11th FEAD Network meeting: Building partnerships between FEAD and ESF initiatives
The 11th FEAD Network meeting will take place on 19 June 2018 in Brussels. The meeting will focus on building partnerships to improve FEAD support.
The eleventh FEAD Network meeting took place on 19th June in Brussels, welcoming 94 delegates from 24 Member states. The event focused on the importance of building partnerships to deliver FEAD activities effectively and brought together EU-wide stakeholders, such as Managing Authorities, European Commission representatives and regional and national organisations.
With a mix of panel discussions and group workshops, delegates were able to understand the key qualities needed to build successful partnerships within FEAD activities. Delegates were also introduced to the European Social Fund Regulations and its implications for FEAD, as presented by Loris di Pietrantonio, Head of Unit for ESF at DG EMPL.
The ESF+ fund is managed jointly between the European Commission and the Member States and represents 101,2 billion euros in total, of which 100 billion are to be used under shared management. At least 25% of these 100 billion euros will be dedicated to fostering social inclusion; and at least 2% of those investments for social inclusion will be dedicated to tackling material deprivation. Importantly, the new ESF+ regulation explicitly provides resources for partnerships.
Presentations and activities
Throughout the day, delegates listened to presentations about building partnerships across a wide range of disciplines. The panel discussion included Marie-Anne Paraskevas, Senior Policy Officer, DG EMPL who presented the European Code of Conduct on Partnerships (ECCP) and the application of the partnership principle in current ESF programming. Following this Louis Cantuel and Stephanie Haloco from the charity Restaurants du Coeur, provided an insight on how effective FEAD partnerships are implemented on the ground. Restaurants du Coeur specialises in food distribution to those in need, such as the homeless and low income families.
Next, delegates were invited to take part in parallel workshop sessions which explored building partnerships between FEAD and ESF initiatives as well as building partnerships with the local community. Throughout, delegates were introduced to several projects such as Cheers for Health (Finland) and HORESOL (Belgium), which have thrived under ESF funding and assist with access to health services and food distribution respectively. In the context of local projects delegates were shown initiatives such as Operating a Social Shop, Chefs without Borders, and the AMINA project. Both sessions gave delegates the opportunity to understand the complexities of partnership building as well as widen their knowledge on the current FEAD initiatives happening in different Member States.
Interactive activities
Throughout the meeting, delegates were encouraged to interact with the new FEAD Network Facebook group. The online space aims to connect members, encourage discussion and share the latest policy news. Delegates successfully shared their pictures and discussion points from the meeting.
Join the Facebook group today to keep up to date with FEAD and to view photos from the meeting. If you know someone who hasn’t joined already, invite them to the group today.