From crisis to action: Confronting poverty in Europe

What would you do if you had to choose between paying your rent, heating your home, or buying food? This is the reality many households and individuals are facing across Europe today.  

In this context, the launch of the EU’s first Anti‑Poverty Strategy is both timely and necessary. Its ambition to adopt a comprehensive and multidimensional approach is welcome. Poverty is not only about income: it is about whether people can fulfil their basic rights – housing, energy, healthcare, education, childcare, and social services. Turning this ambition into reality, however, will require sustained political commitment, long-term investment in social services, and strong support for those delivering support at community level. 

Everyday pressures are pushing more people into crisis 

Across Europe, National Red Cross Societies are seeing a sharp rise in people turning to us for food, shelter and last-resort support, as everyday pressures intensify. Rising living costs, housing shortages, and gaps in social protection are reaching people who once felt relatively secure, while deepening hardship for those already struggling. 

“Over the last 10 years, we have seen huge change,” says Joahanna Sanders, Policy Advisor on Social Rights and Basic Humanitarian Needs at the Swedish Red Cross. “Before, the people who came to us for support in addressing their basic humanitarian needs – food, clothing, shelter – were mainly people who fell outside the system. Now, we see much more people with a low-income. While before they could manage, they now struggle to cover costs at the end of the month”, she explains. “For the last 5 years, the number of people affected has grown every year”.  

This shift is visible across Member States. In Finland, Spain, Austria, and Italy, Red Cross teams also report a significant increase in the numbers of people seeking support, with food aid requests rising by up to 50% in some areas. Demand is growing not only in scale, but also in scope. Working families, single-parent households, pensioners, and young people are increasingly affected. In-work poverty is rising, and employment no longer guarantees stability. More families with children are turning to the Red Cross simply to make ends meet. 

In countries such as Poland and Bulgaria, large-scale food parcel distribution remains a key lifeline, yet organisations report that needs are growing faster than available resources, with food aid increasingly becoming a regular coping mechanism rather than temporary support. 

When people are enabled, recovery and stability are possible 

Despite these challenges, people facing poverty continue to show resilience, helping each other and remaining connected to their communities. When barriers are lowered and support is accessible, individuals and families can stabilise their situations and rebuild their lives.  

This is what National Red Cross Societies see when people can access affordable housing, adequate income support, healthcare, childcare and social services: emergency needs decrease, stability improves and reliance on last-resort assistance diminishes over time. When systems are inclusive and responsive, they enable people to absorb shocks before they escalate into crisis. 

Emergency assistance remains essential and must always be delivered with dignity and without conditions. At the same time, rising demand for food aid and shelter highlights where prevention has fallen short. Slipping into poverty has become easier, while recovery has become harder, largely because the systems designed to support everyday life are under strain or out of reach. 

Prevention is crucial because vulnerability builds over time and at different moments in life, such as transitions into or out of work, periods of ill health, caring responsibilities, or old age with inadequate pensions. Access to decent employment is key for income security, dignity, and social participation. But it is essential to recognise that not everyone is able to work. Inclusive social protection systems must ensure adequate living conditions for all, without stigma or conditionality. 

Supporting those who provide support 

As needs grow, not-for-profit social service providers and community organisations are increasingly filling gaps left by overstretched public systems. Red Cross staff and volunteers, alongside many others, are responding to complex and long‑term hardship – often without adequate funding, stability, or institutional backing. Their proximity to communities allows them to adapt quickly to changing needs, whether by scaling up food assistance, introducing new delivery models, or reaching groups excluded from formal systems. 

Recent crises have shown how fragile social services can be. Rising energy costs, staff shortages, and uncertain funding have forced some organisations to scale back or suspend essential services just as demand is increasing. Protecting people experiencing poverty also means protecting the organisations and workers who support them. Without sustained investment in social services and civil society, access to rights and support cannot be guaranteed in practice. 

“Administrative and legal barriers make it extremely difficult for some people to access their social rights - and there are situations we cannot change, because they depend on policy decisions. This is where the Red Cross tries to step in, providing an immediate response while also working with civil society and institutions to build more sustainable, long-term solutions,” says Jessica Gonzalez, Deputy Director of the Emergency Reception Centre (Train Hostel), Belgian Red Cross, Brussels. 

Investing in resilient systems 

The launch of the EU’s first Anti‑Poverty Strategy comes at a critical moment. Its emphasis on prevention and a life‑cycle approach reflects the reality people face today. But its success will depend on whether ambition is matched by concrete political and financial commitment. 

As discussions move forward on implementation and the next Multiannual Financial Framework, poverty reduction must be treated as a structural priority. Strengthening these systems is not only essential for reducing poverty, but also for reinforcing social cohesion. When people are able to access support, participate in society, and meet their basic needs, trust in institutions and communities grows. Conversely, gaps in access and rising inequalities risk deepening divisions and weakening the social fabric. 

This requires sustained social investment, backed by dedicated and earmarked funding that ensures resources meaningfully contribute to social inclusion, poverty reduction and support to people experiencing vulnerability. It also means involving not-for-profit social service providers – who work closest to affected people and communities – in the design, implementation, and monitoring of social policies. By grounding action in lived realities and sustained investment, the Strategy can help ensure that fewer people reach crisis and more are able to move towards long-term well-being.