“Social services have an important role to play in providing the necessary basic welfare and support to those already experiencing poverty and preventing others from falling into poverty”.
This is what the European Commission recognised in their first-ever EU Anti-Poverty Strategy published in May this year.
In a European Union where 1 in 5 Europeans and 1 in 4 children are at risk of poverty or social exclusion, the Strategy aims to fulfill EU’s 2030 target of reducing the number of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion by at least 15 million, including at least 5 million children, and sets a clear long-term objective aiming at eradicating poverty by 2050.
To do so, the Strategy is divided into 3 different but interconnected chapters and areas of work. Chapter 1 investigates measures to tackle poverty throughout the life cycle. Chapter 2 assesses horizontal challenges and dimensions that can aggravate poverty, such as discrimination or rising living costs, and Chapter 3 provides opportunities to improve governance, funding, and monitoring at all levels.
Throughout every chapter, the EU Anti-Poverty Strategy largely brings together existing initiatives, including the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, the European Child Guarantee and the European Youth Guarantee, while proposing a new governance framework through Anti-Poverty Coordinators in each Member State. Although most of its measures already exist, the Strategy seeks to strengthen coordination, complement them with new Council Recommendations, and support the long-term objective of eradicating poverty by 2050.
The recognition of social services as a core anti-poverty instrument
From the social services perspective, however, the strength of the EU Anti-Poverty Strategy lies in its recognition of social services as a core anti-poverty instrument and bringing them to the centre of the agenda together with integrated support and service quality.
The creation of an “Anti-Poverty Coordinator at the highest political level" responsible for coordinating ministries and authorities involved in anti-poverty policy is particularly interesting for the sector as it allows the opportunity to improve cross-sector cooperation.
At the same time, the proposal to develop a Council Recommendation on Easier and Integrated Access to Services is also particularly promising. Although the concrete format of it has not yet been determined, ESN hopes this recommendation becomes an opportunity to move beyond individual programmes and towards coordinated pathways, one-stop-shops, and integrated case management, a subject on which the European Social Network has advocated for many years.
ESN also welcomes very positively the willingness to update the 2010 Voluntary European Quality Framework for Social Services, something that the European Social Network has also pushed for in recent years.
We believe the development of our proposal for a European Social Services Quality Framework provides excellent ground for the work that the European Commission and national governments may undertake in this area.
Remaining gaps and shortcomings for effective implementation
While the Strategy recognises the important role of social services in tackling poverty and promoting social inclusion, some gaps remain. It lacks a comprehensive proposal for a social services workforce strategy to address workforce shortages, recruitment, retention and professionalisation, as well as a stronger commitment to community-based care and deinstitutionalisation, which research has highlighted to be a source of social exclusion.
Moreover, ESN is particularly concerned by the contradiction between the Commission’s Proposal on the next Multi-Annual Financial Framework (2028-2034) and the expectations put on Member States with the EU Anti-Poverty Strategy. Indeed, while the Commission's proposal for the next MFF reduces earmarked social inclusion funding, the Strategy increases expectations on Member States to tackle poverty and improve access to services. Finally, the absence of measurable targets on access to and quality of social services limits accountability and effective implementation.
The Strategy marks an important political commitment to addressing poverty and social exclusion and recognises, perhaps for the first time in such an explicit fashion, the role of social services in achieving this objective. However, without dedicated investment, clear governance arrangements, measurable targets and stronger accountability mechanisms, there is a risk that the Strategy becomes another framework of good intentions rather than a driver of meaningful change.
