Access to housing remains one of the greatest barriers to inclusion. Across Europe, a large proportion of housing stock is still inaccessible. Today, 11% of persons with disabilities are overburdened by housing costs, 4.4% face severe housing deprivation, and 15.1% are unable to keep their homes adequately warm. The lack of affordable, accessible, community-based housing prevents many people with disabilities from living independently. Too often, individuals are forced to remain in temporary accommodation far longer than necessary, or even in institutional settings, due to the shortage of suitable homes. 

Social services, particularly those working with people with intellectual disabilities, are often the main providers of housing solutions. Yet they face considerable barriers in accessing affordable housing within communities. Their ability to support independent living is weakened by both the shortage of accessible housing and the underuse of State Aid opportunities under the SGEI framework. 

While social housing is already recognised by the EU as a Service of General Economic Interest (SGEI), meaning governments are allowed to support it with public funding,  this option is not being fully used by Member States. Instead, many governments fall back on smaller funding schemes (the so-called de minimis rules), which are more limited and less effective. One reason is that the main SGEI rules are seen as too complicated. They require detailed legal documents and lengthy procedures. For many authorities, this creates unnecessary barriers and discourages their use in the social services sector. 

EASPD recently contributed to the public consultation on the revision of SGEI with a specific focus on how to tackle the housing crisis, along with an upcoming European Affordable Housing plan. 

EASPD therefore joins Social Services Europe in calling on the European Commission to simplify the rules and publish clear guidelines tailored to social services. These guidelines should help governments understand when and how they can use the SGEI framework, and why relying too heavily on small-scale de minimis funding is not enough. 

With clearer rules, authorities would have the confidence to make better use of the SGEI framework, unlocking more stable and substantial funding. This would allow social services and housing providers to deliver accessible, community-based housing solutions, ensuring that persons with disabilities can live independently, with dignity, and as full members of society. 

Find EASPD’s contribution here