The EPIM Never Alone Fund adopts a new funding strategy for 2021-2023

In 2015, a group of European Foundations decided to address policy and practice issues arising from increasing arrivals of children and youth in Europe and the struggle for communities to provide adequate reception conditions as well as long-term solutions for their inclusion. The Never Alone Thematic Fund: Building our Future with Children and Youth arriving in Europe was born and established within EPIM. Between 2016 and 2018, 56 grants were made to support 170 organisations at EU level, in Belgium, Germany, Greece and Italy to develop pilots and advocate for policies and practices that ensure protection and a smooth transition to adulthood for children and youth on the move.

Today, based on the learnings and achievements and the remaining sense of momentum, urgency and opportunity to advance this issue in Europe, foundations active in the Never Alone Fund decided to continue investing in this area for three more years (2021-2023).

The objective of this new funding phase is to support civil society organisations, including those led by young advocates with lived migration experience, to advocate at EU and national level for more attention and specific provisions to ensure that migrant children and youth across Europe, regardless of their migration status and whether they are with their family or not, have access to comprehensive, secure and sustainable solutions in policy and in practice as a result of benefiting from quality alternative support before and after reaching their majority, for as long as they need in their transition to more autonomy and resilience.

The strategy was informed by consultations and interviews with over 50 stakeholders, including a consultative group composed of grantee representatives.

Picture credits: P.G. Frassati scs Onlus