The Sozo Youth Cafe

Equipping unemployed young people in
Vrygrond to be engaged, inspired
and contributing community members.

About Youth Cafe

The Sozo Youth Cafe provides a safe, creative and vibrant space for unemployed young people (between the ages of 16 – 26 years) to be equipped, trained and mentored so that they reach their full potential.

We offer a eight-month programme that provides unemployed young people with skills development training. We also partner with businesses and organisations inside and outside of Vrygrond who can offer internships for young adults, which will lead to work experience and full-time jobs.

The Need

High crime, violence & abuse
No safe spaces for youth
High youth unemployment

Limited Skills Development Opportunities
Few Job Opportunities
Limited access to computer & internet facilities

The mission: To see all the young adults in Vrygrond in education, employment or training.

What we provide:

Skills Training
We currently facilitate six different skills training schools; Barista; Baking; Hair and Beauty; Technical; Digital; and General Educational Diploma (GED). Ten staff members trained in the different skills disciplines act as community peer-to-peer mentors.
Physical Space
The Youth Cafe is located in the Vrygrond community and is made up of a vibrant working coffee shop, Tech Park, hair and beauty salon, bakery, workshop and our digital training spaces.
Internships
Employing ten young adults from the local community and training and equipping them to run and lead the Youth Cafe project alongside two Cafe coordinators.

Mentoring
We place students into small groups for a mentoring programme for the duration of the course.
Tech Park
The Tech Park provides access to 10 computers and the internet. Students use computers for training and to search for information, research and complete online applications and resumes.
Network of Partners
We are developing a pool of local business, education and youth development partners who offer a variety of opportunities for young adults to engage in employment, education, and training.

Our 1-6-1 Model

Life Skills (1 Month)

A month long course on goal setting, financial management, sexual and emotional health, timekeeping and communication. We also address themes of Resilience, Teamwork, and Leadership. A week-long personal development course facilitated by Heart Styles (www.heartstyles.com) concludes the last month.

Six Skills Schools (6 months)

Barista: making and serving restaurant quality coffee
Baking: baking artisanal breads and pastries
Hair and Beauty: Hairdressing, massage, and nail salon
Technical: Bricklaying, plumbing, tiling and woodwork
Digital: Adobe Photoshop design and video editing
General Education Diploma: students complete a matric equivalency

Job Readiness (1 Month)

The Youth Café offers every student a job shadowing opportunity during job readiness month in November each year with each of the students producing an up to date resume with which to apply for jobs. Students engage in job shadowing, interview preparation and practice as well as resume development. We have engaged a variety of community partners and businesses to help implement this phase.

The Sozo Youth Cafe

About Youth Cafe

The Need

High crime, violence & abuse

No safe spaces for youth

High youth unemployment

Limited Skills Development Opportunities

Few Job Opportunities

Limited access to computer & internet facilities

The mission: To see all the young adults in Vrygrond in education, employment or training.

What we provide:

Skills Training

Physical Space

Internships

Mentoring

Tech Park

Network of Partners

Our 1-6-1 Model

See Youth Cafe in action in our latest video

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