Reference · Digital youth work
A local youth app based on Sawyer – less admin, more time for young people, and a skate park that’s open round the clock.
At a glance
>80 per cent
Children and young people in Vreden use the app
−60%
less time spent on administrative and accounting tasks
24/7
Access to the skatepark even outside opening hours
No. 1
A one-stop shop for offers, activities and information
The background
Jugendwerk Vreden e.V. reaches out to children and young people from across the town and the surrounding parishes through open youth work, activities and holiday programmes. However, this growth came at a cost: more and more energy was being channelled into organisational tasks rather than educational work.
A central platform that young people actually use, which achieves two things at once:
The solution
In collaboration with Sawyer, the youth organisation launched its own app, designed in line with its local branding: the JugendCampus app, available as a native app for iOS and Android. Young people can find all the activities on offer in one place, whilst the team manages them via a central dashboard – from registration to invoicing.
Create activities, manage registrations, waiting lists and check-ins digitally.
Process participation fees directly within the app – securely via the Mollie payment service.
Information reaches young people right where they are anyway: on their smartphones.
Apprenticeships, work placements and part-time jobs for young people, all available directly in the app.
Manage rooms and facilities – with time control, access and utilisation trends.
In-app ‘Help’ function – security even when staff are not on site.
The JugendCampus app is available for iOS and Android and can be accessed via vreden.sawyer.app/download.
With the JugendCampus app, we haven’t introduced off-the-shelf software, but our very own app – featuring the Vreden design and our own services. Young people see it as their platform, not just another administrative tool.
The Dashboard
At the heart of the app is a central dashboard: this is where the organisation’s staff manage all content – from activities and news to facilities. Optimised for desktop, tablet and smartphone.
Staff at the organisation manage all the app’s content in one place.
Restricted access, so that partners can manage their own content.
The GDPR-compliant AI integration supports text and images. AI credits are included in the licence and can easily be sub-licensed.
Quick access to important participant details – such as medical information or parents’ or guardians’ contact details.
The application is hosted exclusively in Germany and therefore complies with all the requirements of the GDPR. Furthermore, all changes are documented in an audit-proof manner.
Also on the web
In addition to the app, a web version is included – at no extra cost. The listings are displayed in an SEO-optimised format, meaning they can also be found via search engines, and run under their own domain. Example from Vreden: vreden.sawyer.app.
All features are also available in your browser – at no extra cost compared to the app.
Offers are displayed in an SEO-optimised manner and can be found via search engines.
It can be found at its own address, for example vreden.sawyer.app.
Integration with existing websites – the interface is included in the licence. Customised integration can be commissioned separately, subject to a quotation.
Parents & Children
Youth work often begins as early as childhood. That is why families in Sawyer are taken into account right from the start: parents manage their children’s participation responsibly and keep track of everything.
Parents create a profile for each child and sign them up for activities.
Registrations and payments for minors are handled by their parents.
The activities and facilities on offer are tailored to the young people’s ages.
Families can manage all their children in one place.
Once the children are old enough, their profiles can be converted into separate accounts. It is up to the parents to decide when the right time is to do this.
Digital billing
Participation fees for activities are processed entirely digitally via the payment service provider Mollie – no cash, no payment lists, no manual tracking of outstanding payments. And through the MünsterlandCard, the app ensures that absolutely all young people can take part.
Parents and young people can pay securely and in compliance with PCI standards directly at the time of registration – using the payment methods they’re familiar with: credit card, PayPal and Klarna.
The team can view every payment status in the dashboard – a key factor in the 60 per cent reduction in administrative time.
MünsterlandCard · Borken District
The MünsterlandCard is a scheme run by the District of Borken which provides disadvantaged young people – such as children of social security recipients or refugees – with their own budget, thereby ensuring their participation.
Vocational training
The JugendCampus app combines youth work with career guidance: in the integrated job board, young people can find local apprenticeships, work placements and part-time jobs – and regional businesses can reach out directly to the next generation.
Local job vacancies clearly categorised by type and employer – ideal for those starting out.
Career guidance in the places where young people spend their days anyway.
Local businesses showcase themselves and attract young talent.
Youth work and business are coming together – a real asset for the city.
Through the training and work experience exchange, we bring together youth work and the local economy. We show young people at an early stage what opportunities are available right on their doorstep – this strengthens our local area and helps retain skilled workers in the region.
The effect
Registration, participant management and invoicing are now handled digitally and centralised in one place. This has reduced the administrative and office time spent by the educational team by around 60 per cent – from about 6 to 2.4 hours per week per staff member. This time is now channelled back to where it makes the biggest difference: working directly with young people.
The app is installed on the devices of more than 80 per cent of children and young people in Vreden, making it the go-to source for information on activities, dates and news. This reach makes the JugendCampus app the youth organisation’s most reliable communication channel.
>80 per cent
Children and young people in Vreden are actively using the app
Administrative workload per staff member per week – from 6 to around 2.4 hours. Source: Information provided by Jugendwerk Vreden.
Organisers can cancel registrations with a single click – refunds to participants are processed automatically.
If a place becomes available, everyone on the waiting list automatically receives a push notification and can move up the list – places are filled automatically without any manual intervention.
Digital administration via the JugendCampus app has reduced our team’s office hours by around 60 per cent. In practical terms, this means we have significantly more time to spend working with young people – and that’s exactly what it’s all about.
Spotlight · Vreden Skatepark
The new skate park is the latest example of what the app makes possible in everyday life. The JugendCampus app allows the facility to be used even outside supervised opening hours – safely and without the need for staff to be on site at all times.
Young people check in via an app and use the park even outside opening hours.
Every instance of use can be traced – this fosters accountability and security.
In an emergency, help is available directly via the app.
There hasn’t been a single claim since the service was launched via the app.
Thanks to the app, we can even make the skatepark accessible outside opening hours – complete with contact tracing and an emergency button. The results speak for themselves: not a single incident of vandalism so far.
The conclusion
With the JugendCampus app, built on the Sawyer platform, Jugendwerk Vreden has demonstrated how digitalisation is making a real impact in youth work: it takes the pressure off the team, reaches young people where they are, and even creates new types of activities, such as the self-service skate park.
−60%
Office hours: more time for teaching
>80 per cent
Prevalence among children and young people
0
Incidents of vandalism at the app-controlled skate park
Over 80 per cent of children and young people in Vreden use the app. The JugendCampus app has become their number one port of call – and for us as a team, it’s a real boon in terms of time saved and impact.
Sawyer is the platform behind the JugendCampus app: a bespoke app featuring your organisation’s branding, a central dashboard for activities, registrations, invoicing, facilities and communication – compliant with data protection regulations and tailored to open youth work.
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