Timeline
10s
10s
A decade of rapid change is moving the YMCA Valletta towards its current incarnation. The 2010s encompass new locations from which we offer our services, new ways we formalise what we do, new collaborations and allies, and new ways of presenting ourselves to the world. From 2019 onwards, YMCA Valletta becomes known as YMCA Malta.
New Shelter Premises (2016)
YMCA Valletta’s shelter ‘Dar Niki Cassar’ moves from premises in Valletta to a new location in Msida, partly owned by the Housing Authority. The inauguration is presided over by Former President of Malta Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca and Mr. Ed Eggink representing YMCA Europe.
The Former President of Malta calls for up-to-date statistics on homelessness in Malta stating: (the number of referrals to the local YMCA) ‘Shows us the urgency to really know what is happening in this sector and why it is happening.’
The trend is alarming; in the year preceding the inauguration of the new premises, a total of 4,391 total bed nights are offered at DNC. In 2016 the number increases to 7,061 and in 2017 the total increases again to 8,283 bed nights. It rises again to 8,959 in 2018, and then jumps to 10,599 in 2019. Within 5 years of this decade, the number of bed nights at our shelter increases 141%.
Out with the Old…
In with the New…
A New ‘Dar Niki Cassar’ (April 2016)
YMCA Valletta Manifesto (2018)
Announcing its vision, motivation and programmes to the world, as well as some key findings to date, YMCA Valletta publishes a manifesto in 2018.
YMCA Europe Strategy 2016-20 (2016)
Adopted in Madrid against a backdrop of polarisation around the 2015-16 Refugee Crisis, the return of populism to Europe and the Brexit Referendum, YMCA Europe Strategy 2016-2020, recognises the need to adapt to a changing context. It aims to strengthen the YMCA movement in Europe and to raise its profile on the basis of its inclusive Christian roots. YMCA Valletta signs up with gusto.
YMCA Valletta Formally Becomes YMCA Malta (2019)
Since the 80s, YMCA in Malta has operated under distinct programmes and services related to its local areas of operation, and the nature of work carried out. Due to the relatively small size of our islands, the Board votes in 2019 in favour of rebranding the YMCA Valletta (formerly a local YMCA) as the nationally-oriented YMCA Malta. This aligns us better with the structure of other YMCA organisations in the Movement. We now officially perform as a Social Work Service Agency, a Youth Work Agency and a Housing Association.
New Face (2019)
Sponsored by the Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector under the Small Initiative Scheme (SIS), ‘Strengthening the Y’ rebrands YMCA Malta; promoting its Four Programmes and ongoing projects online for the first time helps attract a new volunteer base and sees total volunteer hours increase from 11,625 in 2018 to 16,161 in 2019. The website also helps promote visibility with fellow national and international, public and private allies.
Four Programmes (2016)
To consolidate the services we offer, we begin operating through Four Programmes, each distinct yet overlapping in nature. This forms part of our first five-year strategy, commencing in 2016. Much of this work has been going on at the Maltese Y since its inception; however now its projects and their desired outcomes are formalised. We begin using our trademark four coloured triangles, each one representing one of the following Programmes:
Wellbeing Programme
Part-and-parcel with preventing homelessness from occurring in the first place, individual and group wellbeing activities, workshops and psychotherapy and counselling sessions are offered––both at our shelters and out in the broader community. They nurture empathy, respect and solidarity.
Youth Empowerment Programme (YEP!)
One of the very first programmes of the Maltese Y, the Youth Empowerment Programme (YEP!) is relaunched in April 2016 as youth-led youth work, focussing on preventive measures to ensure long-lasting individual and social wellbeing. It is divided into five pillars:
Education: Offers workshops, conferences and trainings, as well as hands-on learning at our shelter.
Outreach: Mentors and coaches young individuals to in turn become advocates for their peers themselves.
Research: Gives youth a voice by finding out what their specific societal needs are and publishing them in the form of research and white papers.
Psychotherapy: Offers time and space for self-reflection and trauma recovery by providing young users of our residential facility with free psychotherapeutic sessions and interventions. It also provides free psychotherapy to the general public, as well as ongoing support and coaching to our staff and employees.
Sustainability: Involves young people in fundraising, collaborative projects with our partners in the field, as well as opportunities to network with those in the public and private sectors.
Social Business Programme
Working mainly with the private sector, though collaborating heavily with fellow nonprofits, this programme ensures the financial sustainability of YMCA Malta in order for it to achieve its project outcomes.
Residential Programme
Folding into our longest standing official project––The YMCA Homeless Project (1995)––this programme provides both the physical location of the ‘Dar Niki Cassar’ homeless shelter, along with material, and immaterial support in the form of food, clothing and others essential donations through the YMCA Emergency Food Distribution Programme (currently the Needs Support Programme), as well as psychosocial, educational and vocational support.
Relaunch of YMCA Psychotherapeutic Services (2016)
As part of the Wellbeing Programme, a new collaboration in 2016 between the Maltese YWCA & YMCA relaunches our long-standing psychotherapeutic services to the vulnerable who otherwise cannot afford mental healthcare. These sessions are given by volunteering psychotherapists and counsellors, at first at premises hosted by the YWCA in Msida.
In 2019 the service grows to offer a total of 506 counselling and mental healthcare sessions. YMCA Malta also begins collaborating with the local Council of Pieta, and commences work in this locality. Sessions are also carried out on location in our homeless shelter.
Y’PAUSE (2012)
A self-support group is initiated in 2012 as a joint programme between our shelter ‘Dar Niki Cassar’ and the community work carried out from YMCA’s Head Office––previously the Drop-In Centre and Internet Café. Its mission is to support vulnerable people who have experienced homelessness or other challenges by creating an environment where mutual experience offers understanding, support and growth. Shelter residents initiating their disengagement process are referred to Y’CARE, with many still joining sessions long after they have transitioned back to independent living.
YMCA Malta Youth Hostel (2019)
YMCA Malta inaugurates an accommodation service in Valletta for international students, volunteers, interns, and tourists as part of its Social Business Programme. In its first year of operation, it offers 955 bed-nights. All profits are used to fund our services
‘Ikla tal-Ħbieb’ (Dec 2017)
Whilst our services and programmes become more officially chartered and coordinated, YMCA Malta never forgets its grass roots activism and the joy of bringing people together.
Videos: Top right: Art exhibition in aid of YMCA Valletta presented by Charmaine Xuereb at Head Office (2019) Top right: A simple way to educate people on homelessness has volunteers create an animation film illustrating how it can occur (2019)
Team Building (Feb 2019)
Although we are an island…No one is an island…or so the old proverb goes. We rely immensely on like-minded allies and this decade sees us deepen ties with historic partners, and forge ahead with new ones.
Videos: Top right: ‘Best Team’ Award is presented to staff and volunteers at ‘Dar Niki Cassar’ during the Premju Nazzjonali Ħaddiema tas-Sena Ceremony (Dec 2018) Bottom right: Compilation video made in tribute to YMCA Volunteers throughout the years.
Internships & Student Placements
Since our earliest days we have taken on interns and student placements; they offer us endlessly new perspectives from across the world, and in turn, those who come and join us are offered crucial first-hand experience in these fields:
Social Work
Psychology
Youth Work
Care Work
Administration
Business & Management
Maintenance
In 2019 the joining procedure for this kind of cooperation was formalised: all students whose placement exceeds 20 weekly hours and lasts more than 6 months are appraised by peers. Below is an extensive list of collaborating schools and higher institutions that work with us:
French Civic Service at YMCA Malta (2016)
YMCA Malta has been collaborating with YMCA France and the French Government since 2016 on an initiative that sees French participants hosted by the Y working predominantly at ‘Dar Niki Cassar’. They are offered mentorship and hands-on experience, with mandatory one-on-one check-ins to ensure they stay mentally fit whilst serving the most vulnerable among us.
YMCA Europe General Assemblies
Held annually in a different YMCA host country, over 100 delegates meet up to continue strengthening local and national YMCAs, and YMCA Europe. Malta sends a delegation every year and 2018 sees YMCA Valletta Board Member elected to the YMCA Europe Executive Committee.
THINK Days
YMCA Malta holds 3 THINK days annually with staff and volunteers, offering them a chance to reflect on their work and lay out upcoming projects together.
Conference at Hilltop Gardens (2019)
Y’s Friends and YMCA Malta hold a conference called ‘Do you know about Homelessness in Malta?’ at aged-care facility Hilltop Gardens. Former President of YMCA Europe and Member of the Executive Committee of the World Alliance of YMCAs Mr. Ed Eggink is guest speaker.
SKOP Workshops (June 2017)
SKOP Workshops (June 2017)
YMCA Valletta takes part in Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) workshops with fellow Maltese NGOs and local councils. Along with several other youth agencies and Floriana Local council, we win Best Collaborative Proposal.
S.A.F.E. Programme (Oct 2018)
Y’s Friends and YMCA Malta hold a conference called ‘Do you know about Homelessness in Malta?’ at aged-care facility Hilltop Gardens. Former President of YMCA Europe and Member of the Executive Committee of the World Alliance of YMCAs Mr. Ed Eggink is guest speaker.
European Victim Association Conference (Nov 2018)
Held in the aftermath of the 2015 Saint-Denis & Paris terrorist attacks, this conference at Paris Town Hall explores the concept of ‘resilience’. It invites attendees from over 27 NGOs to discuss individual and collective responses, and regeneration in the wake of tragedy. YMCA Malta attends and presents a speech delivered by CEO Anthony Camilleri.
YEP! in Toulouse (July 2017)
A forever advocate for youth in Malta, we use this decade to further proliferate our vision for more youth opportunities across all sectors.
YMCA Leadership Trainings
YMCA Malta has been collaborating with YMCA France and the French Government since 2016 on an initiative that sees French participants hosted by the Y working predominantly at ‘Dar Niki Cassar’. They are offered mentorship and hands-on experience, with mandatory one-on-one check-ins to ensure they stay mentally fit whilst serving the most vulnerable among us.
YMCA Leadership Academies
The Leadership Academy Project is a tool of YMCA Europe created to assist national YMCA movements in developing the talents and skills of their young leaders. YMCA Malta participates in Academies hosted in Paris and Svätý Jur (Slovakia). We also proudly host the Academy at the Y in Malta in 2017.
Youth Exchanges
Over the course of this decade youth from Malta, Germany, and France meet for one week each in their respective home countries to dive into a chosen theme. The exchange in Bochum, DE focusses on civic engagement. Three Maltese youth are offered the chance to work on an urban plan to convert an old football ground into a multigenerational hub for the community. They also compose and record a rap song––‘Isma’ (‘Listen’ in Maltese). The video is at the right.
YEP! Informal Youth Education
Since our very beginning, workshops, talks and activities have been on offer in primary and high schools, as well as tertiary institutions, public spaces, and on our own premises. It may be that we have offered our services ourselves, that we’ve been requested to speak, or we are hosting a visiting international delegation; these endeavours all fall under Informal Youth Education––part of the Education Pillar of the YEP! Programme, and a key initiative of our Prevention Services.
Run by permanent staff, and volunteers, these educational opportunities cover a very broad range of topics and socially-relevant issues: from the brutal reality of homelessness, to drug addiction, responsible use of technology, how to cook nutritious food, yoga & pilates, mindfulness, leadership and environmental sustainability––there is never a shortage of educational opportunities.
Ten Sing (2019)
Rhythm of Life
Rhythm of Life and SoundLabs extend the original mission of Ten Sing to use sound experimentation and creativity a means of self-empowerment and expression. Rhythm of Life encompasses a total of 12 workshops.
SoundLabs
The Sharing Lives service from Aġenzija Sapport, and the Youtheme Foundation help us purchase 5 electronic musical instruments. The beneficiaries of these sessions are mostly young people with Aġenzija Sapport. 3 workshops are carried out for SoundLabs.
Celebrating the Closing of ‘Rhythm of Life’ (2019)
YMCA Malta holds a unique place in Maltese society; over 17 years of collecting data on homelessness on the islands––a role held by no one else––offers us insight into trends in access to decent, affordable housing, as well as the reasons people continue to fall through the gaps.
We regularly publish findings from our experience in the field in the form of research and white papers. We are also an indispensable go-to for academics searching for a reliable source of information in this area of study.
Video: This short promo summarises our Anti-bullying Campaign for 2019, which can be viewed in full here.
Awareness Campaigns
Our ongoing Awareness Campaigns serve our mission by illuminating the causes we fight for in a creatively engaging and factually informative way. Specific to our projects at any given time, we publish our campaigns on social media and through traditional print media–––be it a campaign to bring more youth voices into the public forum, a campaign on the real-time causes of homelessness, or one to save Malta’s bees––we need the public on our side, and use these outlets to draw attention to what we are doing for the community.
Y’Visible (2019)
We launch Y’ Visible in 2019 to mediate the large number of referrals we receive that we cannot accommodate in our shelter. Popular localities and the peak times to encounter homeless individuals are studied and then our team hits the streets to supply vulnerable people sleeping rough with food, drinks, warm blankets vital information resources.
Newsletter (2017)
‘Highlights from YMCA Malta’ is our monthly newsletter. First launched in June 2017. It features a summary of the happenings at the Y over the past month, inviting receivers to interact with our services, help our cause, and join our events.
Weekly Job & Property Bulletin (2019)
This resource is pulled together from many sources by YMCA Malta staff, and disseminated weekly by email to partner NGOs, who assist their clients in finding suitable employment and accommodation.
Violence in the Lives of Homeless Women (2019)
Commissioned by YMCA Malta and conducted by Outlook Coop, this qualitative research funded by the Malta Council for Voluntary Sector under the Voluntary Organisations Project Schemes (VOPs), examines the lives of 10 homeless women with the aim of shedding light on domestic violence as a major cause of homelessness. The findings are turned into three documents:
National Strategies to Fight Homelessness and Housing Exclusion (2019)
The European Social Network (ESN) was established in 2014 as an initiative by the European Commission to provide high-quality and timely independent information and expertise on EU and broader European social policy issues. YMCA Malta, together with Fondazzjoni Dar il-Hena, helps bring this report to light.
The Citizen’s Booklet (2019)
This handy YMCA publication is a go-to for all matters on coming to and living in Malta. Everything from citizenship and housing, to education and accessing social services is listed in one place, alongside all services offered by YMCA Malta
‘Home is…’ Publication and Conference (2019)
Written by Ms. Therese Cini Sarreo, this moving publication featuring photography by Ms. Gwennaelle Viard, expresses the desires of those experiencing homelessness to go beyond simply having somewhere to live. ‘Home is…’ explores what it means to have and feel at home. A ceremony presided over by H.E. Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, President Emeritus of Malta, brings this important work to the public.
Video: This short advertisement illustrates the care and creativity present in this publication. It is used to promote the sale of this edition, with all proceeds going back into our programmes.
