Context / background The consequences of the economic crisis and unemployment are causing large segments of Europe’s population, especially in the South, to experience extreme situations and social marginalization which traditional policies in the area of occupational learning and job placement fail to address. Traditional problems such as the absence and inadequacy of professional qualifications are now aggravated by the impact of long-term unemployment and the lack of realistic job prospects on the affected groups in terms of de-motivation and demobilization. In this scenario, women have been particularly hit by unemployment, demobilization and stagnation. Under these circumstances, professional development and occupational training seem to have lost much of their effectiveness as resources, policies and practices for re-entering the workforce. Through various past activities and projects, the partners endeavoured to supplement training activities with elements of personal empowerment seeking real business alternatives, to provide participants with real opportunities. However, neither of them, nor the many entities that they have worked with so far, has yet promoted a model that includes all these elements in a single process. Objectives of the project The main objective of the project will be the design and validation, based on existing best practices in Europe, of an integrated model that combines occupational training, empowerment and the promotion of entrepreneurship among women in situations of labour and social exclusion. The activities that the project will undertake are described below: 1. Study of existing practices and initiatives, benchmarking and bench-learning 2. Design of a vocational training, coaching and entrepreneurship model • Definition of transversal skills and training aimed at developing trainees’ empowerment • Development of a methodology aimed at fostering the participation and/or creation of social economy initiatives • Development of specific tools (Self-diagnostic of skills and strengths in the different vocational fields; Planning of the own pathway; Development of an e-learning platform) • Trainer profiles design 3. Experimental implementation and analysis of results 4. Production of a manual or methodological guide 5. Dissemination and exploitation 6. Management Targets The project will benefit two kinds of targets: at an institutional level it will address training providers and their networks, especially those working in the field of occupational training and the labour social insertion of adults, especially women, social enterprises and organisations of the third sector interested in staff training an motivation, as well as public Institutions in charge of employment policies and activities. Individual beneficiaries will be professionals and voluntary staff working in the field of occupational training and labour insertion of adults, as well as the women directly involved in the project activities. Methodology The learning model will be built on the basis of real entrepreneurial activities in the field of fabrics and objects customisation. It will combine three essential elements for the mobilization, employment skills training, personal development and empowerment of its target audience: an individual analysis of strengths and weaknesses, including the identification of formal and hidden competencies, the design of a personal training and empowerment plan, based on the weaknesses, skills and potential identified, and the development of an economic activity capable of generating real jobs and operating as a unifying and dynamic element for the entire training and empowerment process. Expected results and impact The project expects to generate innovation in the world of adult education, combining elements that are usually found in isolation (occupational training, support and empowerment, development of entrepreneurship skills and job-creation initiatives). It also seeks to influence current training and re-employment practices, demonstrating the efficiency of an integrated approach that is considered necessary for weaker and marginalized groups, especially young working women and unemployed women. The partnership is composed y partners from Spain (promoter and co-ordinator), UK, Italy and Austria.