Newsletter #13

This gives us the room to build further on the work set in motion over the past few years. We will do so together with the institutions, students, staff and academics who work every day towards a safe and respectful environment in which to study and work. We are absolutely delighted, and we look forward to everything we can build together in the years ahead.

What does the extension mean for projects?

• Projects from the 2025 and 2026 funding rounds must complete their activities by 31 December 2027 at the latest, and may request a budget-neutral extension up to that date. As this may affect the reporting deadline, projects wishing to do so can email a request for a budget-neutral extension to sov@minvws.nl. DUS-I, the agency that administers the grants, will assess the request and, if it approves the change, issue an amended grant decision.
• Only projects from the 2027 funding round can run until the new end date of 1 October 2028.

Do you have an idea for a project yourself? The 2027 funding round runs from 12 January to 12 February 2027. More information will follow on programmasocialeveiligheid.nl.

Thank you to everyone who has worked to make this happen. Here’s to the years ahead, together!

Concise reports have been produced of both the plenary programme and the breakout sessions (available in Dutch).

Following an inspiring conference on 5 October, we are keeping the momentum going. In November, the programme team of the Social Safety in Higher Education and Science programme is hosting two events, and you are warmly invited to join us.

Thursday 5 November | 1.00–2.00 pm (CET) | Online information session on the grant scheme

We will bring you up to date on the grant scheme and the final funding round, which runs from 12 January to 12 February 2027. There will be plenty of time for questions.

Monday 9 November | 1.00–3.00 pm (CET) | HAN University of Applied Sciences, Nijmegen

Expert session: DEI and social safety – connected, without losing what makes each distinct

Together with speaker Ella Sebamalai and the LanDO working group, we will explore how diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and social safety relate to one another. How do you implement policy in both areas without either losing its own identity? We will also share the latest developments in the programme and its ongoing projects, and there will be time to exchange experiences with colleagues from other universities and universities of applied sciences.

Places at this in-person event are limited to two participants per institution, so that as many institutions as possible can take part.

In this series, we highlight projects that have received funding from the Steering Group. This time: The Hague University of Applied Sciences.

What is this project about?

How do you make sure students and staff know where to turn when something goes wrong? How do you make help and information easy to find? And how do you build a culture in which talking about social safety becomes second nature?

The Hague University of Applied Sciences is tackling these questions through a multi-year Social Safety & Inclusion programme, in which a range of projects together contribute to a safe learning and working environment for students and staff. Within this programme, the university is strengthening its range of help and support and improving how easy information is to find and access, through initiatives such as a lecturer support team, recovery coaches, DIG networks and a digital chatbot. Alongside this, an awareness campaign helps to open up the conversation about social safety and to foster a culture in which seeking help and reporting concerns become increasingly natural.