Context
Every day we meet people who are homeless. How can we not feel useless in the face of complex issues such as housing and social exclusion? In addition to these questions, there are sometimes accepted ideas, rooted in the collective imagination, which dehumanize and contribute to increasing the exclusion of these men and women.
However, changing our outlook and re-creating a bond can help homeless people out of their isolation, and regain their dignity and self confidence.
It is something that everyone can do, in collaboration with professionals actions, so that everyone finds a place in society.
At La Cloche, all the actions are developed, thanks to the collaboration of the different actors of a district:
- Excluded people
- Citizens
- Professionals
- Schools
- Companies
- Public Authorities
- …
Project
La Cloche is French NGO. Its mandate is to sensitize, train and mobilize the citizens in the fight against social exclusion by changing the vision we have of homeless people and creating social ties.
In 2015, they launched their first program, Le Carillon. It is a network of solidarity merchants that promotes friendly and close links between homeless people, shopkeepers and residents. The Carillon allows simple but life-changing services, to create social ties and ultimately contributes to the change of opinion towards each other. Today, we find the Carillon everywhere in France and in particular in 8 major French cities: Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Lille, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Nantes and Strasbourg.
In 2017, it is the program Les Clochettes that was born, promoting inclusive urban initiatives: shared gardens, murals... These activities are being conducted between neighbors homeless or not, to always recreate the link and change the vision people have of each other.
Finally, in 2018, the Cloche à Biscuits, social biscuit processing facility, opened its doors in Paris. The processing facility gives an adapted job to people in a situation of extreme exclusion, and gives them the opportunity to resume a professional activity progressively.
And La Cloche does not stop there to break the clichés and create opportunities for meetings and sharing: a journal, a radio and podcasts to give voice to the people of the street, but also a choir, theater workshops or soup kitchen.
Key figures
- Association created in 2014
- More than 900 traders in the Carillon networks
- 8 regional branches
- 300 volunteers with and without home
- 289 social action partners
Project leaders
Beyond permanent members of the association La Cloche (employee, volunteers in civic service and interns), the team works with a multitude of actors, mainly:
- volunteers with or without a home (homeless volunteers are the ambassadors, testify to their experience of a homeless person and are an essential stakeholder of the program)
- field partners (social actors related to homeless people)
- traders
The Little Extra
Le Carillon allows to work on the creation of social bond and on self-esteem more than the improvement of material condition of life, essential element to the inclusion of homeless people.
Written by Alice Deshons, LFC volunteer - March 2019.
Last modification : 31 Mar 2020.
La Cloche - Le Carillon network
The "Le Carillon" network is the first project of the La Cloche Association. It helps to improve the living conditions of people living in the street and to recreate the social bond with their fellow citizens.