Spazi di Crescita Spazio Aperto Servizi and Fondazione Guido Venosta: together for a new project
“Spazi di Crescita”: the new project by Spazio Aperto Servizi, supported by Guido Venosta Foundation, to help people achieve independence and build a more stable future
In Milan, a more accessible, flexible, and personalized welfare model is taking shape. A project that begins with listening, builds trust, and transforms fragility into real opportunities.
Sometimes, starting over doesn’t take much: a welcoming space, someone who truly listens, and the right support to piece life back together. This shared vision gave rise to Spazi di Crescita.
Guido Venosta Foundation has chosen to invest in an innovative welfare model based on proximity, active listening, and tailored guidance. This partnership goes beyond financial support, becoming a genuine social alliance capable of generating real change.
The project builds on the experience of four multifunctional hubs created by Spazio Aperto Servizi between 2022 and 2023 in different neighborhoods across Milan. These hubs, which became reference points for more than 2,000 people, provided listening, guidance, and practical solutions for families, young people, individuals with disabilities, and citizens facing complex situations.
Today, Spazi di Crescita takes that legacy further, introducing a person-centered approach that responds to diverse needs through four integrated areas of action:
Four Key Areas to Rebuild Stability
-
Educational and psychological support for minors and families, to strengthen bonds and prevent situations of distress.
-
Activities for people with disabilities and programs for caregivers, to foster inclusion and well-being.
-
Support for housing independence, including access to social housing and guidance on home management.
-
Training, employment, and mobility programs, to help build real, lasting economic independence.
At the heart of the project is the individual—not only their needs but also their potential. And the stories of Fatimah, Futura, and Mohamed show just how transformative tailored support can be.
FATIMAH: A HOME, A JOB, A NEW LIFE
Fatimah, a young woman from Nigeria born in 1995, arrived in Italy in 2016. After an initial period in reception facilities, she found stable employment as a hotel maid. However, a lengthy process to obtain her residence permit slowed her integration.
In 2023, during a critical phase in her life, she turned to Spazio Aperto Servizi. She wanted to leave a difficult cohabitation with her former partner and ensure a safe future for her son, born in 2020. She was supported through a multidimensional pathway: school placement for her child, housing guidance, and empowerment of her personal skills.
Today, Fatimah has a permanent job contract and is preparing to move into a social housing apartment. With Spazi di Crescita, she will receive assistance to furnish her home and explore further training opportunities aligned with her aspirations.
FUTURA: THE RIGHT TO LIVE TOGETHER
Futura, born in 1995 in Yaoundé, Cameroon, arrived in Italy in 2022 to reunite with her partner in Milan. Shortly after, she discovered she was pregnant. The joyful news collided with the harsh reality of unstable housing: the landlord of her partner’s rented room refused to allow her to stay.
For months after baby Leandre was born in February 2024, the family was forced to live apart—her partner kept the room to retain his job, while Futura and her child moved between hostels and temporary shelters.
Thanks to Spazio Aperto Servizi, the family accessed a social housing apartment at the end of 2024. Futura has since enrolled in an Italian language course, showing remarkable progress. With her child soon to start nursery, she is now working on validating her Cameroonian diploma in Business Administration and is preparing to attend a course to become a healthcare assistant (OSS), laying the foundation for her professional future in Italy.
MOHAMED: REDEMPTION AFTER THE SEA
Mohamed was born in a rural village in northern Egypt, the eldest of five siblings, in a context of extreme poverty. He never attended formal school but learned to read and write with the help of a family friend. At 15, with his father’s consent, he decided to migrate to Europe.
His journey was marked by human trafficking, exploitation, shipwrecks, and violence. After years between Turkey and Greece, and 26 failed attempts to cross the Mediterranean, he finally arrived in Calabria in 2021 as an unaccompanied minor.
After leaving a reception facility, he found himself alone again and eventually reached Milan, where he entered Casa Testi, a Spazio Aperto Servizi community. There, his determination was evident: he attended Italian classes, volunteered, and built strong relationships with educators and peers. Later, he moved into secondary accommodation while regularizing his status.
Mohamed found work as a construction laborer but lost his job when the company closed. Undeterred, he returned to school to earn a middle school diploma and enrolled in a bakery training course.
Today, Mohamed works in the bakery section of a large Milan supermarket and lives in shared social housing with two other young men. Growth Spaces is helping him furnish his new home and explore obtaining a driver’s license—a key step toward full independence.
A PARTNERSHIP THAT MAKES A DIFFERENCE
With Spazi di Crescita, Guido Venosta Foundation renews its commitment to social solidarity. Its partnership with Spazio Aperto Servizi has turned a successful local practice into a structured and replicable model, based on a shared vision: making welfare more inclusive, effective, and human-centered.
