The final conclusive conference on the project "Another Space for the Children from the Home" financed by the EU program PHARE BG 2004/016-711.01.02 "Deinstitualization through provision of community-based services to risk groups" took place on June 18th in "Chervenata Kyshta".

A revision of the results from the project was made, the basic diffuculties faced by the team of the project were mentioned, and future goals for the Centre were pointed out. The experience and the overall impression from the past 16 months of implementation of the project, as well as the cooperation between the teams of SAPI and the staff from the Home were shared by Irina Georgieva (a psychologist in the Home) and Iva Veselinova (a trainer in the Home).

In addition, reviewed were part of the group programs and some of the workshops that took place in the Home for Children Deprived of Parental Care "Petko R. Slaveikov" such as, for example, the Music Therapy (leader - Ivelina Balcheva), the "Group for Social Skills", the "Art Therapy" (leaders - internship students from the University of Tolouse, France), etc. Emotions were stirred within all of the participants when the brief movie about the children from the Home and the team from the Centre directed and put together by the fourteen-year-old Martin Rohani who lives in the Home was played. Presented was also the program "Social training through experience and cooperation" whose inventor and leader is Genadii Matveev. An exhibition of wooden art pieces created by the children participating in this program was also a part of the conference.

Mrs. Ivaila Ivanova, the main expert in the Directorate "Social Activities" to the Sofia Municipality, announced that from July 1st the Centre will become a state-delegated activity and the team from the centre will be able to continue their work after the official ending of the project.

Towards the end of the conference there was an official ceremony at which diplomas for extension of the professional qualification were given to the social workers and psychologists from the team of the Centre.

The Head of the Management Board of SAPI, Nelly Petrova, and the Executive Director Nadia Stoikova presented the manual "A New Model of Work in the Homes for Children", which was published as part of the project activities.

The conference was concluded with a vivid discussion of the policy concerning deinstitualization and the need for change that would provide every child with an access to qualitative services and child care.