Citizen accommodation workshop during the "Hospitality Week"

On Friday 15 October, during the Hospitality Week organised by Grand Lyon Métropole, the City of Lyon and the City of Villeurbanne, ANVITA took part in the round table on citizen accommodation.

 The association Singa, the CLAM, the Fondation Abbé Pierre and the Fondation de France also took part. The City of Lyon was represented by Sylvie Tomic, Deputy Mayor and Vice-President of ANVITA. Numerous associations and citizens' hosts were also present to take part in the discussions and listen to the speakers.

 First, ANVITA opened up on the international and national issues and commitments in terms of welcoming policies. It was able to share a multitude of existing initiatives and provide some answers to the question: "What is a welcoming territory?", in particular through its joint work with the OCU within the Alliance Migrations (link to the common base of the Alliance Migrations website).

 Then, the Fondation de France focused on the national territory by sharing its experience in supporting local associations throughout France. Its expertise was able to provide ample feedback but also points of vigilance that provided enlightenment for the rest of the morning.

 The Fondation Abbé Pierre, with its regional representative, focused on the Auvergne Rhône Alpes region. Thanks to its regional experience, the FAP was also able to share inspiring initiatives while sharing points of vigilance on the recurrent needs of associations involved in citizen reception, which come to make up for the failings of the public authorities.

 Finally, we heard from local associations, represented by CLAM and Singa Lyon, who shared an overview of the work of volunteers in the Lyon metropolitan area. They reminded us of the human and financial commitment that citizen accommodation and, more generally, citizen reception represent, and shared the exhaustion of carers and the need for support and relay from public authorities.

 Sylvie Tomic confirmed the city of Lyon's desire to support these citizen actions. To this end, a working group has been set up by the Metropolis and the City to assess the needs of those involved in citizen support, such as the loan of premises and increased visibility through communication actions. However, the Deputy Mayor also specified that accommodation remains a State competence, and that the public authorities must be able to respond to the needs of the territories, without weighing on the volunteers. However, it was recalled that citizen accommodation is interesting because of the encounters it generates and the integration it promotes.

 The participants and speakers then divided into three workshops to produce recommendations on the subject of support for citizen hosting for the Greater Lyon Metropolis and the City of Lyon:

Workshop 1: recommendations for the training and support of volunteers and carers.

• Mixed training courses (accommodation providers, social workers, local authority staff) and support for the latter; 

• Allow time for exchanges between carers;

• Psychological support for carers;

• Take stock of citizen accommodation practices and share them; 

• Risk and incident management in reception practices;

• Creation of a kit and a guide for the novice host.

Workshop 2: Structuring the network and sharing tools

• Workplaces for associations ; 

• Strengthening training; 

• Strengthening institutional places; 

• Mapping of resources; 

• In-depth calculations of costs saved by the community; 

• Political advocacy for the right to housing and the right of undocumented migrants.

Workshop 3: Communication strategy

• Raising awareness in primary schools;

• Pooling the texts produced by citizen accommodation associations; 

• Provide material for a video;

• Mobilise the media to optimise the visibility of citizen initiatives;

• Organise an event, possibly in a festive format, particularly with a view to advocacy for the 2022 presidential elections.     

The richness of the exchanges and the conclusion of the workshops is a good example of co-reflection between associations, citizens and communities. ANVITA would like to thank the Greater Lyon metropolis for having offered them the opportunity to intervene in the framework of the hospitality week.