Click on each organisation's logo to know more about their presentations
|
Dignitas App: Preventing Homelessness and Improving Support The DIGNITAS App addresses the barriers faced by homeless people in the city of Madrid, enabling them to access essential services and making it easier to reach out to them. The app provides clear, simple, and multilingual information on direct access to services, such as accommodation, day centres, food services, health facilities, and hygiene points. It also includes weather alerts and a chat function that connects users directly with street outreach teams enabling rapid and personalised support. The app is currently in a pilot phase and has been tested directly with 25 people experiencing homelessness and 60 professionals. The project is designed to scale up and is easily transferable to other cities. Presenter:
|
My Village, My Second Family: A Rural Community that Cares CDR Grío supports children and young people with complex needs who are under the child protection system in rural settings. The target group includes children with or without disabilities who require stable, protective environments capable of supporting their emotional recovery and social development. The programme is implemented in the village of Codos (Zaragoza), where the local community and natural environment are an integral part of the care model. Through the Río Grío Children’s Centre, children receive personalised socio-educational and therapeutic support delivered by a multidisciplinary professional team. The rural setting has both a therapeutic and educational function, fostering emotional regulation, social skills, and a sense of belonging, while the local community becomes an extended family through active participation and shared responsibility. Since 1997, the project has supported 203 children. Evaluations show a 46% reduction in disruptive behaviour, significant improvement in emotional wellbeing and school attendance, and strong community engagement, with 65% of residents participating in activities. The project demonstrates the transformative potential of rural, community-based child protection models. Presenter:
|
Addressing Loneliness and Social Exclusion through Intergenerational Community Care The Cultivating Futures programme addresses the social and educational challenges faced by adolescents experiencing school exclusion, including disengagement, disruptive behaviour, bullying, addiction, and school absenteeism, while also tackling social isolation among older people. The primary target group is young people aged 14–18 who are temporarily expelled from secondary school, alongside older residents in the local community. Implemented in the municipality of Churriana de la Vega (Granada), the programme provides these young people with a series of socio-educational activities with high community value. Young people who have been expelled from school participate in intergenerational social activities, mainly supporting older people, under the guidance of a multidisciplinary social services team. The initiative adopts a community-based and intergenerational approach, strengthening social cohesion and shared responsibility. The project demonstrates how integrated, community-led responses can strengthen child protection, family support, and inclusive local social services. After five years of implementation, the programme has reduced social isolation among older people, improved young people’s social skills and values, and increased their engagement in community life. Presenter:
|
|
From Cradles to Care: Connecting Generations through Social Support The Canas y cunas project addresses social risk situations affecting young migrant mothers with limited social networks and their babies between the ages of one and two, while also responding to unwanted loneliness among older people. The target groups are families involved in child protection and prevention services, and older women, many of whom also have a migration background. Implemented in several neighbourhoods of Hospitalet de Llobregat, a large industrial city in the outskirts of Barcelona, the project connects young mothers and their babies with older women through facilitated intergenerational group sessions. Led by social workers and social educators, the sessions focus on strengthening parenting skills, improving mother-child bonding, supporting early child development, and enhancing the self-esteem and social participation of older people. The approach is participatory, community-based, and rooted in the mobilisation of local social capital. Two pilots have so far involved 19 families and 6 older people. Evaluation results show high satisfaction, improved parenting confidence, reduced feelings of loneliness among older participants, and sustained relationships beyond the sessions. Presenter:
|
Measuring Prevention with Qrios: A Wellbeing-Centred Digital Approach Across Europe, social care systems face increasing pressure and often respond to crises rather than preventing them. Through Community Led Support (CLS) Hubs across the UK, anonymised wellbeing data has been collected using the NDTi Wellbeing Framework and the digital platform Qrios, enabling local systems to assess impact at both individual and population levels. Qrios is an ethical, interoperable tool that supports partnership working across local authorities, health services, and community organisations, creating a shared evidence base for prevention. While traditional datasets focus on service activity and crisis response, Qrios captures anonymous wellbeing information from preventative conversations, generating real-time insight into safety, connection, independence, and support needs. This intelligence helps systems identify emerging risks, coordinate earlier interventions, and target investment more effectively. The approach demonstrates how interoperable digital tools can strengthen collaboration, reduce fragmentation, and support more sustainable, community-based social care systems. Organisation:
|
Connecting Generations through Fairy Tales Connecting Generations through Fairy Tales is an ongoing intergenerational initiative in Vilnius, Lithuania. The project brings older adults, including adults living with dementia, together with children in kindergartens to share stories and read fairy tales. Supported by youth volunteers and care professionals, the programme has engaged over 1,000 participants. The initiative demonstrates how low-cost, human-centred social services can reduce loneliness, empower older adults, and strengthen social cohesion. Its scalable model bridges generational and sectoral boundaries, offering an innovative approach to inclusive social care. By fostering empathy, emotional intelligence, and community resilience, the project challenges traditional care-system boundaries and promotes dignity, inclusion, and purpose. Overall, it illustrates how community-based initiatives can reinforce resilience, reduce loneliness, and promote long-term social wellbeing with limited financial investment. Presenter:
|
|
ROPS as a Catalyst for Social Services Innovation This contribution is a study of the role that Regional Centres for Social Policy (ROPS) have played in the development of Centres for Social Services (CUS), whose main objective is to improve access and the provision of integrated social services by shifting from reactive to preventive, community-oriented support. The key messages of this contribution are that regional coordination, when combined with strong local implementation, can foster a sustainable ecosystem for innovation in social services; integrated social services provision enhances access and improved user experience; strong ROPS’s coordinating role illustrates how governance structures can promote responsiveness, prevention, and integrated service delivery. Overall, the project offers practical lessons for public authorities seeking to reorganise social services into more holistic, accessible, and citizen-centred models. Presenters:
|
Addressing Hikikomori in Adolescence through Early Intervention A comparative analysis of Japanese and French early prevention models for youth social withdrawal (‘hikikomori’) explores how differing policy approaches shape outcomes for children, families, and educational engagement. Social withdrawal has been a growing concern in Japan since the 1990s and is estimated to affect around 1% of the youth population. Focusing on early preventive policies targeting young people, the study draws on case studies from Amagasaki, Japan and Paris, France. The project focuses on policies and practices across education, welfare, and professional interventions, encompassing public and private schools, municipal youth support services, and specialist agencies. The findings reveal a fundamental contrast between the two countries: Japan operates a pull-type system in which families are expected to seek support, whereas France employs a push-type model in which public authorities actively monitor and intervene to prevent social isolation. Overall, the study highlights key policy implications for upholding children’s rights, maintaining social connections, and promoting family wellbeing, offering valuable insights for international child welfare early intervention frameworks. Presenter:
|
Global Pathways to Digital Social Protection The Digital Convergence Initiative (DCI) addresses the challenge of limited coverage, fragmentation, and inefficiencies in social protection systems, which affect all population groups, particularly people who rely on weak digital social services. The lack of interoperable systems hinders timely, coherent, and citizen-centred access to social protection. The DCI tackles this problem by promoting the digital transformation of social protection systems through inclusive and interoperable solutions. The project works across four main areas: generating and sharing knowledge among professionals; developing global technical standards for interoperability; providing tailored country support to design and implement digital social protection reforms; and strengthening capacities through rights-based digital social protection training. In terms of impact, the DCI operates in 21 core countries and one region, has delivered 29 webinars and global workshops, trained 50 participants to date, and is expected to indirectly benefit millions of people by enabling more efficient, coordinated, and accessible social protection systems. Presenters:
|
|
Enhancing Public Service Delivery Through Digital Transformation Finland’s social welfare sector is advancing digital transformation through modern information management and interoperable ICT systems. Central to this effort is the implementation of national digital services like Kanta, which digitise client data and enable secure, centralised access for professionals across the sector. This infrastructure supports efficient service delivery and facilitates the secondary use of data for research and policy development. Professional development is also prioritised, with initiatives to improve documentation skills among social welfare workers. By integrating digital tools, legal frameworks, and cross-sector collaboration, Finland has built a cohesive digital social care ecosystem, where client data flows securely and efficiently. This approach strengthens operational effectiveness, supports evidence-based practice, and ensures that social welfare services are responsive to client needs. It exemplifies how digital transformation and interoperability can enhance public service delivery in a sustainable and scalable way. Presenter:
|
Strengthening Social Care Regulation: Towards an Evidence-based Quality Assessment Framework SCSA, Malta’s national regulator for social welfare services, is modernising its quality assurance system in response to increasingly complex care environments, diverse service user needs, and rising expectations for safety, transparency, and accountability. The project combines national research, cross-service comparisons, and direct engagement with inspectors and service providers across Malta and Gozo. It aims to redesign SCSA’s assessment framework to deliver consistent, evidence-based evaluations of service quality and regulatory outcomes at national level. The revised framework seeks to enhance interoperability across regulatory processes, improve the accuracy and reliability of inspection judgements, and support continuous quality improvement across sectors. Early findings from pilot implementation indicate significant improvements in regulatory consistency, clarity, and use of evidence. Across approximately 50 inspection visits during the pilot implementation, assessors reported a clearer understanding of the revised tools, greater consistency in scoring, and stronger alignment between observed practice and inspection outcomes. Presenters:
|
Certified Training for Health and Social Care Pathway Coordinators This project is a professional training initiative developed within UGECAM, the French national network of health and social care facilities. Currently in its pilot phase, it involves 10 volunteer professionals from multidisciplinary backgrounds, including health and social care practitioners, based across France. The training focuses on strengthening the coordination of care and support pathways for people with disabilities through an integrated, person-centred approach. Activities include skills development in pathway coordination, interprofessional collaboration, and engagement with mainstream services. The project encourages professionals to move beyond institutional silos, clarify roles among stakeholders, and actively involve individuals and their families in decision-making. Initial feedback highlights tangible impacts on professional practices and individual pathways. Participants report increased support for self-determination, improved collaboration among professionals, reduced tensions between professionals and service users, as well as greater openness to community-based resources. Overall, the project contributes to more coherent, flexible, and sustainable support pathways for people with disabilities. Organisation:
|
|
Neurorehabilitation: Creating Pathways to Autonomy and Social Inclusion The project, implemented in Maribor, Slovenia, aims to enhance independent living skills, personal dignity, and social inclusion for persons with disabilities, including individuals with an acquired brain injury. A multidisciplinary team collaborates to deliver a structured daily neurorehabilitation programme comprising practical skill training, psychophysical training, cognitive rehabilitation and training, guided practice in real-life environments, as well as structured psychoeducational and creative-occupational workshops, all grounded in the principles of neuroplasticity. Additional objectives include empowering family members, increasing professional knowledge across various profiles, reducing stigma, and raising community awareness about inclusion and accessibility. The key message of their work is that independent living is not solely a personal ability but a community-supported process. By connecting persons with disabilities, their support networks, and professionals, the project creates sustainable pathways to greater autonomy, participation, and equal opportunities in everyday life. Presenter:
|
INSPIRE: Supporting Inclusion in Rural Areas through Smart Village Labs INSPIRE is a Horizon Europe project that supports the social inclusion and wellbeing of citizens in vulnerable situations in European rural areas through improved learning of rural social services and social economy models, including pilot activities and workshops aimed to come up with co-designed proposals with professionals and citizens themselves. Through awareness-raising, capacity-building, and pilot activities focused on social services and entrepreneurship in seven rural locations across Europe, INSPIRE tests actual innovative social services solutions against local needs, through "Smart Village labs" both online and onsite, and come up with a Rural Social Inclusion Policy Dashboard. This Dashboard will be designed to support decision-makers in taking effective measures to promote social inclusion in rural Europe through innovative and smart social services. Presenter:
|
The long-standing model of social policy in the City of Zagreb, successful thanks to the joint and coordinated action of the municipality with local stakeholders, has resulted in high-quality social services. This session will explore several successful examples of care models, specifically designed to improve the quality of life of targeted populations, such as homeless people, victims of domestic violence, and guaranteed minimum income beneficiaries. These models are outlined in the Social Plan of the City of Zagreb 2025-2027, co-designed with all the stakeholders, including user groups and social care professionals. Delegates will learn about the ways horizontal and vertical cooperation supported the process of mapping and identifying the specific needs of user groups, as well as the development and implementation of services that match these needs. Additionally, this presentation will cover how European funds, namely the European Social Fund +, greatly support local social support systems. Presenter:
|
|
Social Third Sector Open Database The Open Data Space is an initiative driven by the Table of Third Social Sector Entities of Catalonia, through its digital innovation program, m4Social. The project aims to transform the role of public data within the social third sector, so that it moves from being an underutilized resource to becoming an operational and strategic tool to support decision-making, optimise interventions, and strengthen the advocacy capacity of organisations. The Open Data Space aims to transform the role of public data within the social third sector by supporting evidence-based decision-making, optimising interventions, and strengthening organisations' advocacy capacity. The initiative focuses on identifying relevant data sources and developing a digital environment that ensures accessible, user-friendly data exploration and visualisation. These actions are complemented by capacity-building training to support organisations in effectively using the platform. Overall, the project seeks to strengthen the third sector’s relationship with public information, fostering shared knowledge and evidence-based organisational culture. Presenter:
|
Evaluating the HSB-FGC Model for Harmful Child and Youth Sexual Behaviour The pilot implementation of the Harmful Sexual Behaviour–Family Group Conference (HSB-FGC) Model to a social services department in England explores how child protection and youth justice approaches can be brought together to address the complex needs of children and young people involved in Harmful Sexual Behaviour. The model uses Family Group Conferences as a family-led decision-making process, enabling families, professionals and wider support networks to develop safety and restorative plans for both the young person who has been harmed and the young person responsible for the behaviour. Drawing on the evaluation of the pilot, the findings highlight how the model operates in practice, including the experiences of professionals and families, early outcomes, and key lessons for implementation. The results provide insights into more collaborative and holistic responses to Harmful Sexual Behaviour involving children and young people. Presenter:
|
Laurel: Actionable Policies for Integrated Long-Term Care Laurel is a HORIZON-funded project aiming to create actionable policies and training tools to support high-quality integrated long-term care (I-LTC) across Europe. The project aims to support long-term care systems across Europe by conducting research into the current state of I-LTC, identifying innovative policies and systems, and exploring the experiences of care users, informal carers, care professionals, and other stakeholders. The resulting body of academic research will be developed into actionable policy guidance for decision-makers and training tools for those delivering long-term care. The project will provide valuable insights into regional differences of I-LTC provision and their support solutions in Europe, along with innovative and validated proposals for the future. These outputs will help long-term care systems respond to the challenges of growing demand, economic constraints, accessibility, affordability, quality of services, workforce shortage, and systemic reforms. Presenter:
|
|
COMHOM: Pioneering Data-Driven Solutions to Combat Homelessness across Europe COMHOM is a three-year project transforming responses to homelessness through digitalisation, innovation, and data. It develops a standardised Monitoring & Evaluation Framework and a digital platform to centralise data and support evidence-based decisions. The project involves co-creation with stakeholders and the testing of digital tools by non-profit homelessness service providers across Europe. A sub-granting call selected 25 service providers, and since December 2025, these organisations have been receiving funding, training, and support to roll out the COMHOM framework across their services. Presenter:
|
ECSILI - Empowering Communities: A Local Action Plan for Social Inclusion and Labour Integration of Refugees As the war in Ukraine persists, the social inclusion of Ukrainian refugees within their host communities across Europe has become an increasingly urgent issue. Despite efforts, language barriers, inability to access public services, and a mismatch between skills and available jobs are the most significant causes of their inactivity and social exclusion. Funded by ESF+ Social Innovation+ Initiative, ECSILI – Empowering Communities, stands as a concrete effort to address the societal consequences of the war in Ukraine within the partner municipalities of Warsaw and Arad. The project is based on the idea of integrated social support and co-creation, uniting different local services to provide individualised inclusion plans for people in need. This social innovation model is currently being piloted in Warsaw and Arad, with the aim of reaching a total of 130 Ukrainian refugees. To do that, the Warsaw Family Support Centre is collaborating with SkillLab, using its skills profiling tool to track personal and professional skills. The objective is to match them with job offers, offering an alternative labour activation pathway to skilled individuals who struggle to get their qualifications recognised. |
Yrkesresan: The professional Journey Yrkesresan is a national initiative aimed at strengthening competence and professional pride among social service employees and managers through structured, high-quality training based on best available knowledge. It brings together national guidelines and best practices into a shared digital platform, tailored to four ‘Journeys’: Child and Youth Social Services (2022), Functional Impairment Disability Services (2024), Substance Abuse and Addiction (2025), and Elderly Care Services (2025). The Elderly Care Professional Journey is produced by R&D Östergötland, which supports managers and care staff. Yrkesresan addresses key challenges by offering standardized foundational training, reducing the gap between theory and practice, and providing structured onboarding for new employees. It also supports continuous professional development through a centralised, up-to-date curriculum. Courses are developed with the National Board of Health and Welfare and include varied formats such as videos, texts, and exercises. Since its launch in November 2025, the elderly care platform has attracted thousands of users nationwide. Presenter:
|
