GSS EU Science Funding Gateway

The proposals should consider social services in a broad manner, including both universal social services of general interest such as healthcare, education, as well as other social services childcare, employment services, long-term care and social inclusion services for persons at risk of poverty and social exclusion (including counselling, coaching, mentoring, crisis centres or shelters, housing support services). The proposals should also take into account the unequal availability of social services between rural and urban areas. A special attention should also be given to the different roles of social services in the context of the fair green and digital transition (e.g. supporting working-age adults with caring responsibilities to take up good quality jobs, which contribute to the twin transitions in particular in the regions most affected by the transition from fossil fuel or carbon intensive industries).

It is important to analyse how to better measure the actual value added of the provision of public social services, primarily in terms of monetary valuation. The actual added value of the provision of these services is meant to be higher than the production costs (or related reduced prices). It would be useful to reflect on the main channels to be accounted for in this respect in ensuring a better accounting of the actual level of the value added provided by public social services. Moreover, some actual estimates of the actual added value of the provision of public social services should be provided, reflecting in a more accurate way in particular both the short term impact (such as stabilisation function on the economy) and the longer term impact.