The District Tables are places of participation and planning nurtured by the contribution of several public and third sector social actors, thus with a mixed composition (social and healthcare service providers, citizens, voluntary associations, parishioners) and fluid (during a long journey there is who comes in, who goes out, who comes back), with substantial project autonomy and relevant consistency of meetings (at least one meeting per month). They constitute a “territorial device” that makes of territoriality a choice of real closeness, where those who participate are confronted with the issues of that territory to identify new opportunities to support families and people in their life contexts.
Born in 2006 and promoted by the Poli territoriali di Servizio Sociale, they depart from re-designing the day centers for the elderly and have generated, in their early years, several initiatives for the elderly both not self-sufficient and of the so-called “middle area”. They work, then, right away, on the fight against the loneliness, isolation and creation of strong links around the elderly, to solve their problems, and make them a resource for the community. The positive results achieved thorough this experience have favored their diffusion, so much so that today the District Tables, understood as participatory planning sites, are active not only for the elderly sector, but also with respect to issues of parenting and disability. In their decade-long experience they have built and implemented over 50 projects, involving citizens and volunteers, with almost zero costs.
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