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CDR3048-2013_12_00_TRA_TCD
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EU local and regional authorities contributing to the
Mid-term review of Europe 2020
Assessment of the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion flagship initiative
Over two years after its launch, the Committee of the Regions will take stock of the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion flagship initiative at a conference to be held on 29 May 2013 in Brussels. This conference will be the fourth in a series of CoR events and monitoring initiatives surrounding the mid-term review of Europe 2020 in 2014. More news on this conference can be found on the CoR website[1].
By participating in this survey, you will:
ensure that your views are taken into account in the debate held during the conference;
contribute to the fourth CoR Monitoring Report on Europe 2020, to be published in October 2013;
contribute to the CoR's consultative activity in this field over the coming months;
contribute to the mid-term review of Europe 2020 in 2014.
If you wish to participate in this survey, Please complete this questionnaire in any eu language, using the spaces provided, and return it in text format to:
by 22 April 2013
For more information on this survey and for details on how to join the
Europe 2020 Monitoring Platform, go to:
The questionnaire is available on this website in all official languages of the EU
Contributor information[2]
Name of sender: / Frank Van den BrandenContact details:
(address, telephone, email) / Koning Albert II-laan / Boulevard du Roi Albert II 35 bus/bte 30
+3225533224
On behalf of:
(name of local or regional authority) / Flemish Government
Type of organisation / City/Town/Municipality Region
County/Province
Association of local and/or regional authorities
Other (please specify)
Country: / Belgium
Member of the EUROPE 2020 Monitoring Platform: / Yes No
Policy challenges and responses at regional and local level
BOX 1 – European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion: basic informationThis is the first time ever that the objective of reducing poverty has been identified as a quantitative target under an EU strategy. The aim of the Europe 2020 flagship initiative, the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion, is "to ensure economic, social and territorial cohesion in order to raise awareness and recognise the fundamental rights of people experiencing poverty and social exclusion, enabling them to live in dignity and take an active part in society" [3]. In particular, it outlines actions to help Member States reach the EU target of reducing poverty and social exclusion by at least 20 million by the year 2020[4].
Although the average at-risk-of-poverty-and-social-exclusion rate in the EU has remained relatively stable in recent years, it varies significantly among different age groups and between the Member States. It has significantly increased in a number of countries over the last three to four years[5]: while the rate is under 20% in certain Member States such as Denmark, Germany and Luxembourg, it recently increased to 47% in Bulgaria, 40% in Latvia and 31% in Greece (2011). Furthermore, considerable differences exist between different regions in the Member States[6].
Today, the inhabitants of around one fifth of the EU's regions are particularly exposed to risks of poverty and social exclusion.
The European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion feeds into the Europe 2020 objective of inclusive growth along with the Agenda for New Skills and Jobs flagship initiative. It will also help to achieve the other objectives of smart growth (alongside the Youth on the Move flagship initiative). In particular, it contributes to the objective of achieving the Europe 2020 headline target to lift at least 20 million people out of the risk of poverty and social exclusion.
The main objectives and lines of action of the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion are highlighted in Box 2 below.
EU regional and local governments are responsible for about one fifth of total government expenditure for social protection and services and therefore play an important role in helping to achieve the objectives of the flagship initiative[7].
You can find more information on the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion, as seen from the local and regional authorities' viewpoint, on the European Commission's Europe 2020 portal[8] and in the Committee of the Regions' publication Delivering on the Europe 2020 Strategy. Handbook for Local and Regional Authorities[9]. General information on Europe 2020 can be found on the strategy's official website[10] and on the website of DG Employment.[11].
1)What are the main challenges currently facing your region/city in terms of (i) preventing child poverty (ii) providing decent housing conditions and (iii) combating the social exclusion of vulnerable groups?
(i)Child poverty is inextricably linked to the poverty of the families they grow up in. The main challenges in these families are parental employment, training for young parents, the family's housing situation and household income. The children have less access to pre-school provision such as childcare, and suffer exclusion at school (falling behind the class, leaving with no qualifications) and outside school. We need integrated strategies that approach the various aspects of the issue in a sustainable way.
(ii)In 2010, as many as 23% of people in Flanders were living in houses with structural defects, a lack of basic facilities or overcrowded conditions. The groups at particular risk are clearly households with children and low work intensity (74%), and non-EU citizens (53%). One response to the problem of high housing costs is provided by the social housing market, but demand for social housing has been high and steadily increasing in recent years and waiting lists remain high. In Flanders, just 8% of the total housing market comprises social housing (the EU average is 14%). These figures show two things: firstly that more effort is needed to significantly expand social housing provision, and secondly that action is needed to safeguard the affordability of renting on the private market.
(iii)Firstly, the issues raised under point (i). In addition, isolation and poverty among older people is a significant challenge in our region, with its ageing population. The increase in poverty among ethnic and cultural minorities is also an important issue.
2) Please briefly describe what type of policy programmes/actions are being implemented in your city/region in the policy areas covered by the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion, highlighting their specific contribution to the above targets (see Box 1).
The actions taken by the Flemish government to combat poverty are listed in the Flemish anti-poverty action plan, which sets a number of priorities:
introducing a poverty test for new legislation
where possible, granting entitlements automatically
focusing in particular on poverty among ethnic minorities
promoting networking among care providers
increasing knowledge of poverty (inter alia by setting up an academic Flemish poverty advice centre
developing poverty research
supporting debt relief
introducing a Flemish leisure card
controlling costs in secondary education
taking actions relating to employment
introducing an automatic rent subsidy for people who have been on the waiting list for a long time
providing accessible primary healthcare
combating child poverty.
Combating child poverty involves inter alia the following actions:
working towards public consensus, including by developing a social/business case
providing more support for local neighbourhood childcare services
rolling out projects to support families bridge the gap between education and work throughout Flanders
expanding prenatal care, prioritising care coordination and psychosocial support for vulnerable pregnant women in urban areas
revamping preventative family support in substantive, organisational and institutional terms, focusing in particular on poor families. We have bolstered preventative family support, with Huis van het kind centres as a key element.
working to provide enough good, affordable accessible childcare for vulnerable young children and their parents.
reinforcing and expanding the walk-in and mobile services of childcare and family support centres to provide care and support for younger children in crisis or at risk. Educational and behavioural issues are tackled at an early stage, particularly in vulnerable groups.
Boeren op een Kruispunt and Tussenstap work to support families of entrepreneurs in difficulty. They provide support that takes account of the whole family's situation, paying particular attention to the specific circumstances of young children in these households.
within education policy, focusing on sustainable early-years participation, including targeted actions to provide vulnerable parents of young children with proper information about (the importance of) early-years education.
drafting a new regulation to provide a better framework for early-years education.
better ensuring that education is affordable by focusing on better communicating new and existing measures and by making payment of the education allowance automatic.
working to improve communication between schools and parents, with schools making particular outreach efforts to parents. Parents' associations may also have an impact here.
as part of complementary education policy, subsidising a great many projects tackling child poverty. These projects are very diverse, and focus among other things on educational support and family support.
as part of the Employment and Investment Plan and as an alternative to job cuts, establishing specific pathways for people (inc. parents) in poverty, based on a sound tailor-made approach.
explicitly taking account of the presence of children in a household with regard to entitlement to (social) housing. This applies inter alia to social housing programming, calculating subsidised rents, rental premiums, renovation premiums and improvement and adaptation premiums.
taking specific account of the presence of children in a household in the Public Centre for Social Welfare's social research into the minimum supply of natural gas.
paying attention to the need for a child-friendly environment when (re)designing sites for travellers.
through the Flemish Cities Fund, providing the necessary scope for implementing programmes and actions to tackle child poverty. This may include family support projects, social art projects for children, pedestrian-priority streets where children can play, etc.
working to support local initiatives to tackle child poverty. Flanders is thus helping to launch and promote local projects taking a horizontal approach to tackling child poverty.
The Flemish Tourist Board subsidises and supports Social Tourism associations, in accordance with the Decree on tourism for all. These organisations provide the appropriate assistance and support for families who have no experience with going on holiday.
ensuring that children whose families are not involved in any clubs or societies can take part in school holiday activities. This focuses on providing better tailored support and reaching more people in poverty.
supporting the not-for-profit association Leesweb in an effort to eliminate illiteracy. This phenomenon continues to create many barriers in society and is a real issue among vulnerable groups (e.g. children in poverty, ethnic and cultural minorities).
giving children under six and specifically children in poverty more play facilities.
investigating how De Lijn's price reduction system can eventually be automated and made more transparent.
with regard to the media, working to increase awareness among all stakeholders concerning poverty, and especially child poverty.
making the fight against child poverty part of the social innovation programme.
All of these actions and programmes are necessary in order to take an integrated approach to tackling poverty.
3)Are any of the policy programmes/actions described in the above question carried out in partnership with different tiers of government and/or with other stakeholders (regional or local NGOs, representatives of the social partners, the business sector or service providers). If yes, please state (a) the administrative levels involved (b) the practical arrangements taken to manage such joint action (c) who the main partners were and (d) how you worked with them (work organisation and time).
The priority actions were selected in consultation with the social partners and the Flemish network of poverty advocacy associations. Stakeholders are involved in the various actions where relevant.
Local government is an important partner in combating poverty, and the Flemish government is making every effort to support them in this. In relation to child poverty, a variety of calls for proposals have been published for local projects. To provide inspiration and share knowledge, provincial tours and a project market have been organised and a methodology book has been produced and disseminated. There was also a call for local projects to promote intergenerational solidarity.
4)Ensuring effective access to and participation in cultural activities for all is an essential part of promoting an inclusive society. In what way can participation in cultural and creative activities be instrumental for helping people and communities overcome poverty and social exclusion? Please refer to specific examples and existing initiatives.
Poverty is a web of social exclusion extending over many areas of individual and collective existence. Combating poverty needs to focus on enabling full participation in society, so that everyone can make the most of all their fundamental social rights. One of those fundamental rights is the right to leisure activities, in particular participation (both passive and active) in cultural and creative activities. It is important to make efforts to give every person in Flanders this right, because culture plays an important role both in shaping an individual's identity and personal development and in building a social network. Cultural participation helps people and families in poverty to overcome their social isolation and gives them the opportunity to reconnect with society. It also gives poor people the opportunity to discover and develop their creative and artistic skills and talents.
Tackling poverty is also a local responsibility. The Flemish government therefore provides local authorities with financial incentives to develop a dynamic local policy for people in poverty. It is also very clear on the ground that there needs to be more cooperation and consultation. The Flemish government is therefore making a conscious effort to create local networks, by means of the Participation Decree. These networks are charged with making participation in cultural, youth and sporting activities more accessible to people in poverty. These local networks must include, at minimum, the local authority's leisure services, the Public Centre for Social Welfare, associations of people in poverty and other relevant organisations whose activities are targeted at people in poverty. In Flemish local authorities that do not have a local network, the Leisure Participation Fund takes on the role of the local network.
The Flemish government subsidises Dēmos vzw as a cross-cutting participation institution that works firstly to increase and broaden participation and secondly to reinvigorate and reinforce the participation of e.g. people in poverty. To this end, Dēmos vzw is responsible for facilitating local networks and specific projects for vulnerable groups (including people in poverty).
The Leisure Participation Fund is a Flemish institution with the basic aim of providing people in poverty with financial assistance to enable them to participate in cultural and more general leisure activities. Organisations working with people in poverty that are based in a local authority with no local network can ask the Fund directly for a financial contribution to cover transport costs, reservation fees and babysitting expenses. The Fund also negotiates cooperation agreements with the leisure industry, national cultural institutions and supralocal initiatives to make them available to people in poverty.
The aim of the UiTPAS is to encourage more people to take part in general cultural and leisure activities, and focuses in particular on the barriers experienced by people in poverty. The pass is free, does not stigmatise the holder, and enables people in poverty to pay less for leisure activities, in close cooperation with local poverty action associations and social organisations. It is a Flemish instrument with a strong technological underpinning, and is provided to cities and local authorities by agreement.
How is the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion relevant to your city or region?
BOX 2 - European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion: main objectives and actionsThe specific objectives of the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion are[12] [13]:
- to support the eradication of child poverty. Over 20 million children are at risk of poverty in Europe today. This risk rises to 25% for children who live in large families and is over 30% in the case of children who live in single parent families;
- to promote the active inclusion in society and on the labour market of the most vulnerable groups since unemployment is the principal cause of poverty among the working-age population. The risk of poverty for the unemployed is more than five times greater than in the case of people in employment;
- to provide decent housing for everyone. Homelessness and housing exclusion represent one of the most extreme forms of poverty and have increased in recent years. Fuel poverty, which risks depriving households not only of heating or air conditioning but also hot water, light and other essential domestic necessities, is another example of severe deprivation;
- to overcome discrimination and increase the social integration of people with disabilities, ethnic minorities, immigrants and other vulnerable groups. For example, older people face a higher risk of poverty compared to the overall population; moreover, in some countries older people are at particular risk of material deprivation;
- to tackle financial exclusion and over-indebtedness which arise from a lack of access to basic banking services, a situation which has been aggravated by the recent crisis. It can also be an obstacle to finding a job and thus lead to persistent marginalisation and poverty;
- to promote the integration of Roma. Certain ethnic minorities, of whom Roma are the largest group, and migrant people in general, are disproportionately affected by multiple deprivation.
- improved access to work, social security, essential services (healthcare, housing, etc.) and education;
- better use of EU funds to support social inclusion and combat discrimination;
- social innovation to identify smart solutions in post-crisis Europe, especially in terms of more effective and efficient social support;
- new partnerships such as those between the public and the private sector;
- enhanced policy coordination among the Member States;
- provision of food to the most deprived people, as well as clothing and other essential goods to homeless people and materially-deprived children[16].
5)Which of the objectives and lines of action of the European Platform against Poverty and Social Exclusion (listed in Box 2) are most relevant for the current situation in your region/city? To what extent have they encouraged you to set more ambitious policy goals at regional/local level? Please explain your answer.
All of the objectives are relevant.
With regard to child poverty, the number of children born into deprived households is rising.
Employment is still a good (though not sufficient) buffer against poverty.
With regard to housing, there is a shortage of social housing and affordable rental properties on the private market.
Certain target groups such as ethnic and cultural minorities have much higher poverty levels. Older people find it harder to get employment.
More and more people are facing over-indebtedness.
There are a large number of Roma in Flanders, who sometimes find it hard to integrate in society.
The European Platform's goals mainly confirm the goals that the Flemish government set itself in the coalition agreement and the Flemish anti-poverty action plan. They have not led directly to more ambitious goals (our goals are already ambitious, e.g. halving child poverty by 2020).
BOX 3 – Social Investment Package[17] [18]: