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Barcelona opens new aid of up to 1,350 euros for families with underage children
Barcelona families with children under 16 can now apply for one of the city's most important social benefits of the year. The council has opened the new call for the Fons d’infància 0-16, a financial benefit intended for households struggling to meet basic expenses at a time when the cost of living continues to put particular pressure on those with children in their care.
The call will remain open until 22 June and this year has a budget of 15 million euros. Its aim is to ease situations of vulnerability that in many neighbourhoods have become increasingly visible amid high rents, more expensive food and difficulties balancing work and care.
The support may reach 1,350 euros depending on the number of children, with specific supplements for single-parent families. Last year more than 14,000 households received this benefit and nearly 25,000 children benefited directly from the programme.
To access it, applicants must be registered residents in Barcelona, users of Servicios Sociales and below certain income limits. Children must also live in the city throughout the entire application process.
Payment is made through Targeta Barcelona Solidària, a system Ayuntamiento has used for years to speed up aid linked to food, basic products and everyday expenses. Applications can be made online or in person by appointment.
In many Barcelona neighbourhoods, particularly where housing prices have grown faster than family incomes, this kind of support has become important for covering school expenses, clothing, food or basic activities during the year.
Fons d’infància also reflects a wider change in the city’s social policy. Child poverty has become one of the main concerns of municipal social services, especially after years marked by inflation, insecure employment and a rising cost of living for families.
Barcelona is thus trying to reinforce a support network that reaches more and more households. Although the aid does not by itself solve the structural problems of housing or inequality, it does show how many families now need direct support to sustain something as basic as their children’s day-to-day lives.