A requirement is that the initiative leads to a structural service that did not exist before. This plan doesnot fit in the existing subsidy systems and is inovative. This service has to be self sufficient and not need subsidies after the three years. Cooperation between existing institutions is encouraged and increases the chances. The initiative has to fit in the general policy lines of the Breda administration.

Initiators - citizens, companies, unions and institutions - can apply throughout the year. The can contact the FMO team by phone and e-mail and will be invited to explain the idea further. Together with the coordinator possibilities to implement the plan are developed. The maximum is 500.000 euro per project. The FMO team decides in four rounds (1 January, 1 April, 1 June and 1 October) and gives advice to the mayor.

On January 1st, 2007 the team already received 117 ideas. Many of them were written by migrant associations and meant to improve the situation in neighbourhoods where immigrants live. An example is called ‘Spraaksaam’ (speak together), an idea of a teacher, to invite mothers into the classroom and involve them with the child’s’ lessons, while at the same time. Pairs of mothers are formed and immigrants and volunteers that are already active in the neighbourhood have to work for their child. In this manner immigrant mothers become less isolated, are more involved with their kids school performance and learn to know another active mother in the neighbourhood. Eventually they might get interested to join the active mothers activities.

A detailed evaluation is not yet available. The idea of using citizens’ ideas to spend municipal money has gained ground in many Dutch municipals. The municipal is reaching out to the population, and citizens can co-decide on what they find important. Though we have seen in other cities that this kind of temporary funding often discriminates low educated and less eloquent people, in Breda the number of ideas that serve immigrants is relatively large. Monitoring is important to judge if discriminative side effects exist.

The main funds are regular Breda funds. Preferrably a partnerships with existing insitutions or organiasations get the subsidies, for instance with a housing corporations.

City of Breda
Ria Bolink (Coordinator diversity policy), tel. 00-31-76-5294860

//2006

case

Urban Policy

Social inclusion & integration