As part of the process of transferring the best practices of Icehearts Finland to other countries in Europe, it was crucial for the partnership to develop an approach to help organisations gather the key information they need to know before trying out a new programme in their local contexts. This key information are around local conditions and needs.

Developed by two expert organisations, the aim of Icehearts Europe SANA is to understand the local needs, the factors that put youth at risk, as well as what resources are available, and finally, what interventions are currently being implemented. 

The Icehearts Europe SANA questions targets the following elements:  

For Situation Analysis (SA) 

• Identification of population characteristics  
• Identification of environment of the implementation site  
• Identification of possible target groups  
• Identification of service and school system in the local community  
• Identification of sport and after school activities in the community  

For Needs Assessment: 

• Mentor recruitment 
• Recruitment of programme participants (children) 
• Individual support based in selected children’s needs 
• Access to facilities and resources 
• Team sport and after school activities 
• Main goals of the programme 

The video below explains what is SANA in the context of Icehearts Europe and provides hints on implementation of the process. It also showcases its benefits. It is based on the expertise from the EuroHealthNet and the THL,  Finnish  Institute for Health and Welfare as well as the experience from the implementing Icehearts Europe pilot countries: Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Slovenia and Spain.