21 Jun, 2023

Shaping a Strong Social Europe fit for Families of Today – COFACE 2022 Annual Report

Welcome to the 2022 annual report of COFACE Families Europe. In this report, we highlight our activities, efforts, and achievements toward creating a better and more inclusive society for families across Europe. 

As we reflect on the past year, we cannot ignore the unprecedented circumstances that shaped our journey. Throughout this transformative year, our unwavering ambition has been to shape a robust social Europe that truly caters to the needs of families. We have worked closely with various stakeholders, policymakers, and researchers to mainstream the family dimension and to promote family-friendly policies and practices. We had a strong voice in the European Care Strategy and the Child Guarantee with a focus on family carers. With our assessment report on the transposition of the Work-Life Balance directive, we triggered discussions at national level and encouraged our members to advocate and strive for national regulations that go beyond the minimum standards of the EU directive and help ensure that families can balance work and caregiving responsibilities. 

The achievements of COFACE Families Europe in 2022 would not have been possible without the dedication of our remarkable team and the unwavering support of our COFACE members and the  COFACE team. Together, we took significant strides forward in advancing our Family Lab. Through a strategic partnership with the Center for Family Studies of Odisee University, we expanded our presence in the field of Education, solidifying our research branch and giving rise to “The European Observatory of Family Policy.” 

To everyone who contributed to the success of our organization in the past year, we extend our heartfelt gratitude. Let’s continue to build a future where families can flourish together! 

Read COFACE 2022 Annual Report here

Related Posts

News
Austria’s implementation of the EU Work-Life Balance Directive: COFACE member KFÖ’s key takeaways

Austria’s implementation of the EU Work-Life Balance Directive: COFACE member KFÖ’s key takeaways

Alfred Trendl, President of the Catholic Family Association Austria (KFÖ), expressed both approval and concern regarding the government's implementation of the EU directive aimed at strengthening work-life balance and partnership. While applauding the doubling of the family time bonus to 1,480 euros per month, Trendl voiced criticism of the government's decision to cut two months of leave for families where only one parent takes parental leave. He argued that this infringes upon parental choice in childcare arrangements. 

Read More

News
Deposit savings rates: A costly consequence for families

Deposit savings rates: A costly consequence for families

In a recent presentation to the European Banking Authority’s Banking Stakeholder Group, several consumers organisations brought to light a pressing concern – the enduring issue of persistently low savings interest rates for household deposits in the Eurozone. This financial predicament, coupled with surging inflation and rising banking costs, is exerting great pressure on families.

Read More

News
First rEUsilience working paper “Family profiles: Risks, resources, and inequalities”

First rEUsilience working paper “Family profiles: Risks, resources, and inequalities”

rEUsilience, a Horizon Europe research initiative spanning from 2022 to 2025, is a collaborative effort involving renowned universities such as Oxford, Stockholm, Barcelona, Warsaw, KULeuven, and Zagreb, with COFACE as an integral partner. The first working paper from rEUsilience maps how resilience is being used in the EU policy discourse, noting how there is a lack of a clear conceptualisation of how it applies to families.

Read More