Together with Leap Forward and Cronos Public Services, we are building PARKOUR, the ‘Opgroeien platform’ of ‘Agentschap Opgroeien’ and ‘Digitaal Vlaanderen’. PARKOUR will be a transparent online platform and app for young people between 13 and 25 years old, their mentors and support figures. It will be a place where young people can take control, seek help, set their own goals, and work on their dreams. They can involve the important people in their lives as they wish.
What is PARKOUR?
PARKOUR offers young people support to achieve their chosen goals and easily communicate with friends and support figures via text and voice messages or video calls. Additionally, young people can note and share their own story on their personal timeline with whomever they want. This helps them process experiences and build a coherent support trajectory. Besides the personal journey of young people, PARKOUR also offers various useful information that matches the interests and age of young people. Think of relevant articles, exercises and videos on topics that concern them. Young people are also referred to helplines such as Awel, 1712, the CLB, or other organizations.
The development process of PARKOUR
From the beginning of the development process, our experts were closely involved. We started with various workshops that also involved data protection specialists to ensure the legal foundation was solid. We developed a concept that included important themes such as inclusivity, safety, scalability and control by young people. In a Service Blueprint, we laid the foundations of the solution by translating Opgroeien's vision into a detailed story and release roadmap, governance approach, visual designs, software architecture, and risk analysis. With the Service Blueprint as a starting point and because it was a disciplined and agile development process, we were able to work flexibly and implement improvements on the go. In a span of nine months, we developed a first version, leaving room for further detailing. This not only resulted in a high-quality end product but also laid a good foundation for future initiatives with our reusable components.
Focus on accessibility and user experience
An intuitive and attractive user experience was central to our design. With our target group in mind, we provided fun visual elements and clear communication. We used simple, clear language and integrated supporting materials such as instructional videos. Source and copyright video: Opgroeien
A safe platform for everyone
During the development of PARKOUR, the safety of the platform was one of our core principles. That is why we provided our own communication system separate from existing commercial cloud solutions. This system is managed together with Opgroeien and is hosted in a private cloud. Logging in to PARKOUR is easy: after an initial login via the well-known itsme or eID, users can log in with facial recognition or their fingerprint. User-friendliness and security in one!
What's next?
2024 was the year in which PARKOUR started an extensive pilot phase where functionalities were tested in a real usage context. Various user groups, including young people and youth care workers, evaluated the app for effectiveness and ease of use. This feedback is crucial for further expanding the platform and preparing it for the broad rollout planned for the end of 2025.
Something to be proud of: the Digital Society Award
At the end of 2024, PARKOUR was awarded a Digital Society Award for user-friendliness. This was a great recognition of our teamwork. Thanks to the constructive collaboration between all involved parties and the focus on safety, inclusivity, and scalability, PARKOUR is already a great success. We look forward to launching this sustainable and future-proof platform!
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