Regional development agency Gorenjska, BSC Kranj on 5th and 6th of December 2017 hosted the SENSES Seminar and Study visit.

The seminar started with presentation of legislation on social entrepreneurship in Slovenia and prospects of social enterprises. Director of social enterprise Inovum presented social economy in Slovenia and its internationalization. The rest of the seminar and study visit was dedicated to the presentation of different practices implemented in Slovenia regarding the social enterprises and inclusion of disabled and young people in different programmes.

The prime task of the ŠENT Association is to develop and execute the programs of psychosocial rehabilitation of people with mental health problems, which are carried out in ŠENT's centres for mental health in a community, present in almost all Slovenian regions. Employment is an important part of rehabilitation for people with mental health problems and affects the quality of life of all people. For the execution of programmes in the fields of employment rehabilitation, work training, and employment of people with mental health problems ŠENT founded the social enterprise Dobrovita plus d.o.o., employment centres (Dlan, Karso, and Šentplavž), ŠENTPRIMA – Institute for employment rehabilitation execution and supported employment, and the institute Premiki – Institute for counselling, promotion, and development of accessible tourism Ljubljana.

The main activities of Centre Stonoga are connecting and implementing different activities of leisure time, education, cooperation between generations and more ways of sustainable development.

Employment centre Jelša has been successful in the field of employment, they implement employment rehabilitation programme for which they obtained a concession from the Slovenian Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Affairs. In 2004 they started to contact various companies in the region and after a period of testing of working potentials of employees, they successfully cooperate with several companies. They evaluate the effectiveness of the cooperation on the basis of the continuity of the work, increased workload and gained feedback.

Foundation Vincenc Draksler is an institution for the treatment of addicts, they offer help for them and their relatives; it is the Social enterprise dealing mostly with reuse. In the centre of city Kranj the Foundation is having the shop where they sell the things which are remade for reuse.

Center’s Korak general objective is enabling better quality of life for the persons after acquired brain injury. They help injured persons to return to the life they knew before and teach them how to live and love the life after the injury. Their programme consists of neuro-physiotherapy, work therapy, psychosocial rehabilitation, health care, various pedagogical programmes, including study circles.

In Škofja Loka is Institute Familija implementing the PUM program for young people which are dropouts of the regular school system. They implement different activities and mentor young people with the aim to finish the regular education or enter the labor market.

Art&Craft Centre of Škofja Loka: In Škofja Loka and the wider Gorenjska region, craftsmanship has a long and rich tradition. Nowadays, the bond between the rich past of craftsmanship and today’s creativity is presented in the Art&Craft Centre of Škofja Loka and by the crafts masters who work there. The rich handicraft traditions are preserved; handicraft skills and knowledge are passed on and upgraded with contemporary creativity.

The Kings of the Street is the association which is empowering the homeless in Ljubljana with different programmes and also by a newspaper in which the homeless and their collaborators are publishing; it is the first street newspaper in Slovenia. With their descriptions of life on the street, their poems and stories, as well as news about NGOs and their activities, the lives of the homeless are finding their way into the lives of the more fortunate dwellers of the Slovenian capital. They also offer the tourist guiding through the stories of homeless people.

Zavod pod strehco - Association under the roof is bringing together five humanitarian organizations into a comprehensive humanitarian activity related to better use of food, integrating socially vulnerable into common intergenerational programs in conjunction with local communities in order to facilitate the restoration of the normal living environment of socially endangered families. The institute was established with the aim to run the folk cuisine in Ljubljana. They say that when you eat in their restaurant two people get the lunch.

At the end of the study visits, all the partners of the SENSES project could try the food prepared in the association Zavod pod strehco. 

* Please visit the "Gallery" section for more pictures.