HoSt Home-Start Czech Republic, a registered institute (hereinafter “HOST”) was founded on 21 January 2003. HOST builds on a nearly fifty-year tradition that began in the UK in 1973, after which it spread to the world and the Czech Republic.  It is currently spread to 22 countries on 5 continents. The individual national projects are financially and organizationally independent of each other, but they share a common idea and know-how, which is loosely covered by the Home-Start Worldwide Coordination Centre https://homestartworldwide.org.

MISSION

“Every child should experience happiness, love and joy in their family. We enter into families who are looking for a way to achieve this. Through volunteer and professional work, we promote healthy relationships and the creation of a safe environment within the family.”

And what makes the HOST in the Czech Republic different? It has a unique combination of services, a diverse but cohesive team, it emphasizes informality and professionalism, and it draws on the long tradition of the renowned child psychologist Zdeněk Matějček. He has been instrumental in ensuring that children’s educational needs are recognized and met, especially with children under 6 years of age. No other period is so important for the further healthy development of a person. Our aim is therefore to break the vicious circle of “unhappy parent-unhappy child” at this stage.

Today, HOST has almost 60 volunteers and 20 staff members. We all believe that the kind of childhood we prepare for our children shapes what the world will be like in the future.

WHOM WE HELP AND WITH WHAT

HOST offers a range of services to support the parent-child relationship. We work with parents who cannot or do not know how to take care of their offspring because they have not experienced loving care themselves or they have found themselves in an unexpected life crisis due to a break-up with a partner, his or her death, due to imprisonment, illness or financial shortage. Children are then often marginalized, destitute, neglected, or otherwise abused.

At HOST, however, we believe that the kind of childhood we prepare for our children shapes what the world will be like in the future. That is why these families are at the heart of our focus. Through personal, long-term and regular contact directly in their homes, professional workers and volunteers help to overcome these crises and help improve family relationships. However, we do not try to rescue, give away or replace parents. Instead, our workers and volunteers accompany, support and teach them how to take responsibility.
Those who haven’t tried volunteering wonder how one can benefit from it in their lives. Nevertheless, the feeling of satisfaction when a parent praises a child or when they get involved with its actions for the first time is unmatched by any financial reward. Moreover, every relationship is a two-way road; it makes everyone learn from each other. Our volunteer moms are experiencing “other worlds” than they thought were normal. They often admire how single parents manage childcare, how families cope with hardship, mental illness, addictions, or the lack of family background on their own.

That’s why we care for families where we believe something can still change…because childhood won’t wait.

We particularly focus on:

• Preventing child neglect in families facing stressful life situations.
• Increasing family competence in raising children.
• Deepening the relationship between parents and their children.
• Enhancing more consistent care for children, specifically on training certain parenting and social skills, including practical skills in household care.
• Activation of the family in terms of spending leisure time with the children (playing with the children, doing chores with the children…).
• Helping to reconcile the situation when the child comes back from institutional care.
• Supporting the family to be more independent (to be able to solve their life situation and not to rely on the help of institutions…).
• Supporting the family to take responsibility for their actions (resolve things in time, managing repayments, appeals…).
  Integrating the family into the community, supporting the creation of a supportive social network.

In 2022, our support reached 213 families with almost 401 children.

The 56 registered and trained volunteers in our database worked a total of 3,802 hours in families.

WHAT ACTIVITIES WE DO

• Volunteers are the core of HOST. They are our carefully picked and trained moms who have the opportunity and courage to dedicate their time and attention to the less experienced parents. They regularly visit families and informally, respectfully and gently encourage healthier relationships between members. They do not advise, criticize, nor evaluate. They listen and pay attention to what works. Sometimes it may look like they are just playing. However, play can become a bridge between parents and children where none has stood before.
• The volunteer programme is accredited in the area of voluntary service by the Ministry of the Interior.
• Outreach social work in Brno is registered as a social activation service (SAS) for families with children according to Act No. 108/2006 Sb. on Social Services.
• All social workers are authorized to perform social protection of children by a valid decision of the Department of Administrative Activities in Health and Social Care of the Municipality of the Capital City of Prague.
• In order to get to know the specifics of our individual programmes for families in a more detailed way, we recommend you contact us by mail.

We are aware that we have less information in English, but if you are interested in anything else feel free to contact us. 

CONTACTS

Postal address:
HOST Home-Start ČR
Slovenská 1566/6
101 00 Praha 10 – Vinohrady
Phone number: +420 272 656 031
E-mail: info@hostcz.org
Data box: k7xmsxx
Company ID: 26616190
   Registration with Municipal Court in Prague, Unit U, File 428

Number of donate account:
   IBAN: CZ30 2010 0000 0025 0107 8140
   BIC: FIOBCZPPXXX
Number of current account:
   IBAN: CZ75 0800 0000 0000 1735 3339
   BIC: GIBACZPX
Number of EURO account:
   IBAN: CZ70 0800 0000 0019 1924 6203
   BIC: GIBACZPX