”Ohjaamo” one-stop guidance centres create new, low-threshold guidance services for young people (25th November 2015)

International conference in the Paviljonki conference centre in Jyväskylä on 26th of November, 2015

The increasing youth unemployment and the decreasing resources for guidance create a need for new forms of co-operation.  In the becoming years there will be multidisciplinary “Ohjaamo” one-stop guidance centres established in Finland. The centres are meant for people below the age of 30. Equivalent forms of services are developed in several European countries.

The new service models of multidisciplinary guidance are discussed in an international conference organised on Thursday, November 26th 2015 in Jyväskylä. In the conference, European experts in guidance present different models for information, advice and guidance services and how technology could be utilised in carrying out these services.

One-stop guidance centres offer easily approachable guidance services

In Finland, the “Ohjaamo” one-stop guidance centres’ wide collaborative networks include third sector organisations, voluntary organisations and other bodies that work with young people.

– The purpose of the centres is to support young people’s attachment to society, education, and work. The key feature in this is the young people’s activeness and their service needs. The young people themselves have an active role in the design and evaluation of the centres and they are highly involved in the daily activities, describes Pasi Savonmäki, the project manager of the Kohtaamo project.

There will be over 30 guidance centres in Finland by the end of 2015. The Kohtaamo project coordinates the national development of the centres and e-Guidance services. The project is coordinated by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy and it is carried out together with several different administrative fields, working life, and third sector parties. The centres will be developed with the support of the European Social Funds as a national development project 2015–2020.

All European countries seek solutions for youth unemployment

In addition to Finnish guidance experts, there are over sixty representatives from other EU countries participating in the seminar. For example, Scottish and Croatian equivalents for the Ohjaamo one-stop guidance centres will be presented. Also Denmark and Estonia have invested in utilizing technology in service availability and channel accessibility. According to ELGPN coordinator Raimo Vuorinen, the increased demand for guidance has sped up the development of co-operation also in Finland.

The conference is organised by the Ministry of Education and Culture, the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, and the European Lifelong Guidance Policy Network (ELGPN) together with the national lifelong guidance group, the Kohtaamo project and the Finnish Centre for Lifelong Guidance Expertise (VOKES).

Further information:

Project manager Raimo Vuorinen, the Finnish Institute for Educational Research, tel. +358 50 361 1909, raimo.vuorinen@jyu.fi

Project manager Pasi Savonmäki, the Kohtaamo project, tel. +358 29 5020 260,
pasi.savonmaki@ely-keskus.fi