Ubuntu Leaders Academy – residential care homes: perceptions of impact and satisfaction among young residents and staff
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7179/PSRI_2026.48.07Keywords:
Young people in residential care, socio-emotional skills, non-formal education, impact analysis, Ubuntu Leaders AcademyAbstract
This article presents the results of the evaluation of the socio-educational intervention programme “Ubuntu Leaders Academy – Residential Care Homes”, an immersive one-week residential experience implemented twenty-four times with different groups over a four-year period (2021–2024). The programme involved 477 young people in residential care and 167 professionals from 74 institutions across different regions of Portugal. Its aim was to empower children and young people in the child protection system through the Ubuntu methodology, fostering the development of socio-emotional competences. Using a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative and qualitative data, this descriptive and exploratory study assessed participants’ satisfaction and the perceived impact of the Ubuntu Week, while also analysing professionals’ and managers’ perceptions of the changes observed in the young people after the experience. The results indicate a significant improvement in the acquisition of socio-emotional competences, an impact also confirmed by the professionals, who described the experience as transformative—reflected in greater self-awareness, more empathetic interpersonal relationships, and stronger civic engagement.
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