ONCE SOCIAL GROUP. THE ADDED VALUE OF PARTNERSHIPS
1. Mission, vision, and values
The ONCE Social Group (ONCE, Ilunion, and ONCE Foundation) and the European Social Network (ESN) are organizations that share fundamental principles aimed at improving the quality of life of people in vulnerable situations.
Both entities place the principle of social inclusion and non-discrimination at the centre of their actions, with a special focus on equal opportunities.
Other shared principles include:
- respect for dignity and personal autonomy, recognizing users as active subjects of rights.
- a clear commitment to sustainability and innovation, demonstrating the social and economic viability of approaches focused on the labour inclusion of people with disabilities.
- accessibility and quality of social services and a strong ethical component, expressed in values such as social commitment, institutional responsibility, and intersectoral cooperation.
2. Comprehensive care for people with disabilities
The ONCE Foundation, through its Inserta Association, has been developing training and employment programs for people with disabilities, co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+), for which synergies with public social services are key.
The basic principles of ESF+ projects are:
- mutual reinforcement, which will enable actions to be implemented in a coherent and inclusive manner.
- scalability and dissemination of good practices.
- sustainability and social legitimacy, promoted by compliance with ethical values.
The “Women in ON mode” project, aimed at women with disabilities who are victims of gender-based violence, is a good example, in which the ONCE Foundation supports women in their process of recovery, empowerment, and improving their employability.
3. ONCE Social Services Model
The fundamental mission of ONCE is to promote personal autonomy and social inclusion for people with severe visual impairment or deafblindness. To this end, it develops a range of specialized services based on an inclusive, rights-based, person-centred, accessible, and excellence-oriented approach.
This model promotes collaboration with various public administrations and social entities, and improves the quality of life of the more than 72,000 members of the organization.
In addition, the ONCE Foundation for Low Vision has recently been launched. This is a non-profit organization promoted by ONCE, whose main objective is to improve the living conditions of people with low vision in Spain through advice, prevention, training and innovation.
Conclusion. Synergies between social services, the ESN, and the ONCE Social Group are essential to improve social inclusion and employability of people with disabilities. This collaboration is key to promote a comprehensive, accessible and sustainable social model.
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