FLAGSHIP PROGRAMMES
National Network
Lithuania
Address
Vilniaus gatvė 20Country
City
VilniusMobile Phone
+37068753720Telephone
068753720E-Mail (2)
info@manoguru.ltE-Mail (3)
info@manoguru.ltE-Mail (4)
info@manoguru.ltYear of Establishment
2004Contact Person1
Reda SutkuvienėContact Person 2
Reda SutkuvienėOrganisation Type
Public InstitutionFields of Activity
OthersGeneral Information
The public institution "Social Support Projects" (hereinafter - VŠĮ SPP) is a non-profit organization. The income earned and other funding received are exclusively allocated to fulfilling the institution's mission and expanding its activities. The institution's mission is to reintegrate individuals experiencing social risk and social exclusion into society and the labor market. VŠĮ SPP manages the café "Mano Guru," which was the first café in Vilnius without tobacco and alcohol, and has sustained itself for 22 years as a food supplier actively promoting a healthy lifestyle by providing high-quality and competitive public catering services. VŠĮ SPP was the first social business institution of its kind in Lithuania, providing reintegration services through the public catering sector. In the café "Mano Guru," individuals with dependencies on psychoactive substances, those released from incarceration, and other socially at-risk individuals are employed. After gaining work experience and social skills, they are directed to work in the open labor market upon completing their training.
Mission and Objectives
The existing infrastructure of VŠĮ SPP, the café "Mano Guru," serves as a platform for teaching social and professional skills to people in exclusion (often those who have never worked before), forming their work and social skills (such as taking responsibility, honesty, punctuality, precision in carrying out their functions, team functionality, collaboration, emotional control, understanding work discipline, etc.) and professional skills, learning professions in demand in the market like chef, bartender, and waiter. About 15 individuals are trained at the institution at any one time. Comprehensive services are provided to all participants: psychological and social worker consultations, theoretical and practical professional training at the workplace, assistance in job placement after training, and social services such as temporary housing and help in settling debts with bailiffs. Each participant has an individual integration plan. Summarizing the results of all implemented projects, the institution has provided services to more than 800 individuals over its entire operational period. Most of these individuals have successfully integrated into society and the labor market: they have found employment in other city businesses, started paying taxes, and settled their debts.
Main Projects / Activities
Participants from target groups are engaged in the integration process, learning to function normally in society, earn legal income, pay off debts, and deal with their often criminal backgrounds. According to project participants, they understand that "working is better than stealing." Therefore, our project means fewer crimes and thefts and more social peace and tranquility in society. It is important that social integration is sustainable and long-term, achieved when participants acquire professions in demand in the open market and can genuinely integrate into the labor market: find a job, retain it, and build a life with legal income.
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