On Tuesday, Nov. 28, 55 neighborhood agents gathered in Balen for the “Day of the Neighborhood Agent.” It is being organized for the first time. The idea came from one of the neighborhood officers in the Balen-Dessel-Mol police zone, Niels Belmans of the Balen police station. He felt it was important to get some extra training and that has now become a full day.
In addition to neighborhood officers from the Balen-Dessel-Mol police zone, officers from surrounding zones were also present. Neighborhood agents are often the first point of contact for citizens and must have a great deal of ready knowledge. Guest speakers will therefore provide information on such topics as how the justice of the peace court works, camera laws, inheritance law, the role of a lawyer and a notary and what mediation can do for them.
Mediation is an effective way to achieve conflict resolution. Sara Van Hove and Natasha De Vinster shared their expertise in mediation. Wijkagenten come into daily contact with quarreling neighbors and other forms of conflict. A key feature of mediation is that the mediator provides the conflicting parties guided in such a way that they come up with their own solutions. This makes a conflict resolved through mediation offer lasting solutions that both parties can agree on.
The neighborhood agents very much appreciated the insights into the impact of your own behavior as a mediator, on the parties and the subsequent course of counseling.
Sara and Natasha wish the district agents much success in applying these tools and are always willing to offer further support.
Did you know…
- a mediation process takes place in confidentiality. Even after agreement, the parties can keep the agreement as confidential provided that both agree to do so.
- an agreement reached through mediation performed by a licensed mediator is legally valid. More so, when the parties have the agreement homologated, it has the same force and validity as a judgment pronounced by the court.
As an organization, do you want to go a step further and implement a preventive policy? Use your experience to integrate the necessary measures into your organization. In doing so, you increase the sustainability of your organization.
Questions? Feel free to inquire at onthaal@walsha.be
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