Here you will find articles with in-depth, reflective or explanatory content which will help to deepen your understanding of families and social rights.
Parental leave policies are often seen as an important tool for promoting gender equality, supporting families and improving work-life balance. Yet a new policy brief from the COST Action Parental Leave Policies and Social Sustainability (Sustainability@Leave), argues that formal rights alone are not enough to ensure equal outcomes.
COFACE member organisation Fundacja Share the Care in Poland has published a new report examining developments in parental equality three years after the transposition of the EU Work-Life Balance Directive.
Two COFACE member organisations recently collaborated on a shared project. Together Ligue des Familles and Fond du Logement Wallonie, launched a survey to identify the needs of large families.
Families today are increasingly diverse and multiple, and often depending on their (re)composition, the number of children in a household can vary significantly over time, bringing new challenges and needs.
The European Commission presented its proposal for an ambitious and dynamic Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), amounting to almost EUR 2 trillion (or 1.26% of the EU's gross national income on average between 2028 and 2034). It includes funds to help deliver on the European Pillar of Social Rights by investing in people through quality jobs, social inclusion, education, skills, health, housing and social infrastructure.
We are pleased to share a new comparative report from our member organisation UNAPEI, which examines how inclusive education for children with disabilities is progressing across Europe.
On 27 May 2025, after more than two years of work, the indicators sub-group of the Social Protection Committee has released its Monitoring Framework for the Council Recommendation on Access to Affordable High-Quality Long-Term Care (Council Recommendation on LTC). The monitoring framework includes indicators that will allow the European Union to better gather and compare data on long-term care at EU level, as well as to measure the Member States progress towards achieving the objectives of the Council Recommendation on LTC, which was adopted in 2022.
A new editorial series called 2025 Insights on Family Policies is dedicated to examining contemporary developments in family policy across European contexts. Published by the European Observatory of Family Policy, the Insights series engages with critical debates on the design, implementation, and coordination of policies that support families in diverse and evolving societal landscapes. These deliverables will be published in different issues - The first insights of the series focusing on Italy.
The COFACE network welcomes a new member, Associação Bravery Devotion. Based in Portugal and founded in 2022, Bravery Devotion is a non-profit association dedicated to empowering women entrepreneurs, particularly those running microbusinesses, often while juggling caregiving responsibilities.
How to effectively support parents in balancing family and work life? This was the key question during European expert meeting in Warsaw on 21st May 2025, under the patronage of the Polish presidency of the EU and co-hosted with Share The Care Foundation Poland and ZUS.
