Connect@Station — Digital Access Point at Münster's Bahnhofsmission for Homeless and Impoverished Travellers

Connect@Station is a joint project of Caritas Münster and Diakonie Münster at the Bahnhofsmission (train-station mission) in Münster, Germany, launched on 1 July 2023 with a €60,000 grant from the Deutsche Bahn Stiftung (German Railway Foundation).

It provides a fully equipped self-service PC workstation with webcam, printer and scanner; loanable mobile phones and tablets; free Wi-Fi and charging stations; secure cloud storage for important documents; and beginner-to-advanced digital-skills courses supported by trained volunteers who help visitors navigate online forms and virtual consultations, including applications to housing and employment offices.

More than 90% of Bahnhofsmission visitors are affected by poverty, including acute homelessness; the mission reports around 140 guests using the digital offer daily. Partners include the City of Münster's social services department, the Jobcenter Münster, and the Catholic University of North Rhine-Westphalia, and the project is intended as a model for other Bahnhofsmissionen nationally.

Caveat: as a project launched in mid-2023 funded by a single-tranche foundation grant, no independent outcome evaluation (for example, housing or benefits secured) has yet been published, and continuation funding beyond the initial grant period has not been publicly confirmed.

Read the full analysis: https://www.caritas-digital.de/next-projekte/projekt/connectstation/