FAMILYPLATFORM : [23]

FAMILYPLATFORM was a social platform funded by the European Commission's 7th Framework Programme (SSH-2009-3.2.2) involving twelve organisations from leading research institutes and family associations working together to elaborate a European research agenda on the family. Representatives from scientific, policy and civil society organisations have been consulted at every step of the way. Their input has been central to the overall character and content of the research agenda.
The platform took four steps documented in separate reports:

• First step: Charting, assessing and reviewing contemporary knowledge of families and family research in the EU. The results of this work are summed up in the report: "Research on Families and Family policies in Europe: State of the Art" prepared by Marjo Kuronen.
  Details on the state of the art of family research in different research areas can be found in 12 existential field reports (e.g. on Family structures and family forms in the European Union; Family developmental processes; State family policies; Family living environments; Family management; Social care and social services; Social inequality and diversity of families; Media, communication and information technologies)
• Second step: Critically reviewing existing research, developing questions for future research and identifying key policy questions. The results of this work are summed up in the report: "Critical Review of Research on Families and Family Policies in Europe" prepared by Karin Wall, Mafalda Leitão and Vasco Ramos.
• Third step: Elaborating future scenarios of family life in Europe, and identifying challenges facing families and family policy in the future. The results of this work are summed up in the report: "Foresight Report: Facets and Preconditions of Wellbeing of Families" prepared by Olaf Kapella, Anne-Claire de Liedekerke and Julie de Bergeyck
• Fourth step: Bringing the main results together and drawing conclusions from this work, ultimately proposing a European research agenda on families. The results of this work are summed up in the report: "Research Agenda" prepared by Loreen Beier, Anna Dechant, Christian Haag and Marina Rupp