Hosting a homeless person in their offices: the idea is gaining ground

The idea was born a little over a year ago. And she is emulating. About fifteen Nantes companies have adopted the Bureaux du cœur approach. The principle is simple: allow a homeless person to enjoy the comfort of the office for the night and the weekend. They arrive at 6 p.m. They must leave at 8:30 am the next morning. They were able to use the toilets, a sleeping area, on a sofa for example or in a specially equipped space, such as a nap room, a lockable cabinet, wifi, a kitchen area with a microwave to heat their meal, sometimes a shower. In short, a welcome that changes their lives.

The Heart Offices have established a very strict protocol. The people accommodated are handpicked, proposed by associations whose mission is to follow them. People who are already on the path to reintegration. The person welcomed will sign a tripartite agreement with the association in question and with the Bureaux du cœur. It will have its own keys, nothing is asked of it in exchange, the company only has to contact its insurer to make sure everything is in order.

There are contacts with the employees. It is also the idea, to allow helping hands, contacts to redo a CV for example, to give ideas of people to contact within the framework of a job search. The idea is that the person is not only accommodated, but also supported.

It is the president of the center for young leaders of Loire-Atlantique, who is also the boss of a communication agency, who is at the origin of this idea. Since we have been talking about him in the press, Pierre-Yves Loaëc has recorded an influx of candidates in his region. But it intends to spread elsewhere in France, in Lyon, Paris, Nancy and Rennes. Since October, Pierre-Yves Loaëc has been welcoming his company, Souleymane Diarra, to Nobilito. He is 38 years old. He had a serious family blow. He is looking for a job in carpentry. And the Bureaux du cœur could be the little help that will allow him to get out of the galley.