Here you will see news from Europe, from civil society, from research, highlighting emerging trends from local to international level relevant for families of today.
As part of the European Semester, the Joint Employment Report 2025 emphasises that participation in ECEC under three is improving but at a very low pace, calling for renewed efforts in line with the European Child Guarantee, the European Care Strategy and the Council Recommendation on ECEC.
All across Europe, COFACE members continuously work to contribute to positive outcomes for diverse types of families in a changing society, including single-parent households. Organisations such as La Ligue des Familles and Single Parents Foundation have both recently and respectively put a spotlight on concrete ways to support and empower single parents in Europe from Belgium to Hungary.
In November 2024, COFACE member organisation APF France launched its second season of the short TV programme "Tous en scène pour le Handicap" (All on Stage for Disability)”. After the success of its first season in 2023, 10 new artists and public figures have taken the stage to humorously share real-life stories experienced by members of APF France.
Unpaid care duties are key to gender gaps in the labour market. As illustrated in a report published by the European Commission, across the Member States, care responsibilities are equally shared between women and men only in about one-third of families. The interplay between labour market and household conditions may create vicious cycles.
The European Commission's Directorate General for Education and Culture (DG EAC) published the final report of its Fifth European Summit which is an annual event attended by EU officials, member states ministers and education stakeholders. The report summarises the main topics discussed at this high-level event which focuses on key trends in education and training.
The Eurobarometer is a collection of cross-country public opinion surveys conducted regularly on behalf of the EU Institutions since 1974. In a newly released Eurobarometer survey, it is revealed that most EU citizens overwhelmingly support strong action at EU and national level and more social spending.
The European Child Guarantee, to reduce child poverty and social exclusion, requires that the individual EU Member States each develop a National Action Plan (NAP) with country-specific measures for implementation. Member States had to submit their NAP by the 15th of March 2022. One year after the deadline for Member States to submit their NAP, these plans are still missing from eight Member States (Austria, Germany, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia).
Trigger warning: homicide-suicide
Genitori Tosti, COFACE Disability member organisation, calls upon the Italian Government and Parliament to take swift and responsible action to finalise the draft legislation on the recognition and support of family caregivers and to provide all the services necessary to ensure that those who care for their family members are never left alone.
The main task of the High-Level Group was to analyse the expected impacts of megatrends such as demographic changes, resulting in a shrinking workforce and an ageing population, transformations on the labour market and the digital and green transitions, as well as the emergence of new risks on the social protection and on the welfare systems.
