Fondation Le Relais

What Fondation Le Relais does

Fondation Le Relais is a Swiss nonprofit foundation headquartered in Morges, canton of Vaud, founded in 1971 as a shelter (foyer) and reorganized into foundation status in 2009. The foundation provides social and professional insertion services for vulnerable adults and young adults facing difficulties including unemployment, housing instability, addiction, lack of professional qualifications, and judicial involvement. Operating exclusively within the canton of Vaud, it serves as a platform of 14-15 specialized structures that deliver individualized socio-educational accompaniment, housing assistance, professional training, harm reduction, and cultural engagement services across six functional axes: self-management, housing, training, employment, harm reduction, and cultural opening.

The foundation's service portfolio is organized around named sub-structures with distinct mandates: Synergie AI coordinates professional integration measures under LAI disability insurance law; CEFIL provides vocational training including the TerraTempo eco-transition programme; Rel'aids handles harm reduction and addiction support; Relais 10 and Relais Contact deliver general social services; SPI provides ambulatory socio-educational follow-up; Impulsion offers personal development through artistic workshops; ReBooster provides mobile case management; and Rel'og manages housing support. Ateliers du Relais, previously a work-integration workshop (carpentry, painting, catering, eco-garden), closed in 2025 due to financial difficulties, following the closure of CEFIL Genève in August 2024. The foundation's underlying "technology" is its socio-educational methodology and accumulated operational expertise; no proprietary digital platform, AI system, or technology product is documented.

The foundation operates as a managed-services institution: revenue is generated entirely through public mandates from 24 different funding sources (Swiss Confederation, canton of Vaud, communes, and associations of communes), with an annual budget of 18 million CHF as of 2021 and 156 employees. The go-to-market is institutional sales via mandate negotiation with public bodies, and beneficiaries are referred through social services, unemployment offices, and AI disability insurance pathways. There is no consumer-facing pricing; commercial marketing is not used. The foundation is governed by a Foundation Council with a director (Cédric Fazan since January 2023) and has no parent company. Notable partnerships include Caritas Vaud (Maison des Lionnes), CRIAD and GREA (Station A portal), DCISA (addiction coordination), and international knowledge exchange networks in Montreal and Marseille.

Name

Fondation Le Relais

Legal name

Fondation Le Relais

Website

https://www.relais.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Fondation Le Relais is a Swiss nonprofit foundation operating since 1971 that runs 14-15 specialized structures providing social and professional insertion services, including housing, training, and harm reduction, for vulnerable adults and young adults in the canton of Vaud, funded by 24 public mandates.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Social and Professional Integration Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Social integration services
• Vocational training programs
• Housing assistance services
• Harm reduction support
• Professional reintegration

Headquarters

HQ city

Morges

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Government Contracts and Mandates: Core funding from 24 different public sources including Confederation, canton of Vaud, and communes. Services delivered under mandate from social services, unemployment insurance, AI (disability insurance), and other government bodies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Fondation Le Relais is a Swiss nonprofit foundation that provides socio-educational support, vocational training, housing assistance, and harm reduction services for adults and young adults in difficulty. The foundation operates approximately 14-15 specialized structures across the canton of Vaud, Switzerland, delivering social and professional insertion services funded through public mandates with the Confederation, the canton, and the communes.

Product overview

Fondation Le Relais is a social foundation offering a coordinated portfolio of 15 structures providing reception, accompaniment, training, and prevention services for adults and young adults in difficulty. The organization operates as a platform of interconnected services organized around four main axes: insertion, training, housing, and addiction services. Key structures include Synergie AI (comprehensive professional insertion measures), CEFIL (professional training with programs like TerraTempo for eco-transition), Impulsion (personal development through creative arts), Rel'aids (harm reduction), Rel'ier (networking and coordination), Relais 10 and Relais Contact (social services), SPI (ambulatory social service), and ReBooster (mobile case management). The foundation provides individualized support helping people regain autonomy through social and professional integration.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Synergie AI: Professional integration measures including early intervention, reintegration measures for adults and minors, and occupational measures under LAI insurance.
• Relais-Contact
• SPI
• Relais 10
• Rel'aids

Products and services

• CEFIL
• TerraTempo
• Impulsion
• Rel'aids
• Rel'ier
• Rel'og
• Relais 10
• Relais Contact
• SPI (Service Psycho-Social ambulatoire)
• ReBooster
• Majelan Multi-program structure providing professional orientation through its ELAN program and other insertion pathways for adults in difficulty.
• ASEMO
• Le Foyer-Relais
• Synergie AI Integrated Measures Coordination program providing professional insertion through coordinated multi-axis service delivery.

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple apprentices successfully obtain CFC (Certificate of Federal Proficiency) and AFP (Attestation Fédérale de Professionnalisation) each year

Named customers4 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered minor, major and core.

• International Francophone Network on Feminine HomelessnessminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 2026Rififi international summit bringing together women's self-help groups from Lausanne, Montreal, and Marseille for knowledge exchange on female homelessness.
• Caritas VaudmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 June 2023Co-porters of Maison des Lionnes project - first Vaud canton structure exclusively reserved for women in precarious situations. Provides operational support and resources.
• CRIAD (Coordination Romande des Institutions et organisations oeuvrant dans le domaine des Addictions)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership on Station A project - a French-speaking Switzerland information portal dedicated to addictions. CRIAD provides financing for the project.
• GREA (Groupement Romand d'Etudes des Addictions)coreTechnology or IntegrationResponsible for technical development of Station A information portal. Provides digital platform expertise for addiction information resources.
• Lionnes collective (women without shelter)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSelf-help group of approximately 20 women without shelter or formerly without shelter. Participated in project design and ongoing animation of Maison des Lionnes. Core principle: 'Nothing for us without us'.
• Haute ecole de travail social Fribourg (HETS-FR)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner for 'Le Film fait maison' research-creation project on homelessness and social violence. Conducted scientific research underpinning the project.
• Association ReliefsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for collective fresco creation following film screenings in Fribourg, Lausanne, Geneva, and Nyon.
• GLAJ-VaudminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlatform for sociocultural animation professionals. Rel'ier co-animates training sessions with GLAJ-Vaud and Intercentre platform.
• Intercentre platformminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExchange, support, and reflection platform for sociocultural animation professionals. Joint activities with TSP on youth support topics.
• Insertion VaudminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVaud cantonal association of institutions active in social-professional insertion. Collaboration on various projects and forums.
• DCISA (Dispositif Cantonal d'Indication et de Suivi en Addictologie)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCantonal operational coordination for addiction indication and follow-up. Co-organises ESE (Etablissements residentiels accueillant des personnes en situation d'addiction) forums with Rel'ier.
• Addiction SuisseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational addiction organization running PAPA BOIT. MAMAN BOIT. programme for children of parents with addiction. Fondation supports awareness through its network.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Caritas Vaud: Caritas Vaud is the Vaud cantonal branch of Caritas Switzerland, providing social assistance, integration programs, and humanitarian aid to vulnerable populations. It is a current strategic partner on the Maison des Lionnes project and operates with a similar mission and target population in the same canton.
• Fondation Le Tremplin: Canton-based social and professional insertion foundation in Fribourg, where current director Cédric Fazan previously led operations. Operates with a similar mandate-based funding model for vulnerable populations in a neighboring Swiss canton.
• Croix-Rouge suisse Vaud: Swiss Red Cross Vaud provides humanitarian aid, refugee support, and integration services to vulnerable populations across the canton. Comparable mission, population served, and government-mandate funding model.
• EVAM (Établissement vaudois d'accueil des migrants): Vaud cantonal establishment providing migrant reception, housing, and integration services. Operates as a state-mandated institution with similar population focus (vulnerable adults needing integration support) and identical geographic scope.
• Pro Infirmis Vaud: Provides social and professional integration services for people with disabilities in Vaud canton. Similar population segment, similar government-funded social services model, and overlapping housing and training programs.
• CSP Vaud (Centre Social Protestant): Religious-affiliated social services organization operating in Vaud canton. Provides social assistance, refugee support, and integration services with comparable funding model and beneficiary population to Fondation Le Relais.
• Fondation Aigues-Vertes: Geneva-based social foundation providing professional integration, training, and housing services. Similar multi-structure model serving vulnerable adults across French-speaking Switzerland with comparable government mandate funding.

Others

• Insertion Vaud: Vaud cantonal association of institutions active in social-professional insertion. Functions as the industry federation coordinating member organizations in the same sector; listed as a partner for joint projects and forums.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fondation-le-relais

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fondation Le Relais