The Pétanque Project

CODE: CONCF-28003

Project and work

Discover the town of Saint-Maximin and take part in a project at the heart of local community
life!
Following several successful initiatives in the area, a new challenge awaits you: the creation of two petanque areas, true places for meeting and socializing, located both in a neighborhood of the town and near the church.
This workcamp has a special dimension, as it aims to revitalize public spaces and encourage interaction between residents, especially with local young people who will be actively involved in the project.
Throughout the workcamp, you will take part in different stages of the construction: preparing the ground, marking out the areas, leveling the surfaces, and setting up the pétanque courts. The goal is to create four accessible, sustainable, and welcoming playing areas for everyone. But this project goes beyond manual work! You will also be involved in co-creating activities and moments of exchange with local youth: pétanque initiations, social events, intercultural exchanges… plenty of opportunities to build connections and bring these new spaces to life from the very beginning.
A rich collective experience combining practical work, community engagement, and shared moments, leaving a lasting and meaningful impact on the town!

Accommodation and meals

Your accommodation will be located in the garden of the 'Maison pour Tous Nelson-Mandela', a bourgeois-style house from the end of the 19th century, which hosts the communal music workshops, exhibitions as well as cultural and leisure associations. The group will have access to the kitchen of this house. You will sleep under individual tents. Large tents will be installed for the collective life. The infrastructures of the municipal stadium (300 metres away) will offer access to showers with a separation between girls and boys. You will share the various collective chores and prepare meals together, prioritising local products from the market.

Location and leisure

Saint-Maximin (3 000 inhabitants) is located in the department of Oise, 70km from Paris. The region has a rich historical heritage that you can discover nearby: The Chantilly Castle, the Compiegne Imperial Palace or the Pierrefonds Castle. Each year, in addition to outings, leisure activities are scheduled (St Leu d'Esserent water sports centre, swimming pool...).

Activities are planned with the youth service of the town to include you in the activities planned during the summer like the July 14th celebrations and meetings with the local population.

Partner 

The small town of Saint-Maximin, nestled at the heart of the stone quarries of the South of Oise, has an uncommon cultural heritage (troglodyte houses, old open-air quarries, mushroom beds, etc.) that it promotes in its museum 'La Maison de la Pierre'. Today, there are still five stone quarries in use in Saint-Maximin. The stone extracted from them is mainly used for the restoration of historical monuments (Paris City Hall or the Arc de Triomphe). The quarries of Saint-Maximin also provide the clay used for the tennis courts of Roland-Garros. An initiation to stone cutting is planned during your stay!

Additional comments

Remember to bring work clothes for the work site as well as tight shoes. As the accommodation is under tents, remember to bring your sleeping bag as well as a floor mat or a camping mattress for more comfort. Don't forget your bathing suit in case you are going to swim in the pool or at the St Leu'Esserent water sports centre. You can also bring back specialities from your country, photos, musical instruments, in short what you like and want to share on this workcamp, either with the local population or with the group!
Foreigners belonging to the European Union must bring with them a personal EHIC (European Health Insurance Card), and everybody must, in any case, bring their insurance certificate. If health issues arise on the project, volunteers will have to pay for it, and will then be reimbursed once back in their home country.