Social Inclusion in Erasmus+

5 December 2014

Chris Walker, EcorysDeputy Director, UK National Agency

• Why we’re here• Back to the future…• Plan for the day

Welcome!

Purpose & outcomes

• Commitment to social inclusion• Different perspectives• Continue momentum from YiA / LLP• Review ‘early signs’ from E+• Set agenda going forward

Purpose

• Sharing and capturing Good Practice • Agenda and activities for 2015• Recommendations for E+

– Incremental or step change?– EC, EACEA & UK Govt?

Outcomes

Back to the future

Some History…

Timeline• 1995 Socrates evaluation, priority but issue of

translation into practice• 2002 evaluation of LdV ‘there has been a reduced

focus on social inclusion’• ET2010 ‘social inclusion not prominent in spite of

increased policy focus’• 2008 Financial crash• ET2020 3/5 headline targets • 2014 YiA Inclusion and Diversity Strategy

LLP Inclusion Network• 2009 – 2011• 13 countries• 10 recommendations:

– Strategy– Definition– Cooperation– Policy– Management– Budget– Structure– Engagement– Dissemination– Language

"when implementing the Programme… the Commission and the Member States shall ensure that particular efforts are made to

promote social inclusion and the participation of people with special needs or

with fewer opportunities"

E+ Legal Base

The E+ story so far• Work Programme indicators:

•

• But, measurement? • 81% youth applications include people with fewer

opportunities

Encourage participation of people with special needs

Higher Education, Vocational Education and Training

 

I.1.3.4.1.A

Number of learners with special needs participating in learning mobility

– in the field of Higher EducationI.1.3.4.1.B - in the field of Vocational Education and

Training

Encourage participation of people with fewer opportunities

Youth

I.1.3.4.2. % share of learners with fewer opportunities participating in learning mobility

 

The E+ story so far• Page 1 of Programme Guide 2015 v3:• Multiple references to; ‘fewer opportunities’,

‘disadvantage’, and ‘special needs’

• Encouraging re: HE (people with disabilities but not from deprived areas)

• But; issues with welfare payments in UK, cultural barriers, retaining young people…

Agenda for the Day

Plan for the rest of the morning…

10.25 am Inclusion in Erasmus+ 

10.45 am Good practice break out sessions 1• Targeting Excluded Groups• Tackling Barriers• Seeing the Benefits 

 11.30am Coffee 12.00 pm Good practice break out sessions 2 12.45 – 1.45 pm Lunch 

Plan for after lunch…

2.00 pm Good practice break out sessions 3 2.45 pm Cross-sectoral partnerships (KA2)

- Nezahat Cihan of Iranian and Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation 3.00 pm Networking, with tea and coffee 3.40 pm Inclusion and Diversity in the Erasmus+ programme

- Miro Fernandez, SALTO Cultural Diversity 3.50 pm Conclusions and next steps

4pm Close

Opportunities to promote inclusion in Erasmus+

Kevin Robinson

• Consistency and transparency• Inclusion within the context of Erasmus+• Physical and mental disability, learning

difficulties, economic disadvantage, cultural difference, social obstacles

• Defining your groups

A new integrated approach

It’s your project

A beginner’s guide

Projects can be about inclusion, within the context of education, training or youth.

Funding components that facilitate the inclusion of disadvantaged groups in all projects.

Clearer funding structures and increased levels of support offering greater incentives.

Projects about inclusion

Case studies

Hard to reach groups

Extending impact

LLP

Training methods

Continued success

“Improve the level of key competences and skills of young people, including those with fewer opportunities”.

Meeting the objectives of Erasmus+

… and the additional funding?

• Costs for disabled people• Safety assessments, signers or guiders,

adapted transport• Accompanying people / travel and

subsistence• 100% of costs with evidence

Support for those with special needs

• Personal difficulties / other obstacles• Specialist carers, additional training,

accompanying people• What you need to promote inclusion • 100% of costs with evidence

Support for learners with fewer opportunities

Planning ahead

“If custom and law define what is educationally allowable within a nation, the educational systems beyond one’s national boundaries suggest what is educationally possible” Arthur Wellesley Foshay

Erasmus+ is the European Union programme for education, training, youth and sport.The Erasmus+ UK National Agency is a partnership between the British Council and Ecorys UK.

‘Professionals and Youth In Partnership’ learning pointsNezahat CihanIranian and Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation

• Is a registered charity set up in 2002

• Provides holistic advice & intensive case work for Middle Eastern (Iranian, Kurdish, Turkish, Arab and Afghan) women and girls at risks of Domestic Violence, Forced & Child Marriage, Female Genital Mutilation and “Honour” based Violence

• Provides counselling in Farsi/Dari, Kurdish, Arabic and English

• Provides training for professionals, women-only groups and ME communities, to raise awareness of the above issues

• IKWRO campaigns to change laws and policies and for women’s rights & equality

Iranian and Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation

• Aim to bring together professionals and youth

• Each has unique position to have major impact on vulnerable women and young people

• Development of complementary training and existing and new training material

Professionals and Youth In Partnership

• Refugee Women’s Association (UK) – vocational training and is registered centre for ESOL and mentoring

• Orient Express (Austria) – German and Literacy courses, registered examination centre

• PAPATYA (Germany) – Identified as best practice for their shelter for young girls and online counselling for young people fleeing from HBV and forced marriage

• KAMER (Turkey) – Excellent community engagement through home visits and entrepreneurship

Partners

• Partnership is an agreement where the parties come together to advance a mutual interest

• Our mutual interest is to protect and promote the rights of women and girls from Middle East and Afghanistan.

• HBV, Forced marriage, FGM issues are EU-wide issues

• A strategic cooperation and learning between members states needed to address these issues

Why partnership work?

• A desktop research finding right partners • share similar values and principles

• have similar aims and objectives

• have financial capacity and skills set

Next Steps

• Initial project development discussions

• Feasibility of work

• A common goal to reach as partnership: “Developing training methodologies and material that can

ultimately lead to establishment of an EU-recognised qualification for professionals”.

Next Steps contd.

• Planning phase to identify activities

• Partnership meetings at key progress points • Ownership

• Communication tools such as teleconferencing, emails and website

• Identify and intervene timely of any issues that may arise

• Partnership protocol

Next Steps Contd.

• Equality • Transparency and openness

• Trust and reliability

• Shared values and principles

• Shared goals

Overarching principles and values

Iranian &Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation (IKWRO)

www.ikwro.org.uk

Nezahat.Cihan@ikwro.org.ukTel: 0044 – 0207 9206460

Erasmus+ is the European Union programme for education, training, youth and sport.The Erasmus+ UK National Agency is a partnership between the British Council and Ecorys UK.

Erasmus+ Youth in Action

Inclusion & Diversity Strategy

• Based on the previous Inclusion Strategy under Youth in Action (2007-2013)

• Inclusion – an important element of youth projects

• Social Inclusion – one of the key strategic objectives of Erasmus+

• a common framework to support the participation and inclusion of young people with fewer opportunities

Why an Inclusion and Diversity Strategy?

• SALTO Inclusion and SALTO Cultural Diversity

• European Commission

• NA inclusion officers

• Youth workers and youth organisations

• To achieve even greater impact in targeting young people with fewer opportunities

Key Stakeholders

• To develop a more strategic approach to encouraging and facilitating the involvement of young people with fewer opportunities

• Ensuring that support and training is available to give better access to disadvantaged young people

• To provide channels for feedback from practitioners and young people

• To develop better guidance and support• To highlight the benefits of Erasmus+ to young people with

fewer opportunities and those that work with them

Aims of the Inclusion and Diversity Strategy

• Establishment of steering group• Training courses (SALTO Training Calendar)

https://www.salto-youth.net/ • Inclusion manuals for youth work

www.SALTO-YOUTH.net/inclusionForAll/ • SALTO Tool box resources

www.SALTO-YOUTH.net/publicationsCulturalDiversity/ • Good practice database

www.SALTO-YOUTH.net/goodpractices/ and www.SALTO-YOUTH.net/Otlas/

Support for Inclusion and Diversity

• miro.fernandez@britishcouncil.org

• Marija.Kljajic@jint.be

• Tony Geudens (Tony.Geudens@jint.be)

• salto@salto-youth.net

Contact details

Erasmus+ is the European Union programme for education, training, youth and sport.The Erasmus+ UK National Agency is a partnership between the British Council and Ecorys UK.

Find us online

www.erasmusplus.org.uk

@erasmusplusuk

www.facebook.co.uk/ukerasmusplus