Social and health care organisations can submit project proposals
These discretionary government grants are awarded to the wellbeing services counties and the City of Helsinki to be allocated to development projects carried out by organisations. The call for applications does not apply to rescue services.
Social and health organisations can submit their project proposals using this form (the form opens on Tuesday, 22 September). The organisation must have sufficient experience and expertise in project management and expertise relevant to the proposed project. Applicants are expected to be willing to cooperate with the City of Helsinki and other stakeholders and operators.
Application period and information session
The City of Helsinki will accept project proposals from organisations from 22 September to 4 October 2026. The projects will be carried out during 2027. Based on the project proposals, the city will prepare a state grant application for the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, which will decide on the grants to be awarded to the wellbeing services counties no later than early next year.
Project proposals received after the deadline will not be considered. The City of Helsinki will contact the contact persons for the selected projects before submitting the grant application to the ministry.
We are organizing an information session about the call for project propolsals on the Helsinki Channel on Tuesday, September 22, starting at 17:00. You can follow the session via this link(Link leads to external service).
We are seeking project proposals for these priority areas
The organisation activities supported with the discretionary government grant must support the objectives and priorities set out in the Helsinki City Strategy and the City’s Welfare Plan and Service Strategy for the Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division. The organisation activities must complement health and social services and strengthen wellbeing, health and participation, particularly among vulnerable residents of Helsinki. The activities must be based on low-threshold interactive work with the target groups and cooperation with the service system.
1. Strengthening mental wellbeing and developing mental health and substance abuse work
Priority is given to activities that:
strengthen mental health and psychological wellbeing in everyday life
provide low-threshold support and help at an early stage
prevent the accumulation of mental health and substance abuse issues
reach people who are excluded from services
support recovery, peer activities and a sense of community
make use of cooperation models between organisations and services.
2. Strengthening participation and preventing loneliness
Priority is given to activities that:
increase opportunities to participate in communities and society
strengthen agency, equality and opportunities to make a difference
help prevent loneliness among different age groups
support the participation of disadvantaged people in particular
strengthen local communities and communal environments.
3. Targeted interactive work to support vulnerable groups
Priority is given to activities that:
reach people who are excluded from services or who are difficult to reach
offer low-threshold interaction, advice, peer support and guidance
support various target groups, such as families with children, young people, people with an immigrant background, people living with a long-term illness, people with disabilities, older people, people experiencing a crisis, people experiencing mental health and substance abuse issues, and other specific groups.
4. Reducing inequalities in wellbeing and health
Priority is given to activities that:
reduce inequality and social exclusion
support functional capacity and healthy lifestyles.
5. Developing effective cooperation models
Priority is given to development work that:
is built on cooperation between organisations; the Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division; and other operators
strengthens service coordination, client guidance and the accessibility of services
strengthens equal access to support and activities.
More information
Read the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health’s press release on the government grant here(Link leads to external service). (in Finnish)