The European Social Fund

The European Social Fund (ESF) was set up to improve employment opportunities in the European Union and so help raise standards of living. It aims to help people fulfil their potential by giving them better skills and better job prospects.

As one of the EU's Structural Funds, ESF seeks to reduce differences in prosperity across the EU and enhance economic and social cohesion. So although ESF funding is spread across the EU, most money goes to those countries and regions where economic development is less advanced. The other main Structural Fund is the European Regional Development Fund which invests in projects to improve innovation, the environment and infrastructure.

To visit the UK government's ESF website click here

CEFET's role

As the East Midlands European Social Fund Third Sector Technical Assistance body, CEFET acts as a "bridge" between the administration of the Funds and Community, Voluntary and Social Economy Groups who are interested in contributing to the development of an effective ESF programme in the region.

CEFET represents the Third Sector on the Regional Monitoring Committee convened by the Government Office of the East Midlands. We have held this position since management of the funding was devolved to the regions in 1997 and have worked as partners with the other sectors since then. To visit GOEM's webpages on European Funding click here

CEFET stimulates dialogue in the sector, feeds in views to the policy and programme structures, and then feeds back to the sector. We organise events and conferences in the region and sub-regions and also arrange meetings and use surveys to investigate specific issues.

In the last ESF programme (2000 - 2007), CEFET was a lead partner in developing the East Midlands Community Empowerment Strategy after consulting extensively with the sector about inclusion issues. This strategy has had international acclaim and was cited favourably in the last UK government's National Action Plan for Social Inclusion (NAP).

CEFET also carried out research and discussions with grassroots groups in the region before playing a major role in developing the regional approach to ESF Global Grants funding as a means of building Local Social Capital in very disadvantaged communities . This became the very successful Catalyst small grants Programme, managed by CEFET, and again cited in the NAP as good practice in empowering communities to move out of exclusion.

The East Midlands European Social Fund (ESF) Programme 2007 - 2013

Tendering under the new ESF Programme, through Co-Financing Organisations (CFOs), started in late 2007.

Decisions have been made and organisations informed. Please email CEFET to let us know whether your organisation's tender was successful or not. CEFET was closely involved in the Consultation on the new Programme and it was the main subject of debate at our 2007 Annual Conference. Click here for more information. For information on our survey of Third Sector experience with tendering for LSC ESF provision click here.

Mailing & Emailing list for information
CEFET has a database of over 1,500 voluntary and community groups in the region (of which 56% are concerned with Social Inclusion work, between a third and a half of those at "Grass Roots" level). We mail this database regularly and hold regular events at accessible venues all around the region. If you wish to join this database please email info@cefet.org.uk or phone 0115 911 0419

CEFET sends out regular email alerts and website links. Email register@cefet.org.uk to get on our email list.