Facilitating a group is about much more than knowing activities. Every youth worker eventually meets unexpected moments: participants disengage, emotions rise, conflicts emerge, or carefully prepared plans suddenly stop working. While many trainings teach methods, few help facilitators build the confidence to respond authentically when uncertainty appears. Holding the Space is an Erasmus+ Training Course that focuses on exactly that, the facilitator behind the methods.

Throughout the week, participants explore how to stay present, regulate themselves under pressure, read group dynamics, and adapt their facilitation while creating psychologically safe learning environments. Rather than striving to become perfect facilitators, the goal is to become confident, reflective, and adaptable practitioners.

🎯 Goals

🎪 Build confidence in facilitating groups through experiential practice

🔄 Develop the ability to adapt to changing group dynamics and unexpected situations

💪 Strengthen emotional resilience, self-awareness, and facilitator presence

🎨 Explore creative, embodied, and participatory methods for youth work

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Meet an international community of youth workers committed to supporting one another beyond the training

🎩 What to Expect

During the week, participants will:

🎭 Experience immersive facilitation challenges

🔀 Experiment with different facilitation styles

💬 Receive constructive peer feedback

⚡ Practise responding to unexpected situations

📓 Reflect through journaling and group dialogue

🧭 Develop their own Personal Facilitation Development Plan

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Who Can Apply

The training is aimed at emerging youth workers, facilitators, educators, trainers, volunteers, and youth leaders with some experience facilitating groups who want to strengthen their confidence and adaptability.

🎂 Age: 18+

🌟 Participants should already have some experience working with young people or facilitating educational activities

🙌 Motivated to develop their facilitation practice and to actively take part throughout the entire programme

🔁 Ready to implement a small follow-up activity after returning home

🗓️ Programme

The training runs from 1 to 8 November 2026 (travel days included), with a full experiential arc across the week:

🛬 1 November, Arrival day: check-in from 15:00, dinner at 19:00, and an evening welcome at 20:30

🧱 2 November, Building the Foundation: creating a brave learning space, foundations of facilitation and experiential learning, embodied theatre exercises, and group dynamics

🎭 3 November, Role Switching: exploring facilitator roles, leadership styles and authenticity, creative facilitation practice, and peer feedback

📖 4 November, Mode Switching: different ways people learn, storytelling, creativity and embodiment, adapting methods to participants, and a community exchange evening

🗣️ 5 November, Code Switching: communication and group dynamics, inclusive facilitation, and responding to unexpected situations

🌊 6 November, Flow Switching: facilitating under pressure, improvisation and adaptability, immersive simulations, and developing your personal facilitation style

🎉 7 November, Integration & Celebration: Personal Facilitation Development Plan, Youthpass reflection, and a closing ceremony

🛫 8 November, Departure day: breakfast from 8:30 to 9:30 and check-out until 12:00

🎤 Community Exchange and Evening Activities

One evening is dedicated to getting to know each other beyond the training sessions. You are invited to share something that matters to you, a project you are proud of, a facilitation method, a favourite game, an artistic practice, or simply a story that has shaped your work. There is no pressure to prepare a formal presentation; the goal is to inspire one another and strengthen the connections within the group.

The other evenings are not moderated by the organisers, but each participant can propose an extra evening activity and invite others to join, whether a workshop, a talking session, a design jam, improv play, or a short game.

🧙 Trainers

🎲 Bruno Setola is an educator, participatory designer, and game design expert who designs playful learning environments where people safely explore relationships, systems, and new ways of being together, through participatory game design, LARP, worldbuilding, and creative facilitation.

📚 Patrycja Paula Gas is an anthropologist, lecturer, youth worker, and trainer in social and intercultural competencies, and co-founder of the Nausika Educational Foundation, passionate about non-formal learning and using LARP as a transformative educational tool.

🎨 Jennifer Kumer is an applied game designer, facilitator, artist, and project coordinator at Selkie Educational Foundation, creating transformative learning experiences through games, play, and experiential education, and coordinating international Erasmus+ partnerships.

🌻 Staying in the Netherlands and drawn to community and green living? This solidarity placement offers a full immersion: ESC Volunteering in 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🌻 Live the Ecovillage Life at Ecodorp Bergen 🚲 → https://youthworkshub.org/19329

🏰 Venue and Accommodation

The training takes place at the Olde Vechte Foundation, an international youth education centre in the peaceful town of Ommen, surrounded by forests and nature. For over 50 years, Olde Vechte has hosted Erasmus+ projects, youth exchanges, and international training courses.

🛏️ Participants stay on-site in shared rooms with one or two other participants, with all sessions, meals, and common spaces within the venue

🌲 The centre has a large cosy living room, two terraces, and access to a private forest

🍲 Food

Participants receive 3 freshly made, nutritionally balanced meals per day, according to the diet specified after participation is confirmed, plus drinks and snacks during coffee breaks. The food at the venue is provided within the project budget. Eating out or buying extra snacks is at your own expense, with supermarkets (Jumbo, Lidl) within a 10-minute walk.

💳 Insurance

The venue and event are covered within the organisers' general accident and liability insurance, but this does not cover personal accidents, lost baggage, or medical treatment of participants. Every participant must bring their European Health Insurance Card or other valid personal insurance. In case of problems, the organisers will help you reach medical facilities but will not cover treatment costs.

✈️ Travel Costs

Participants book and pay for their own travel and receive reimbursement after the training. The maximum reimbursement depends on the distance in kilometres between your departure city and Ommen, according to the Erasmus+ Distance Calculator:

🚆 10–99 km: €56 green / €28 non-green

🚆 100–499 km: €285 green / €211 non-green

✈️ 500–1999 km: €417 green / €309 non-green

✈️ 2000–2999 km: €535 green / €395 non-green

🌍 More than that: ask the organisers before buying tickets

If you spend less, you receive exactly what you spent; if you spend more, you receive the amount from the table. Keep all tickets and invoices, as they are needed for reimbursement. Reimbursement follows a Reimbursement Form with tickets attached, a shared testimonial with the link in the Follow-Up Report, and completion of the Participant's Survey in the EU system. Attending less than 80% of the programme or breaking the agreement may result in reimbursement being refused.

🎭 Follow-Up

All participants complete a follow-up activity within 1.5 months after the training: publishing a short, personal testimonial about their experience of Holding the Space, including a short reflection and at least one photo or graphic, on any public platform, then sending the organisers the link and keeping the post online for at least a couple of years. Around two months after the training, there is an optional informal online reunion for participants and partner organisations.

🌍 Eligible Countries

🇭🇺 Hungary, 🇮🇹 Italy, 🇱🇹 Lithuania, 🇳🇱 Netherlands, 🇳🇴 Norway, 🇵🇱 Poland, 🇲🇰 North Macedonia, 🇷🇴 Romania, 🇸🇮 Slovenia, 🇪🇸 Spain

Participation is through the partner organisations of the Erasmus+ consortium in each country.

🌍 Want another Erasmus+ course that builds real, hands-on skills? This one heads to rural Portugal for natural building: Erasmus+ Training Course in 🇵🇹 Portugal 🏡 Bioconstruction and Sustainable Building for Rural Regeneration 🌍 → https://youthworkshub.org/20693

📩 How to Apply

Read the infopack first, then complete the sign-up form before the deadline. Submitting an application means you are available for the full duration and agree to participate actively in all activities. Selection aims to create a diverse international group while matching participants to the learning objectives, and once selected you receive a short survey about accessibility needs, dietary requirements, and questions. Key dates: sign up by 6 September 2026, confirmation email by 13 September 2026, and book tickets by 25 September 2026 (earlier confirmation is possible on request).

⏰ Deadline

6 September 2026.

🔗 Links

📄 Infopack: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Cfa1lBvNo60rg9aHWI4BWnAcPqulSx5L9OgGcpb96nQ/edit?tab=t.0

📝 Application form: https://forms.gle/u3WNAirRjM5u3TQZ8

⚠️ Important Notice

Youth Works Hub is not the organiser, partner, or representative of the listed projects. This listing is shared for information only, based on details from the source. Deadlines, eligible countries, dates, and other details may change or be withdrawn at any time, and all funding, reimbursements, and allowances are set by the project coordinator or National Agency. Applications go directly to the coordinator or hosting organisation through the official link. Listings may include third-party links (ESC Portal, infopacks, forms) that Youth Works Hub does not control. Always verify the details on the official project page before applying.