Photo. Agata Kubis
Ocalenie Foundation works on behalf of migrant and refugee children. We strive to provide them with a safe environment to learn, play and develop their potential. Since 2018, we have been running a tutoring and scholarship program, Knowledge to the max, which aims to support the education of refugee youth – primarily those with learning difficulties and at risk of dropping out. For more than 10 years we have been running day care centers in Łomża, and since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine – also in Warsaw. As part of the Help Center for Foreigners, we offer psychological assistance to the youngest. We also run a school support program to help children integrate into Polish schools.
If you are a foreigner seeking assistance, please go to the page for foreigners: centrum.ocalenie.org.pl
Day care center in Łomża
The first and longest-running day care center is the one in Łomża, established more than a decade ago at the Help Center for Foreigners. The day care center is a place to play, learn and develop interests. Each quarter it is attended by about 30 children, and last year there were a total of 162. The kids – currently mainly from Ukraine, Belarus and Chechnya – receive help in learning Polish, doing their homework and preparing for school activities.
The day care center also hosts art, cooking, sports and integration activities. During days off from school, the children participate in excursions, summer camps and other activities organized by the Foundation.
Photo. Damian Lemański
Knowledge to the max
Knowledge to the max project was implemented in cooperation with the BNP Paribas Foundation in 2018. The program aims to support the education of children and youth from refugee families – primarily those with learning difficulties and at risk of dropping out. The program’s participants benefit from learning assistance in the form of individual meetings with a tutor, and, if necessary, tutoring and group classes to prepare for the high school diploma and the 8th grade exam. They also participate in workshops, integration meetings, joint educational and cultural outings. Education specialists are also in constant contact with the families of children in the program, offering them the necessary support.
In 2023, 117 children participated in the program. Each of them can apply for a scholarship for the duration of the school year. It covers the student’s educational needs and school fees (parent council fees, insurance, lunches, trips and textbooks). In 2023, 36 students received scholarships.
Conducting these activities is also possible thanks to the volunteer work of tutors. In 2023, 121 people were involved in tutoring.
Fot. Damian Lemański
Day care centers in Warsaw
There are currently 4 day care centers for migrant and refugee children in Warsaw. Three of them are located in long-term accommodation centers for refugees from Ukraine, and one is located at MAL (Place of Local Activity) and is open to all migrant children, including refugees.
In our day care centers, children receive daily support and care, including help with their education and psychological assistance. The main purpose of working with the children is to support them in the educational process – the children learn Polish with us, prepare for school activities, and receive individual tutoring if necessary. They also participate in outings to cultural institutions and development activities. In 2023, a total of 200 children were enrolled in the day care centers.
The Warsaw day care centers are a natural extension of the intervention activities that the Foundation launched in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, i.e. friendly spaces at reception points and educational points at accommodation centers. Between March 2022 and the end of 2023, several thousand children fleeing the war benefited from them.
Check out the video taken at one of Warsaw’s day care centers!
School support program
The school support program was created to support the integration and adaptation of foreign children and parents, so as to help them find their way in the Polish education system and improve their agency. The program also targets schools, which receive the tools and support they need to create a welcoming, multicultural school environment. As part of the program, schools benefit from the assistance of an intercultural assistant employed by the Foundation, and receive access to educational materials in the children’s native language. We also provide an extensive training package for teaching staff, administrative staff and others working with children. Parents and guardians of foreign children can download a free educational package, available in 3 languages (in Polish, Ukrainian and Russian), which provides a guide to the Polish education system and school life.
Additional support
In September, young people from our regular programs receive school kits, and in December they receive Xmas gifts. In addition to the educational programs dedicated to them, children and young people also receive in-kind assistance, have access to psychological and psychiatric consultations, participate in the Welcome home integration and housing program, and receive medical, material and legal assistance at the Polish-Belarusian border.
>> Go to the page for foreigners to get a better idea of our offer <<
