Community Center at the Municipality of Athens

The Center initiated its operation in collaboration with the Municipality of Athens in April 2017. The Epikendro Community Center offers free and innovative programs to citizens who have been hit by the economic crisis. The programs give participants the necessary resources (tools, knowledge, skills) so that they can themselves deal with the problems affecting them due to the crisis. During the first few months of operation, 48% of the beneficiaries were over the age of 50, and up until December 2017, the Center served approximately 740 adults. The psychosocial support service offered has shown high visitation and very positive evaluation from the beneficiaries. Apart from individual counseling, the psychosocial support service organizes monthly lectures and workshops on issues that concern beneficiaries. The legal advisory service is a high-value service which assists beneficiaries to solve chronic matters and become more independent. The employment placement service is offered by a business psychologist; the beneficiaries who consistently attend the sessions and who also invest in improving their employment profile (through further training, for example) are the ones that find jobs. Lastly, it is important to state that many adults utilize more than one service, indicating the true need for a multi-faceted approach to the matters that citizens deal with.