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Do you want your services or programmes to be recognised at European level?

If so, tell us how you made a difference in supporting vulnerable people during the Covid-19 pandemic, and you could be a winner at the next European Social Services Awards (ESSA).

Celebrating excellence in social services

At the European Social Network (ESN), we want to recognise the excellent work you do while promoting innovative best practice in social services. This is why today we are launching the third edition of the ESSA, a special opportunity to showcase outstanding projects that improve people’s lives and to acknowledge the great value of social services in our societies.

Forging resilient communities

During the pandemic, social services jumped into action to improve service delivery for those in need at a time of unprecedented upheaval. The pandemic brought to light the essential role social services play in improving people’s lives and the urgent need to build more resilient communities and services. For this reason, the 2021 ESSA theme is ‘Building Resilience in Social Services’.

In 2020, the awards focused on how social services have transformed the ways they provide care in the community to support the most vulnerable. The 2021 ESSA will be a unique opportunity to gather best practices that reflect the transformative changes prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic, focusing on efforts to foster more resilient services and communities. The awards will also offer an opportunity to inform the planning for future phases of the pandemic or other potential crises.

Responding to the crisis: together for stronger social services

This year, we will explore together how social services have responded to the Covid-19 crisis to ensure the continuity, coverage and quality of care for vulnerable populations across Europe. The Awards will seek to honour your effort to guarantee continuity of care but also to develop more resilient social services in the public sector, which are better for future crises. We want to advocate alongside you for stronger public social services and ensure recognition of their central role in both the response to, and the recovery from, the current crisis.

Now it’s your turn: tell us about your work

Have you developed new innovative practice during the pandemic? Did your team come up with creative solutions to provide care? Have you collaborated with other agencies to respond to the crisis? Have you created knowledge on the impact of Covid-19? Have you adapted your work through new technology tools? If so, check out the categories for which you can apply and everything else you need to know about the Awards on our website and share with us how you contribute to support vulnerable people.

Apply now for the European Social Services Awards, and let us reward you for your tireless effort to improve people’s lives.

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Dragoș Pîslaru, Member of the European Parliament – 2020 European Social Services Awards Ceremony