Sheltered workshops (or ‘sociale werkplekken’ in Dutch) offer people who are distant from the labor market, the opportunity to develop themselves and to work as per their abilities. Most sheltered workshops are located in the North or on the outskirts of the city, far away from the residents and businesses in Rotterdam Zuid. Wouldn't such a work location function better in the heart of the city, live and work close by? In the Station op Zuid project, we are investigating with the Municipality of Rotterdam and Stichting Handelscompagnie Sluisjesdijk whether it is possible to develop a sheltered workplace in the RET complex on Sluisjesdijk, at the junction between the densely populated residential area of Charlois and the working area of the Waalhaven.
Help in the back
The intended sheltered workshop Station op Zuid must provide space for approximately 1300 employees and job seekers. They work under their own roof, but are also seconded to companies, learning practice (‘Leerpraktijk’ in Dutch) centers and training programs in the area. The target group consists mainly of Rotterdammers who are already working, but need a helping hand to continue working or to develop further. By stimulating learning and development, together with entrepreneurs and companies from the city, we ensure that everyone can participate on a permanent basis and can contribute according to their ability. Hence, close cooperation with entrepreneurs and educational institutions in the area is important. The development company falls under the Rotterdam Inclusivemunicipal programme.
Spatial requirements
The workshop requires a spacious location for workshops, training rooms, meeting rooms, canteen, toilets and changing rooms, etc. Assembly and production activities must be able to be carried out on the location. The starting point is that the development company is part of the neighbourhood, in an accessible and recognisable place.
The plan is to start the development with the realisation of work and learning places (3,500 m 2). The follow-up phase (12,000 m 2 ) will provide space for partner companies and start-ups which can be developed using construction-related work-learning processes that have then been set in motion.
These spatial requirements are partly the result of three working sessions in the period September 2022 – January 2023 in which various experts discussed the accessibility and inclusiveness of the labor market. This concerned the deliberation of social and spatial conditions needed for such a development company and the feasible location options. One of the work sessions was open to the public and took place during the Stadmakerscongres 2022 in Theater Zuidplein.
RET-Complex Sluisjesdijkpier
Veldacademie is investigating with the municipality and the Handelscompagnie Sluisjesdijk foundation whether the RET complex at the junction of Waalhaven and Sluisjesdijk can be a suitable location for the intended sheltered workshop.
The complex was built in the mid-twentieth century on behalf of NV Handelscompagnie, which produced and traded ship and industrial articles. It consists of three parts: an office building (where, among others, the Veldacademie and other companies and institutions already have offices and organize activities), a house and a workshop. The building forms an iconic ensemble, and it functions as a gateway to the Sluisjesdijkpier. The halls belonging to the complex are largely used by the RET, but will eventually become vacant.
The building stands at the junction between the district and the port, between living and working. This makes it an interesting place for a social development company: close to the target group and with the possibility of cooperation with companies. On the one hand, the Charlois district, with 70,000 inhabitants, is accessible through the Maastunnel. On the other side is the Waalhaven, with operational facilities and space for logistics, industrial, maritime and business services and the maritime industry. Employers and employees are therefore close to each other.
Public or sheltered?
A sheltered workshop in the middle of the Charlois district offers undeniable advantages. The role of the Veldacademie is to further investigate the socio-spatial challenges. How can the place be used optimally for the environment and the people who live and work there? What is the degree of openness and mixing at such a location? Is shelter desirable, or is it also possible to prefer a certain degree of public-access? To make these questions more concrete, two contrasting variants have been explored, with different degrees of publicity: 'visible but sheltered' and 'accessible and mixed'.
Hands of South (Handen van Zuid) & Talent Lab
The project team includes two former Veldacademie/TU-Delft graduates, Anne Sophie Wouters and Rosemiek van der Linden, who conducted research into talent development for the Veldacademie. Under the heading of 'The Hands of the South', (‘Handen van Zuid’) Rosemiek van der Linden researched how people with a distance to the labor market, but with craft-based skills, could develop better. Anne Sophie Wouters' Talent Lab project investigated the spatial conditions for offering young people in South Rotterdam better development opportunities.
Follow-up
The RET complex offers an excellent opportunity to further investigate and utilize the public value of this social real estate (the building is owned by the city). This means it is possible to investigate which public values are important for the area and use the redevelopment to maximize that public value, preferably in dialogue with all stakeholders, such as employers and employees, but also local residents. How could a sheltered workshop in such a central location be used as a development asset for the environment and for the people who live and work there? Who and what do you need for that?
Over the past few years, the Veldacademie has gained a great deal of experience with a methodology for valuation, in which a broad group of stakeholders give hands and feet to the added value of social real estate for an area. Veldacademie is investigating with Stichting Handelscompagnie Sluisjesdijk whether such an approach can also be used in this redevelopment.