In a rapidly changing social services environment, two apparently opposing forces – relational welfare and welfare technology – converged at the 33rd edition of the European Social Services Conference (ESSC) and we discovered in how many ways care and tech meet to shape the future of social welfare.
Instead of fighting against it, this alliance offers the potential to radically reinvent social services, to render them more humane, open and successful. But success comes down to a fundamental ethos: technology should serve relationships, not replace them.
Relational welfare focuses on human relationships as the key driver for wellbeing. The approach is not transaction-based like many conventional welfare systems but trust-based and builds on an empathising relationship between people and institutions. It favours presence over process and collaboration over control. As Hillary Cottam, social entrepreneur and policy advisor, said at the event: “The welfare state we have today is based on post-WWII realities and built for an industrial society. Today’s crises — chronic illness, social isolation, inequality — call for a new model: one that puts people and relationships first.”
And that is where technology comes in — not to replace human social services, but to strengthen and support them. A clear resonating message at the ESSC 2025 was that true transformation occurs when personalised social services are linked up with digital innovation.
Welfare technologies, for example AI, assistive technology and digital platforms are already transforming the way care is provided, but their achievements will depend on whether they reinforce or undermine human contact. Consider, for example, the Madrid-based Paloma Project, which applies AI to phone calls and natural-language processing to recognize when an individual may be lonely. Or the new implementation in Slovenia of social robots in care homes, to counteract isolation and provide cognitive stimulation and emotional support for people with intellectual disabilities. These are not simply affordable solutions. They address real issues (for example, shortages within the workforce, increasing needs for care and geographic isolation), by adding on to the relational aspects of care rather than supplanting them.
Relational welfare thrives when services are co-designed with their users. In Denmark, the Opgang til Opgang programme enables professionals to work together across fields to support whole families, with all activity driven via a single contact point. As a result, there have been better and more solid community ties built on deep listening and trust — values that technology can, if applied thoughtfully, multiply.
But it’s also a transformation that comes with some potentially negative consequences. As technological tools become more sophisticated, the threat of algorithmic bias, privacy violations and marginalisation has grown. If ethical considerations are brushed aside, vulnerable groups — older people, people with low digital literacy who tend not to use smartphones, people with fragile cognitive capabilities may be left behind. As Pascal Bijleveld, Chief Executive Officer of ATscale, the Global Partnership for Assistive Technology, cautioned, “the more we incorporate AI, the more we have to have our eyes open to the unintended consequences.”
To prevent these risks, digital transformation should be driven by participatory, co-created approaches. Solutions must be created with, not for, the populations they seek to benefit.
VidAAs innovation centre in Navarra (Spain) and My Social File in Antwerp (Belgium) both illustrate digital platforms’ trust in allowing citizens greater access to services, reducing administrative burdens, and allowing professionals focus on human interaction.
But to undertake this work in a critical and informed way, social services professionals need to be adequately trained and equipped to navigate this new landscape. As Grace Hou, Deputy Governor Health and Human Services from Illinois (USA) said: “Meaningful policy requires a voice from lived experience. That is a task of not just reimagining services but reconfiguring the culture of care — from top leadership to the frontline staff — to embrace technology and relationality.”
The European Social Services Conference is the right place for these conversations and a much-needed neutral space for practitioners, policy makers and the tech community to come together and think about what is possible when we bring innovation and empathy together. The 33rd edition made it clear: when shared across borders and disciplines, knowledge stands as the engine of progress.
Faced with an ageing population, economic instability and more complex social needs, it is essential that we have systems that are robust, inclusive and future orientated. Social welfare based on relationship building and ethical technologies provide a vision for this future. It asks us to rethink welfare as a social fabric rather than as a safety net — based on trust, reinforced by the right tools, woven from human ties. The issue is not now what we should do about relational wellbeing supported by technology, but whether we can do otherwise.
