The family is the best investment

In March this year, three years passed since the biggest Family 500+ program had been introduced. The results of this program show that it is a breakthrough investment. It has improved the economic stability of families and has given more development opportunities to children. Moreover, the program radically decreased the extreme poverty of children. From July 2019, the income criterion applicable under this program will no longer apply, so each of 6.7 million children in Poland will receive a child care benefit.

Financial support is also granted to each learning child in the form of “Good Start” benefit. It is the amount of 300 PLN, which every family can spend on a school starter kit. Last year this benefit, which is available regardless of income, was granted to 4.6 million children. This one-off support for the beginning of the school year will soon by guaranteed by law, which will ensure the continuity of this benefit for further years.

Apart from benefits, other forms of support are also available to parents. “Toddler+” is another governmental program that supports the development of institutions taking care of children until 3 years of age: nurseries, child clubs and daily caregivers. This program enables parents to return to the labour market and, therefore, reconcile work with private life more easily. It is assumed that around 100,000 more places for little children than in 2015 will be established at the end of 2019. In 2018, the budget for the implementation of this program was also increased from 150 to 450 million PLN.

We appreciate large families

Having a large family involves higher expenses; therefore, solutions have been introduced in order to relieve the home budget of such families. One of them is the Large Family Card (KDR). KDR is a system of discounts for 3+ families that are available in commercial shops, cultural institutions or places of recreation. The Large Family Card is supported by almost 5,000 partners in almost 20,000 points throughout Poland. From the beginning of this year, the benefits of the card are also available to seniors who brought up three children in the past. Until April 2019, there are 2,869,000 active users of cards, including 348,000 active parents who applied for a card according to new rules. The parents who decided to bring up a larger number of children were forced to give up professional work temporarily or permanently. Thus, they were not able to pay retirement pension contributions and did not acquire rights to retirement persons even on the minimum level.

Introduced in March this year, the supplementary family benefit “Mother 4+” is a monthly indexed benefit in the amount of minimum retirement pension that provides basic livelihood. “Mother 4+” is the first program that hugely values daily work for a family with many children. According to the most recent data of the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy, 53,125 persons filed applications for supplementary family benefit until 13 May, and 45,999 persons have already received this benefit. The estimations of the Ministry indicate that the total number of persons entitled to such benefit is 85,000. This means that over half of the entitled persons have already filed applications.

Support for children and families in a special situation

‘A successful family life is largely based on showing mutual respect among family members and on maintaining sensitivity to someone else’s fate. Sensitivity and respect for others determine the directions of changes that successively take place for the benefit of families and children in need of special help,’ adds the minister.

The task of the ministry to take special care of persons in a difficult situation. The only program that pursues this idea is “For Life” with a budget of 3.1 billion PLN for the years 2017-2021. The primary aim of this program is to enable the real full integration of disabled persons and to provide psychological, social and economic support to their families. The program includes comprehensive solutions concerning, e.g., help to pregnant women, early support of the child and its family, rehabilitation services, housing support as well as support, counselling and information co-ordination services.

There is also an increasing number of new solutions and programs addressed to families with a disabled child. Since March this year, “Care Services for Disabled Persons” and “Respite Care” have been implemented under the Solidarity Fund for the Support of Disabled Persons. In 2019, the amount of 170,000 PLN has been set aside for these two tasks only.

The ministry implements also the programs with a scope broader than the aforementioned social groups. One of them is “Meal in School and at Home”, which offers help to elderly and disabled persons, but also to children from families in a difficult situation. The program has been carried on since 2019; it will last till 2023, and its range will cover all provinces. This program is the financial support of the commune’s feeding initiatives in the form of a meal, a money benefit or food products. These include hot meals for schoolchildren in the school canteen. The program helps authorities running public primary schools to organise canteens and meal consumption points in schools.  It is the improvement of the standard of the functioning canteens, but also the supplementation of new places. The program finances also meals delivered to adults (e.g., who do not leave their house or apartment because of old age or disability) who are not able to prepare them on their own. A budget of 550 million PLN will be set aside for the “Meal in School and at Home” program every year. Altogether, this gives 2.75 billion PLN for the program as a whole.

Family is generations

‘I am convinced that the value that binds generations is the family. It is from older generations that we learn respect for others. Therefore, we remember about older persons, to whom we owe so much,’  stresses the minister.

Since 2015, the elderly person support system has developed effectively. Senior+, ASOS or Care 75+ are already available to seniors on a permanent basis.

Senior+ Day Homes and Senior+ Clubs are established in various parts of Poland. They are necessary not only to families looking for care for elderly persons, but mainly to seniors. They provide thousands of elderly persons with care, entertainment and the possibility of developing their hobbies, thus gaining their huge favour and recognition. New institutions are still established. In 2015, there were only 99 Senior+ institutions offering places to 2,772 persons. According to the most recent estimates, there may be around 840 such institutions operating in Poland at the end of 2019.

Education, activity, participation in social life and social services are the main areas of activity of the Governmental Program for the Social Activity of Elderly Persons for the years 2014-2020. Its aim is to improve the quality of life and the living standard of elderly persons. Various kinds of educational, artistic and sports activities, workshops, intergenerational integration, participation in the life of the local community – these are only some of the tasks being implemented in many places in Poland.  Under this program for the years 2014-2020, 1,330 offers have been made for the total amount of ca. 145.7 million PLN. The program covered as many as 114,000 persons in 2018.

Moreover, we must keep in mind that the ministry implements also other programs, including those addressed to persons older than 75 (Care 75+). Implemented since 2018, this program gives elderly persons access to specialised care services.

However, the most important change introduced this year is “Pension+” – an additional one-off payment in the amount of minimum retirement pension for each entitled person. Among the entitled persons there are recipients of retirement and disability pensions and persons entitled to supplementary family benefit “Mother 4+”. Within the framework of this program, 5,151,850,000 PLN will be granted to recipients of retirement and disability pensions in connection with the provision of 5.8 million benefits.