Organisation grants for the promotion of health, wellbeing and social inclusion
The organisation grant for the promotion of health, wellbeing and social inclusion is mainly intended for registered non-profit associations that meet the general grant principles and have not received other grants from the City of Espoo for the same activities.
The Spring 2026 grant application period has ended
The application period for organisational grants promoting wellbeing, health and social inclusion took place from 12 January to 30 January 2026. We received 100 applications by the deadline.
A total of 1,456,005 euros was applied for—nearly three times the amount available for distribution.
Grants totalling 500,000 euros were awarded to 86 different organisations. In evaluating the applications, we placed particular emphasis on activities aimed at people in vulnerable positions, people with foreign-language backgrounds and older adults, as well as on the regularity of the activities.
Residents’ views were also utilised in preparing the grant decisions. These insights were collected through the Voxit participation platform in February 2026.
General grant awarding principles
The purpose of the organisation grant for the promotion of health, wellbeing and social inclusion is to promote the health, wellbeing and inclusion of Espoo residents. The grant enables activities for Espoo residents with the main focus on health and wellbeing promotion through preventative measures.
Grants are awarded to activities that are in line with the values and goals of the Espoo Story and the goals of the city’s wellbeing plans.
Particular attention is paid to the following aspects when making grant decisions:
- activities that prevent social exclusion, reduce loneliness, promote people’s functional capacity, quality of life and social inclusion, and boost a sense of inclusion;
- activities that promote equality between different areas and are targeted at different districts in Espoo;
- activities that are varied and accessible and take different population and age groups into consideration.
The following are considered an advantage:
- Cooperation with other local organisations, operators and the City of Espoo.
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Active multi-channel communication about the organisation’s activities to both the target group and partners.
It is hoped that organisations use the Lähellä.fi service(external link, opens in a new window), the Suomi.fi Finnish Service Catalogue (FSC)(external link, opens in a new window) or the Espoo event calendar(external link, opens in a new window) for communication.
- The goals of the activities are defined in a clear and realistic manner.
- Assessment of the success and effectiveness of the activities and a description of assessment methods (e.g. monitoring of visitor numbers).
An association can only receive one grant from the City of Espoo for the same purpose. The applicant is obliged to disclose if it has applied for or received a grant from another City of Espoo unit (e.g. cultural or sports grants).
Grants are awarded in particular to support activities that:
- promote people’s social inclusion and functional capacity;
- reduce loneliness and social exclusion;
- reduce inequalities in wellbeing and health between population groups;
- increase peer support and voluntary activities;
- are open to all and based on a low-threshold principle.
The following themes are especially valued:
- activities that promote integration, peer support activities related to employment promotion, and psychosocial support for jobseekers;
- activities that support school work, homework club activities, anti-bullying activities, and activities that support parenting in cooperation with early childhood education;
- activities that promote social encounters.
Grants are not awarded to the following:
- activities to be put out to tender under the Act on Public Procurement and Concession Contracts
- staff or travel expenses not related to the supported activities
- investments, purchases or renovation of premises owned by the organisation
- religious or political activities or any activities that can be defined as religious or political
- applicants who do not meet the general grant awarding principles.
Organisation grants are discretionary.
If a grant is sought for a project carried out by several operators, one of them must be assigned to be in charge of the application. This operator applies for the grant and is responsible for its use, any repayments and submitting a report to the City of Espoo. If necessary, the application must include the participating operators’ agreement on the division of tasks and responsibilities, the use of the grant and the related responsibilities.
The City of Espoo uses the Lähellä.fi service to help residents find services and activities provided by organisations to promote health and wellbeing. Grant recipients are encouraged to add their supported activities to the Lähellä.fi service to help spread information about the activities and improve the accessibility of services for residents.
How to apply for a grant
You can apply for a grant online through a Webropol form or using a paper form (available in PDF format). You need to provide the required documents together with the application.
The online application is available as a Webropol form. You can add the required documents to the form. Please name the documents clearly. Online applications will be sent directly to the Registry Office.
The application must be sent before the end of the application period. We recommend that you do not leave it until the last minute to avoid overloading the system. Late applications will not be processed.
Please note that the online form is not accessible.
Fill in the online form in Webropol.(external link, opens in a new window)
If you have problems with the form, please send an email to hyteavustukset@espoo.fi.
You can also submit your application using an accessible paper form, which is available as a PDF file on the city website during the application period. Send the application and related documents to the City of Espoo Registry Office by email or by post. Remember to fill in all sections of the application carefully.
- By email: kirjaamo@espoo.fi
- By post: City of Espoo Registry Office, P.O. Box 1, 02070 CITY OF ESPOO
Late applications will not be processed.
Both online and paper applications must include the following documents:
- Extract from the register of associations or foundations, dated no more than 12 months before the application date
- Current rules of the organisation
- The organisation’s latest approved annual report or, if the organisation has been operating for less than a year, the minutes of the latest board meeting
- The organisation’s latest approved financial statements or, if the organisation has been operating for less than a year, the minutes of the latest board meeting
- The organisation’s latest approved action plan and budget
- If you are applying for a grant together with other organisations: mutual agreement concerning the grant application.
What kind of activities will be organised with the grant?
The grant will be used to offer peer support to foreign-language jobseekers in Espoo. The activities include the following:
- Network meetings and workshops:
- Need for activities: There is a large number of foreign-language individuals living in Espoo who have difficulties accessing the labour market. The need has been identified, for example, in connection with services for immigrants.
- Content of activities: We organise monthly network meetings where participants can share their job-seeking experiences, tips and advice. At these meetings, foreign-language speakers can discuss learning Finnish, writing a CV and applications, and preparing for job interviews. Our workshops include practical exercises and training, such as writing a CV and job applications, job interview simulations and intensive Finnish language courses that focus on work-related vocabulary and communication.
Processing of applications and decision-making
Grant applications will be initially assessed based on the minimum criteria (approved/rejected). The general grant awarding principles serve as the minimum criteria that must be met by the eligible organisations.
Applications that meet the general grant awarding principles will be scored using an approximate scoring system. The scoring system guides the decision-making process and the comparison of applications.
Grants are always awarded on a discretionary basis.
Grant applications received by the city are initially assessed based on the minimum criteria (approved/rejected).
1. Grants can be applied for by a registered association or another registered organisation, such as a foundation.
2. Associations and other organisations that apply for a grant and are just starting their operations must be able to show proof of their activities through sufficient documents, for example by providing minutes of their board meetings.
3. Grants are only awarded to such non-profit activities that are in line with the Espoo Story and support the city’s goals. Any grants awarded must not have a distorting effect on competition, and the activities in question must not be business activities.
4. The organisation’s activities must take place in Espoo.
5. The city only awards one grant for the same purpose or activities.
6. The applicant’s activities must comply with applicable laws and regulations and respect good practices and generally accepted ethical principles. Ethical principles also cover all forms of discrimination.
7. The applicant must arrange its bookkeeping so that it is possible to monitor the use of the grant. Non-profit activities must be separated from any service production or other commercial activities in the organisation’s bookkeeping.
8. Grants are not awarded to religious or political activities or any activities that can be defined as religious or political.
9. Late applications are not processed.
Scoring system for the City of Espoo’s organisation grants for the promotion of health, wellbeing and social inclusion
The City of Espoo allocates the funds reserved for organisation grants to the activities that meet the conditions using a scoring system. In addition to the scores, the city examines the distribution of grants between different areas and target groups.
The maximum score is 11 points.
Scoring
1. The applicant describes why the activity in question is needed in Espoo, i.e. justifies the need for the activity (e.g. the target group experiences a high level of loneliness).
- 0 p = need for the activities is not justified in the application
- 1 p = need for the activities is insufficiently justified
- 2 p = need for the activities is justified and confirmed
2. The applicant describes the target group of the activities and provides an estimate of the number of participants.
- 0 p = the target group is not described and an estimate of the number of participants is not provided
- 1 p = the target group is described, but an estimate of the number of participants is not provided OR an estimate of the number of participants is provided, but the target group is not described
- 2 p = the target group is described and an estimate of the number of participants is provided
3. The applicant describes how the activities promote the participants’ health, wellbeing and/or social inclusion (for example, loneliness among the target group decreases as participants meet and interact with one another).
- 0 p = the impacts of the activities are not described
- 1 p = description of the impacts of the activities is minimal/insufficient
- 3 p = description of the impacts of the activities is comprehensive and well-reasoned
4. The applicant explains clearly and realistically how they are going to monitor and assess the achievement of their goals and the impacts of the activities (e.g. monitoring of visitor numbers).
- 0 p = no plan is presented
- 1 p = the monitoring and assessment plan is described, but its implementation is not realistic considering the applicant’s resources
- 2 p = the described monitoring and assessment plan is realistic
5. The applicant describes its ability and motivation to cooperate with the City of Espoo’s services, networks and other operators, such as other associations.
- 0 p = ability and motivation are not described
- 1 p = ability and motivation are partly described
- 2 p = ability and motivation are described
Answer all application questions carefully. This will ensure that we have all the information we need. Assessment is primarily based on the application. The supporting documents help verify the information provided in the application. Your organisation must realistically and truthfully assess its resources to carry out the supported activities.
The supported activities must be goal-oriented, systematic and monitored. This means that the application must define clear goals for the activities, the content of the activities must be planned, and the applicant must describe how the activities will promote the participants’ health, wellbeing or social inclusion. In terms of monitoring, it is important to consider the extent of the supported activities and the resources available. For activities carried out by volunteers, possible indicators include visitor numbers and feedback collected. For reporting purposes, your organisation may also make use of assessments and monitoring carried out for other providers of funding. Board activities alone are not considered monitoring.
In terms of communication, you should favour channels and methods that best reach the target group. In addition to target group communication, you should tell your partners (e.g. other organisations and the city) about your supported activities. You can make use of various channels for target group communication. The Lähellä.fi service is an effective channel for informing service counselling staff of organisations’ activities.
Grant decisions are sent to the applicants electronically. The decision includes the amount of the grant awarded, grounds for the decision, and instructions for requesting administrative review. The grant will be paid to the bank account specified by the grant recipient once the decision is final. By accepting the grant awarded, the recipient agrees to follow the terms and conditions described in these instructions.
If you are dissatisfied with the decision, you can submit a written request for administrative review within 30 days of receiving the decision. An electronically sent decision is deemed to have been received on the third day of the sending of the message (Act on Electronic Services and Communication in the Public Sector, section 19, subsection 2). The decision cannot be appealed against.
The request for administrative review must be sent to the Registry Office within the deadline by email (kirjaamo@espoo.fi) or by post. Write the following text on the envelope or in the email: ‘Oikaisuvaatimus hyteo-avustus’.
More detailed instructions for requesting administrative review are provided with the decision.
At its discretion, the City of Espoo may make minor and technical changes to the grant decision or extend the period of use of the grant based on the applicant’s written request and a special reason. A minor change can be requested if the recipient anticipates changes in the use of the grant that will affect the intended use of the grant or the grant-related terms and conditions or restrictions. As a rule, the grant must be used during the same or next budget year. If the organisation does not use the grant during the agreed period, they must contact the city to discuss the use and/or repayment of the grant. A special reason must always be given when requesting a change. Request a change by sending an application to the Registry Office by email (kirjaamo@espoo.fi) or by post.
Your organisation must submit its report by 31 May 2026, unless otherwise stated.
Failure to submit a report may affect the awarding of other grants later. If no report is submitted, the organisation must pay back the grant.
The report can be submitted using a separate form (accessible) or online (non-accessible). The form will become available later.
Your report should describe:
- how the grant was used;
- what was achieved with the grant;
- all income and expenses related to the supported activities, so that the activities can be examined as a whole.
Required documents:
- annual report
- financial statements