STUDY VISITS TO SOCIAL PROJECTS IN THE CITY OF AARHUS
22 June 2025
Holmstrupgaard – A supportive housing facility for Children and Youth in Distress
Holmstrupgaard (maximum capacity of 20 persons)
Holmstrupgaard is a supportive housing facility on the outskirts of Aarhus, housing approximately 40 children and young people aged 12-23. Holmstrupgaard is for some of the most vulnerable grouping of children and young people. They struggle to manage diagnoses and conditions such as eating disorders, schizophrenia, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, borderline, personality disorder, autism, ADHD, PTSD, and anxiety.
The facility is located in Brabrand, west of Aarhus, and getting a place at Holmstrupgaard is typically allocated only after all other possible interventions have been attempted.
We have more than 80 staff members who work daily to help alleviate the impact of residents’ diagnoses so they may eventually lead a more typical daily life. The therapeutic approach is based on an environmental therapy structure, emphasizing social interaction and contact within a predictable and familiar framework.
During a study visit to Holmstrupgaard, you will receive a guided tour of the facilities, along with a presentation of our professional approach to working with young people.
DOK – On the Edge of Society
Multifunc (maximum capacity of 35 persons)
The DOK program, which stands for Criminally At-Risk and Convicted Youth (DOK), includes 4 special institutions. These institutions have been set up to make sure that young people who have been convicted of crimes don’t end up in regular prisons with adults. DOK also plays an important role in helping other young people who are at risk of getting into trouble with society.
The program is for young people aged 12-17 who are facing one or more of these challenges: substance abuse, crime, mental health issues, or difficulties with learning and social skills.
The institutions are either secure (where the outside doors are locked) or semi-secure, meaning the outside doors can be locked if needed. The length of stay can vary, from just a few days to several years.
Within this framework, the goal is to provide a calm, stable, and safe environment so that the young people can grow and develop. The staff works using a social-pedagogical approach, with methods like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Aggression Replacement Training (ART), MOVE (addiction treatment), and Low Arousal (LA2) to help young people make positive changes.
MultifunC is an intensive program for young people aged 12-17 who display very challenging behavior, including aggression and criminal activity. The treatment program is based on several proven methods and was developed in Norway. It has been tested in both Norway and Sweden, with good results.
During this study visit, we’ll give you a tour of the MultifunC program and explain more about how DOK works with young people “on the edge of society.”
Staircase to Staircase in Gellerup-Toveshøj – an area under transformation
Gellerup og omdannelse (maximum capacity of 25 persons)
On this study-visit you will meet Pernille Randrup Thomsen who will tell you about ‘Staircase to Staircase’ and her teams’ incredible work helping families in Gellerup-Toveshøj. The area has been known for its high crime rate and social problems. However, through a relational welfare approach and due to a development plan agreed upon in 2007 by the City of Aarhus and the local housing association Brabrand Boligforening, the citizens in this area are now facing new opportunities. On the study-visit you will go for a walk in the area together with Pernille Randrup Thomsen and after the walk you will have the opportunity to get indepth knowledge on the work the fantastic team are doing in ‘Staircase to Staircase’. For more information about the transformation of the redevelopment of Gellerup-Toveshøj (LINK: English) and Staircase to Staircase: Staircase to Staircase: Halima – YouTube
Visit Kulturhus Bunkeren – Home of ImperfectCity
Imperfect city/kulturhusbunkeren (maximum capacity of 30 persons)
Kulturhus Bunkeren is a vibrant cultural hub in Aarhus Nord, Denmark, dedicated to community engagement and creativity. Once a school of journalism, it now hosts a variety of activities, including art exhibitions, workshops, and community events.
Visitors can admire the building’s brutalist architecture while participating in the many ongoing activities within the house. These include creative workshops for mentally vulnerable youth, craft sessions, conferences, flea markets, talks etc.
The venue is home to key organizations like Museum Ovartaci, which explores social vulnerability through art, and Skejby Rangers, a social enterprise focused on creating job opportunities for part-time employees.
Kulturhus Bunkeren also hosts the EUI-funded project ImperfectCity, which seeks to enhance existing initiatives while developing new ones. The project’s primary goal is to celebrate the imperfections of people and buildings, fostering a more inclusive city by raising public awareness and acceptance of urban imperfections.
During your study visit, you can join a guided tour to explore the facility and learn more about its diverse activities and initiatives.
25 June 2025
Healing Architecture in Neurorehabilitation
NRM (maximum capacity of 25 persons)
NRM is a specialized 24-hour rehabilitation service for adults with acquired brain injuries. Our facilities are designed, based on the latest research, on how arhitecture affects the well-being and progression of the clients.
The arhitecture supports cognitive, psysical and social rehabilitation. Light, sound and materials are specially selected. We use natural materials and sensory stimuli to promote healing and create a feeling of “home”. A boomerang-shaped building with colorful landmarks and intutitive wayfinding makes it easier to navigate. We offer unique training facilities, a sensory garden and cicadian lighting.
Discover how the architeture works in harmony with our specialized rehabilitation to provide the best conditions for a successful progression for the clients.
Study visit to Fenrishus
Fenrishus (maximum capacity of 20 persons)
Fenrishus is a highly specialized housing and housing support offer for children and young people between the ages of 0 and 26 with multiple and complex functional disabilities as well as diagnoses of a life-threatening and life-limiting condition. We have 13 rooms for children between 0 and 18 years, 4 rooms for young people between 16 and 26 years. In addition, 4 rooms (relief places), which are currently distributed between 13 children.
Fenrishus also has a kindergarten with room for 7 children aged 0-7 years.
The children and young people at Fenrishus need help and support for all daily tasks.
The palliative care is planned interdisciplinary and based on the individual needs of the child and young person. Interdisciplinary work is done with the children and young people’s needs for daily personal care, relief, play and attentiveness. We have a special focus on life quality every day.
The children’s and young people’s opportunities for expression are largely limited, and this places special demands on the staff to be able to work in a regulatory manner, read small signals and support and develop communicative resources. Several different professional groups are therefore employed such as social workers, nurses, social and health care assistants, physio therapists, psychomotor therapists, music therapist and occupational therapist.
At Fenrishus, it is very important to us that the children’s and young people’s families feel at home and involved in all decisions.
The children and young people have periods of serious illness, and we also care for the child or the young person during the terminal phase too.
At the studyvisit at Fenrishus we will show you our facilities and give you the opportunity to oversee some of our activities with the children.
Study Visit to Marselisborgcentret
Marselisborgcentret (maximum capacity of 20 persons)
The center is owned by the municipality of Aarhus and Central Denmark Region. Activities focus on disability matters and rehabilitation related to a broad group of people with impairments and their relatives.
The center was originally buildt in 1913 as an epidemic hospital and around the year 2000 it was transformed into a center for rehabilitation. Now 24 different organisations are partners and carry out their acitivities in the field of disability matters and rehabilitation. There are partners from NGO’s, rehabilitation practises and scientific areas.
During the studyvisit we will take a walk around the park and participants will get an insight into the coorporation between different professinal groups and across sectors. In recent years involvement and cocreation with neighbours and civil society has been developed. One recent development of the center has been the outdoor area, where accessiblity and outdoor rehabilitation has become extremely popular.
The overall idea of the framework and content around the centre is the definition of rehabilitation from 2022, where perspectives of quality of life, meaningfulness and being part of social networks are crucial issues.
There is a number of technological installations which help motivate citizens and people in rehabilitation to make a change in their lives. For more information: www.marselisborgcentret.dk
Welcome to DokkX – a welfare technology experience space
DokkX (maximum capacity of 40 persons)
DokkX is funded by the City Council of Aarhus Municipality.
X stands for the unknown. X stands for experiment. But X is also a letter that, with a little imagination, looks like an active human being.
At DokkX, citizens can get advice and guidance so that they can acquire the right technologies and tools that support an independent and active life.
DokkX is also a space for innovation, in which education and research institutions, business and industry, the Municipality and the citizens of Aarhus can collaborate in the development of technological solutions for the future.
The current exhibition
The current exhibition, “Welcome welfare technology”, is an exhibition of a modern home filled with everyday technologies and innovative solutions like AI and VR.
Among other things, you can experience:
- Technologies that make your everyday life easy and safe
- Everyday aids for use in a day-to-day life
- Smart solutions for exercise body and brain at home
- Aids for privacy and love life
The theme of the DokkX exhibition changes every nine months, so there is a good reason to visit again and again.
More information at DokkX
The House of Generations – A Unique Housing Project Centered on Community
Generationernes hus (maximum capacity of 20 persons)
The House of Generations is a unique housing project where community is at the heart of everything.
In the House of Generations, people of all ages and diverse life circumstances come together. Children, young people, adults, and the elderly live, reside, and share everyday life within the house, which accommodates children in daycare, housing for students, families, individuals with disabilities, and elderly residents with or without care needs.
The House of Generations is a vibrant framework for valuable intergenerational connections. Therefore, we strive to:
- offer community and social interaction with respect for individual freedom of choice
- provide a sense of safety in daily life within the house while welcoming guests, neighbors, and the surrounding community
- enhance mutual understanding through diversity of people, relationships, and shared activities, recognizing each individual’s identity and needs
- build on our experiences while pushing boundaries to explore innovative ideas in flexibility, shared organization, management, and development
- create attractive physical spaces and cultivate a shared culture that brings these spaces to life
During this study visit, you will have the opportunity to explore our remarkable house and hear about what has worked well over four years of operation, as well as the challenges and learnings we have encountered along the way.
