THE NEW EU Solidarity corps IS HERE!

European Solidarity Corps 2021-2027

The European Solidarity Corps is the European Union programme for volunteering and solidarity, 2021-2027.

Taking part offers an inspiring and empowering experience for young people who want to help, learn and develop; and the programme enables solidarity activities throughout the European Union and beyond.

The new programme will have a budget of almost €1.1 billion for all of Europe. It will fund volunteering and solidarity projects for over a quarter of a million young people aged 18 to 30 in Europe.

There are five key priorities: inclusion, active participation, health promotion and supporting environmental and digital transitions.

Read the full press release about the new programme, take a look at this factsheet or visit the European Solidarity Corps website for more.

For even further information, read the 2021 Annual Work Programme.

Empower Young People to Participate Positively in Their World

The European Solidarity Corps aims to provide young people, including young people with fewer opportunities, with easily accessible opportunities to take part in solidarity activities that bring about positive societal changes in the European Union and beyond.

Build an Inclusive and Democratic Europe

The programme aims to support young people and organisations across Europe and to strengthen cohesion, solidarity, democracy, European identity and active citizenship in the Europe Union and beyond.

Promote Sustainable Development through Projects at Grassroots Level

European Solidarity Corps projects are about addressing societal challenges on the ground, with a particular focus on the promotion of sustainable development, social inclusion and equal opportunities.

Inclusion and Diversity

The European Solidarity Corps aims to promote social inclusion, tolerance, human rights and the valuing of difference and diversity of all kinds. It is committed to providing all young people equal access to its opportunities.

Environmental Protection and Climate Action

The European Solidarity Corps is committed to projects and activities that address environmental protection, sustainability and climate goals and aims to raise awareness about environmental sustainability.

Digital Transformation

The European Solidarity Corps supports Europeans - regardless of their gender, age or background - to live and thrive in the digital age through projects and activities that aim to boost digital skills, foster digital literacy and/or develop an understanding of the risks and opportunities of digital technology.

Participation in Democratic Life

The European Solidarity Corps supports active citizenship and promotes participation of young people in democratic processes and civic engagement. With volunteering at its heart, the programme engages and empowers young people to be active in society.

Health Promotion and Support

The European Solidarity Corps aims to play an important role in supporting the health and social care system, improving people’s experience of care, and building stronger relationships between services and communities. It aims to mobilise volunteers around health challenges, such as those related to cancer, and around health, sport and well being.

Connecting EU and Youth

The European Solidarity Corps aims to support the European Youth Goals. In 2021 in Ireland we are prioritising Goal #1, Connecting EU and Youth. This Goal sets out to foster the sense of youth belonging to the European project and build a bridge between the EU and young people to regain trust and increase participation.

Under ENGAGE, the EU Youth Strategy aims for a meaningful civic, economic, social, cultural and political participation of young people. The Strategy fosters youth participation in democratic life, supports social and civic engagement and aims to ensure that all young people have the necessary resources to take part in society.

Under CONNECT, the EU Youth Strategy underpins opportunities for young people to experience exchanges, cooperation and civic action in a European context first hand.

Under EMPOWER, the Strategy aims at supporting youth work in all its forms as a catalyst for the empowerment of young people across Europe.

WHAT TYPES OF European solidarity corps PROJECTS DO LÉARGAS SUPPORT?

European Solidarity Corps Projects

The European Solidarity Corps supports young people aged 18 to 30 to address needs in their community or abroad by taking part in activities across Europe. Young people can volunteer or develop solidarity projects that benefit their communities at local, regional or European levels. Projects are funded under 'Volunteering Projects' and 'Solidarity Projects'.

Volunteering Projects are projects where young people are sent by an accredited organisation to volunteer in another European country to exchange ideas, learn, connect and grow. Organisations must have a Quality Label to take part.

Solidarity Projects are organised by groups of young people who want to make a positive difference at national or international level.

May 2021

28 May 2021, 11 am

Individual Volunteering Projects

Volunteering Teams Projects

Solidarity Projects

October 2021

05 October 2021, 11 am

Individual Volunteering Projects

Volunteering Teams Projects

Solidarity Projects

All Year Round

Quality Label for organisations that host and/or send volunteers on European Solidarity Corps projects.

These are the official European Solidarity Corps application deadlines for 2021. All deadlines close strictly at 11:00am Irish time (12:00 noon Brussels time). If you miss the official application deadline you will not be able to apply. The only case in which late applications may be eligible is if there is a technical problem on the side of the European Commission, not of the applicant. There are very specific conditions where a late application caused by a technical problem can be accepted. These are:

The date and time of the last submission attempt (listed in the submission summary) is before the deadline.
You inform the Programme Finance and Operations team of the difficulty within 24 hours of the application deadline.
You email opsfin@leargas.ie the complete, unmodified application form (in pdf format) within two hours of the application deadline, along with a screenshot of any error notification.

We will then review the issue and decide whether or not the late submission is eligible. If it is, we will inform you of the next steps for submission. Please visit the European Commission website for more information on submitting an application form.

HOW DO I GET INVOLVED?

Next Steps

If you are thinking of applying this year, you can view the 2021 European Solidarity Corps Call for Proposals, the 2021 Budget Allocation, or read the European Solidarity Corps 2021 Programme Guide. If your organisation wants to hold or send volunteers, it will need to have a Quality Label. Scroll down to find out more.

Don’t worry if this seems a lot to take in! We will hold a range of online application workshops and information sessions in 2021 to support you. Keep an eye on our Event Calendar or sign up to our newsletters for details. You can also follow us on Facebook or Twitter.

Visit our deadlines section for this year’s application deadlines. If you have specific questions about your area, check our Meet the Team page for contact details.

Scroll down for more detail on European Solidarity Corps project types.

What is a volunteering project?

Volunteering projects empower young people to take part in solidarity activities that address needs within local communities and contribute to overcoming important societal challenges on the ground. Volunteering may take place in Ireland or abroad. The scope of volunteering projects is broad, covering a wide range of areas, such as:

Environmental Protection
Climate Action
Social Inclusion.

There is funding available for three types of activity:

Individual Volunteering
Volunteering Teams
Preparatory Visits

After a European Solidarity Corps activity, young people can expect to gain:

improved skills and competences for personal, educational, social, civic, cultural and professional development
more active participation in democratic life and in society in general
enhanced employability and transition into the labour market
increased sense of initiative and entrepreneurship
increased self empowerment and self esteem
improved foreign language competences
enhanced intercultural awareness
better awareness of the European project and the EU common values
increased motivation for further engagement in solidarity activities.

Read European Solidarity Corps 2021-2027: First Call for Proposals to Support Youth Volunteering Activities.

European Solidarity Corp Volunteering PROJECTS

Individual Volunteering

Individual Volunteering is a solidarity activity where a young person volunteers in an organisation for between two and 12 months.

This gives the young person an opportunity to contribute to the daily work of an organisation that benefitis the community where the activity is carried out.

To encourage the participation of young people with fewer opportunities, volunteering activities of 2 weeks 2 months can be accepted and implemented.

Individual volunteering activities can take place in Ireland or abroad.

European Solidarity Corp Volunteering PROJECTS

Volunteering Teams

Volunteering Teams allow teams of participants from at least two different countries to volunteer together, for between 2 weeks and 2 months.

These solidarity activities could be especially interesting to youth organisations working with young people with fewer opportunities.

The composition of the volunteering teams must be international. At least one quarter of the volunteers must come from a country other than the one where the activity takes place.

In volunteering teams, European Solidarity Corps volunteers will carry out tasks for a project over a short period of time (usually, but not exclusively, during holidays, breaks between study periods, transition from education to work, etc.). Despite their shorter duration, these activities will be valuable both for the individuals and for the communities where the volunteering takes place.

Examples of the valuable work that can be accomplished even over a short period of time include:

What is a Solidarity project?

Solidarity projects are set up and carried out by groups of young people. They can happen in Ireland or at European level and address key challenges within communities, while presenting a clear European added value. Young people who want to form a group to run a solidarity project must be registered in the European Solidarity Corps portal.

A Solidarity Project:

is a non-profit solidarity activity initiated, developed and implemented by young people themselves for between 2 and 12 months.
involves a group of minimum five young people
is a chance to express solidarity and bring positive change in your local community
has a clearly identified topic which the group of young people wish to explore together, and which has to be translated into the concrete daily activities of the project and involve all the members of the group.

Taking part in a Solidarity project is an important non-formal learning experience through which young people can boost their personal, educational, social and civic development.

be directly linked to the local community the group of young people live in
have an impact on the local community by addressing local issues, targeting a specific group or developing local opportunities (particularly in communities located in rural, isolated, marginalised or cross border areas) but also through involving different actors and developing new partnerships
demonstrate European added value by addressing priorities identified at European level
reflect a common concern for topics within European society, such as integrating third country nationals, climate change or active democratic participation. The European added value can be expressed through any element of a solidarity project that is linked with European issues, values and priorities. The European priorities will also be promoted through sharing of the results of the project.

For more details contact the Project Support and Development team.

Any organisation that wants to apply for European Solidarity Corps funding must first have a Quality Label. This is to show that the organisation is able to provide a good quality experience for volunteers, and give them the support they need. It also shows the organisation is committed to the values and principles of the programme.
Groups of young people organising Solidarity projects do not need to apply for a Quality Label. It is for organisations only.
An organisation can apply for a Quality Label to support or host volunteers, or both. Applications are accepted at any time. Léargas will assess the application and let you know whether or not it is successful. You can apply for European Solidarity Corps funding after you have submitted the Quality Label application.
Visit the European Solidarity Corps site for more information about the Quality Label. Keep an eye on our calendar to join an information session or workshop.
Complete and submit the online ‘ESC 50’ application form when your organisation is ready to apply.

For more details contact the Project Support and Development team.

WHAT DO I NEED TO DO BEFORE APPLYING?

Registering for the European Solidarity Corps Organisation ID

The European Solidarity Corps application process is all online. If you are new to the programme, you'll need to set up an 'EU Login account' and then an 'Organisation ID' with the European Commission. This process ensures that your organisation is eligible to receive European Solidarity Corps funding. Once you have an Organisation ID, you can use it for all your applications between 2021-2027.

Our Finance and Operations team are here to support you with Organisation ID. We have laid out the steps in our Organisation ID guide. Follow each step and you'll soon be on your way to accessing all the benefits that the European Solidarity Corps has to offer!

European Solidarity Corps 2021-2027

Empower Young People to Participate Positively in Their World

Build an Inclusive and Democratic Europe

Promote Sustainable Development through Projects at Grassroots Level

Inclusion and Diversity

Environmental Protection and Climate Action

Digital Transformation

Participation in Democratic Life

Health Promotion and Support

Connecting EU and Youth

May 2021

28 May 2021, 11 am

October 2021

05 October 2021, 11 am

All Year Round

Volunteering Projects

Volunteering for Young People

What is a volunteering project?

Suzanne Kavanagh

Project Support and Development

Noeleen O'Callaghan

Project Support and Development

Suzanne Kavanagh

Project Support and Development

Noeleen O'Callaghan

Project Support and Development

Solidarity Projects

National and International Solidarity Projects

What is a Solidarity project?

Suzanne Kavanagh

Project Support and Development

Noeleen O'Callaghan

Project Support and Development

Quality Label

Accreditation for organisations that send or host volunteers

Suzanne Kavanagh

Project Support and Development

Noeleen O'Callaghan

Project Support and Development

FYOUture of YOUth- Creating a vision for youth work across the EU

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