Flowchart Project
An Exchange Programme for Learning and Labour Mobility
The right to be mobile across national borders is one of the fundamental freedoms of European citizens. Not only is the EU seeking to guarantee this right, but it also actively promotes it. However, it is recognised that Europe suffers a deficit when it comes to mobility and, it is for this reason that the Flowchart project has materialised.
The Flowchart Project is a European Commission funded project aimed at initiating and developing an exchange programme among a number of organisations based in various Member States. This, it is hoped, will address the free movement challenges that exist within the European Union and the societal impact of the EU policies related to migration.
The European Citizen Action Service (ECAS) has opted to use ‘A, B, C’, a framework pioneered by them in a previous project relating to vulnerable migrants (‘One Stop Mobility Shops’), as the foundation of this project. Flowchart will therefore be based upon:
Assisting migrants in one service or location;
Building bridges to other services; and
Co-operation among different mobility stakeholders across Europe.
By implementing ‘A, B, C’, it is hoped that EU citizens moving across Member States will find as many answers to their questions in one place as possible. This will, in turn, create partnerships locally among a wide range of third sector and public services. Further, this will have a trans-national dimension linking countries of origin and countries of destination to create a supportive environment.
There are a total of seven countries involved with Flowchart: England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Romania, Spain, Poland and Italy. From each of these countries an organisation specialising in providing advice to citizens has been selected to be involved.
From each of the organisations, an internal member shall be selected to participate in the exchange programme aspect of this project. That member will travel to another of the countries involved, stay for a period of ten days, during which time he or she will be introduced to how the organisation operates. By following the migration flows, members shall be travelling to organisations in countries which hold some relevance to them. Further, by having a strong cultural and social focus, it is hoped that those involved in the exchange programme will learn more about where their ‘clients’ come from, or where they are going to, thus allowing them to provide a more comprehensive and in depth service in their own country.
The outcome of these placements will naturally lead to improved, more multi-lingual services for European migrants (such as information systems, feedback mechanisms, mutual learning on common themes for advice etc). This can only be beneficial and advantageous to all involved and, it is hoped, achieve the EU’s goal of promoting workers’ free movement rights, resulting in higher levels of movement.
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The Flowchart project started with a “Kick-off”meeting which took place in Londonon 19th February 2010. The project is officially scheduled to end on 3rdFebruary 2011, although it is hoped that through the setting up of an onlinemigrant advisers network its will continue to flourish. The exchange placementstook place in June, July and September 2010 with the participants keeping anonline diary detailing their experiences. The exchange flow was as follows:
UnitedKingdom (CAB) à Spain, Romaniaand Poland
NorthernIreland (STEP) à Poland
Italy(FOCUS) à Romania
Romania(NACAB) à UK, Spainand Italy
Spain(ACCEM) à UK and Romania
Poland(UCAB) à UK and Northern Ireland
In the first week of November the participantsgathered in Brusselsfor a study visit and to attend the conference ‘Mind the Gap – towards betterenforcement of European citizen’s free movement rights’ held on 3 November2011. The event broughttogether representatives of citizens’ advice organisations and other NGOs withexperience in dealing, at a local level, with the problems of enforcingEuropean free movement rights for EU citizens and members of their family. Thereport on the conference and study visit can be downloaded here:
The final meeting for the project took place in Brussels on Wednesday 19thJanuary 2011. At this meeting the finalisation and outcomes of the project werediscussed. ECAS is preparing a charter on ensuring free movement of people inthe EU, which citizen’s advisors will commit to. A report, within the frameworkof Flow Chart, on EU migration trends in the EU will be published on the 1stMay 2011. To help the success of the project live on a network of EU migrantadvisors will be launched this year.
To download the PROGRAMME of the conference, please  click here
To download Commissioner Reding's speech at the conference, please click here
To download the Charter On A Commitment To Ensuring Free Movement Of Persons / Migrants Within The EU please  click here
To download the Evaluation of Flowchart project, please click here
The Organisations Involved
Citizens Advice (CAB) (England and Wales)
The Citizen’s Advice service helps people resolve their legal, monetary and other problems by providing information and advice at over four hundred and twenty Bureaus across England and Wales. It is a registered charity that relies upon trained volunteers and funds to provide their services. In 2008-09, the service dealt with just over six million separate advice problems including a total of 80,726 separate advice problems relating to immigration, asylum or nationality brought by 56,700 individual clients.
South Tyrone Empowerment Programme (STEP) (Northern Ireland)
STEP is a community development organisation, a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee. Within the migrant rights programme, STEP actively supports free mobility of workers and new arrivals to negotiate the local systems effectively so they become integrated in the local community. Further, the organisation provides specialist support to the most vulnerable migrants, particularly those in danger of being homeless or already homeless and those who are victims of violence and/or racism. STEP and ECAS have previously worked together on other migrant projects.
The Union of Citizen Advice Bureau (UCAB) (Poland)
UCAB is a national association of independent non-governmental organisations whose mission is to provide all citizens with the knowledge of their rights so they can effectively and actively solve their problems. Further, UCAB acts for socially indicated changes. The association’s activities primarily concentrate on developing and strengthening the network of organisations dealing with citizen’s advice and past projects have concerned migration issues.
Casa del Diritti Sociali (FOCUS) (Italy)
FOCUS is a federation of Italian non-profit and non-governmental organisations engaged since 1985 in the promotion of fundamental rights of disadvantaged targets, such as migrants, victims of sexual slavery, homeless people, refugees and asylum seekers. The general aim is to find innovative methodologies to promote social autonomy of these categories of people. The organisation offers legal advice to those who encounter difficulties in Italy in their fundamental rights. Additionally, it helps with practical aspects such entry procedures, rights of residence, social rights, permanent residence for EU citizens etc.
ACCEM (Spain)
ACCEM is a nationwide non-governmental organisation that has developed its services and programmes in the field of migration since 1951. Its objective is to provide social services and to perform social and legal actions to benefit asylum seekers, refugees, displaced people and migrants in Spain. The organisation is present in ten Autonomous Communities (twenty one Provinces and twenty six Municipalities) across Spain.
National Association of Citizens Advice Bureau (NACAB) (Romania)
NACAB was founded to support and direct the activities of the Citizens Advice Bureau and is made up of thirty seven non-governmental organisations that created the CAB branches in over six localities within Romania. Through these, NACAB ensures equal access of citizens to information and advice services so that they are able to use their civil and social rights and responsibilities. It is estimated that over 10,000 citizens benefit annually from the direct services from the CABs.
*With the support of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
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