Any organisation wishing to take part in European Solidarity Corps Volunteering or Traineeships and Jobs projects must have a certification called the Quality Label. This includes signing up to the European Solidarity Corps Charter.
The Quality Label is designed to ensure consistently high standards in Solidarity Corps activities and to help organisations find partners. It is your organisation's gateway to the European Solidarity Corps.
Traineeships and Jobs organisation applicants, as well as all organisations involved in a Volunteering project (applicant and all partners) should have a valid Quality Label for the entire duration of the project or the activities they are involved in.
Once you have the Quality Label, you can access the Placement Administration and Support System (PASS), where you can search for participants or attract young people to your projects by promoting your opportunities.
If your organisation already has a valid accreditation for the European Voluntary Service (EVS) or Erasmus+ Volunteering, then you have automatic access to PASS. Furthermore, you do not need to make any changes to your current accreditation, unless project activities involving your organisation start after 31 December 2021. Please see below for further details under ‘Extension of valid accreditations after 31 December 2021’.
The Quality Label has been awarded for different scopes and roles, depending on the activities an organisation has planned to carry out. A combination of several Quality Labels was also possible:
- Volunteering – supporting and/or host role
- Traineeships
- Jobs
The details for each role in a Solidarity Corps project are presented in the Charter. This also states the main principles and quality standards of the Solidarity Corps and it is the basis for the certification.
The call to apply for the Quality Label is now closed for UK organisations. Validity of all existing Quality Label certificates has been extended until 2027.
If your organisation has an accreditation for the European Voluntary Service (EVS) or Erasmus+ Volunteering and wants to take part in European Solidarity Corps activities (that start at your organisation after 31 December 2021), you should contact the UK NA to request an extension. Please see below for further details under ‘Extension of valid accreditations after 31 December 2021’.
Organisations already holding a Quality Label may request the UK NA to add or remove locations or increase or decrease the number of participants by contacting the ESC Team at eusolidaritycorps@ecorys.com.
Extensions of valid accreditations after 31 December 2021
Valid Quality Label and Erasmus+ Volunteering accreditations, issued under the previous programme (2014-2020) that were due to expire on 31 December 2020, have been granted an extension by the European Commission. This means that any valid accreditations cover Volunteering or Traineeships and Jobs activities taking place in 2021.
Furthermore, beyond 2021:
- Validity of existing UK Quality Label certificates has been extended to 2027 by the European Commission.
- Beneficiaries (applicant organisations) of Erasmus+ or European Solidarity Corps Volunteering, Traineeships or Jobs projects/partnerships holding an existing Quality Label or Erasmus+ volunteering accreditation can finish projects which have been awarded funding under the previous programmes (Corps: 2018-2020 and Erasmus+: 2014-2020), even if project activities or mobilities are undertaken beyond December 2021.
- Partner organisations can use their current accreditation to take part in activities or mobilities funded under the current programme up to 31 December 2021. However, partner organisations undertaking project activities after 2021 will need to email the UK NA at least 8 weeks before those activities are planned to take place, in order to request an extension of the validity of their accreditation. Please contact the UK NA for advice and support.
- Organisations without an existing Quality Label or Erasmus+ volunteering or European Voluntary Service (EVS) accreditation can no longer apply for a Quality Label and therefore will be ineligible to take part in any activities under the European Solidarity Corps Volunteering projects. Costs associated with project activities involving unaccredited organisations are ineligible, which will affect project final grant amount.
Additional resources
Check out our additional resources on the Quality Label and share them with partner organisations:
- Read our Quality Label quide (242 KB)
- Download our Quality Label brochure (1,023 KB)
- Watch the module on the Quality Label available on ‘Ready, Set, Make the Change!’, a European Solidarity Corps free online course on the HOP platform.