MAINSTREAMING SOCIAL INCLUSION
Helen Johnston Director
Combat Poverty Agency
World Conference on “Social Protection and Inclusion: Converging
Efforts from a Social Perspective”2-3 October 2006, Lisbon, Portugal
OVERVIEW
Context
Developmental Welfare State
Mainstreaming Social Inclusion
Conclusions
IRELAND THE LAND OF THE CELTIC TIGER
ECONOMIC CONTEXT
0
20
40
60
80
ILO Employment Rates % 2004
Denmark UK
Ireland Poland
Ireland’s Employment Rate fairly good in comparative terms
ECONOMIC CONTEXT
0
2
4
6
8
10
Unemployment Rate, Eurostat, 2003
EU25 UK Ireland
Unemployment rate low in Ireland
BUT ……
INCOME INEQUALITY
2224 24
26 27 27 28 29 31
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
%
Denm
ark
Finla
nd
Sweden
Nether
lands
France
Luxem
bourg
EU15
IRELA
ND UK
EU POVERTY RATES
10 11 11 11 1215 15
17
21
0
5
10
15
20
25
%
Sweden
Denm
ark
Nether
lands
Finla
nd
Luxem
bourg
France
EU15 UK
IRELA
ND
SOCIAL PROTECTION EXPENDITURE AS % GDP
32.329.7 28.8 27.4 27.3 26.8 25.2
2116.5
14.1
05
101520
253035
%
Sweden
France
Denm
ark
Nether
lands
EU15 UK
Finla
nd
Luxem
bourg
IRELA
ND GNP
IRELA
ND GDP
VULNERABLE GROUPS
Children Older People
Women
Lone Parents People with Disabilities
Unskilled Unemployed Low Paid
Rented Accommodation
Urban Concentrations Edges of Towns Isolated rural areas
DEVELOPMENTAL WELFARE STATE
CURRENTLY Relatively low bill for
pensions High proportion of benefits
means-tested Services outcomes weak Hybrid social welfare model Institutional reform
required
PROPOSED Developmental welfare
state– Services– Income supports– Activist measures
Rights and standards Joined up government Integration at local level Life cycle approach
DEVELOPMENTAL WELFARE STATE
Services
•Education
•Health
•Childcare
•Housing
•Employment Services
Income Supports
•Child Income
•Participation income
•Pensions
Activist Measures
•Community Projects
•Outcome focussed
•Evaluate/Mainstream
DEVELOPMENTAL WELFARE STATE
Radical development of services most important to improve social protection – “services dividend”
Services available to all at high standards but tailored to people’s circumstances – “tailored universalism”
State would regulate standards but range of organisations would deliver services – “network management”
MAINSTREAMING SOCIAL INCLUSION
Mainstreaming social inclusion is the integration of poverty and social inclusion objectives, including an equality perspective, into all areas and levels of policy-making and that is promoted through the participation of public bodies, social partners, NGOs and other relevant actors.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
EU Funded Project – Social Exclusion Programme
Seven Member States involved - PT, IR, UK (including NI & Scotland), FR, NL, SK, CZ
One acceding country - Bulgaria One EFTA country - Norway EAPN organisations - to have strong local
level input
3 DIMENSIONS
Mainstreaming social inclusion into public policies
Involvement and participation for all in policy making
Evaluation of mainstreaming social inclusion
HOW IMPLEMENTED
DEPENDENT ON
Government & administrative structures– Centralised / federal
Allocation of resources– Funding, skilled personnel, time
ELEMENTS OF MAINSTREAMING
Political leadership Administrative leadership Specialists / skills Structures Data / research Resources Engagement / participation of people living in
poverty
CASE STUDY BUILDING HEALTHY COMMUNITIES
Disadvantaged inner city community – Blackhall Place
Regeneration → adverse health effects Establishment of Blackhall Community Forum Health and well-being needs survey
undertaken by trained local residents Input to redevelopment of the area and
Department of Health
CONCLUSIONS
Access to services critical in tackling poverty “Developmental welfare state" model
advocated– Focus on services, income support and activist
measures Mainstream social inclusion in service delivery
– Integral to policy design– Involvement of vulnerable groups– Evaluate degree of integration and outcomes