re feeling creative, please feel free to send us any additional material related to your application: esc@compagnonsbatisseurs.be

The creation of a profile on the ESC portal AND fulfilling the form are compulsory for us to take your application into consideration.

In the days following the deadline, the pre-selected volunteers will be contacted for a skype interview.

ESC Péri / Apply form and motivation letter

Step 1 of 4 - Personal Data

Personnal data
By filling the information below, you provide us with personal information. You are aware of the fact and agree that the pieces of information will be used in the frame of the call for candidates for the Erasmus+ volunteering project. Your personal data will be used by the persons in charge of the selection of volunteers in the sending and coordinating/hosting organizations. Each part mentioned takes the responsibility of erasing the documents containing your personal data once the selection procedure is over.
Name*
Surname Name
PRN
If you already have it: it’s a super long number you receive when you get registered into the PASS.
Email adress*
Birthdate*
Day
Month
Year
Phone number*
Current address*
Street Address City ZIP / Postal Code Country
Will you need to apply for a visa in order to participate in the project?*
Languages spoken*
Please specify which level you have whenever possible
Availability period for the project*
Preference will be given to the volunteers able to join the project for the whole period.
Have you ever taken part in a volunteering project under ERASMUS+?*
- YES
- NO
If yes, what was it and for how long ?
Sending organization (Name, OID number, post address, phone number, contact person’s name and email address)*
What are your (long term) travel experiences?*

Long term

Short term