Founding principles

Respecting each person’s dignity

Human beings, whatever their beliefs and their problems, have the right to have their choices and their dignity respected. Their dignity implies access to several rights: the right to housing, the right to medical care, the right to social integration and to pleasure. These are the rights we aim to defend by our actions. The members of Groupe SOS are committed to being particularly attentive to the material conditions provided for users, above all to the housing and the nature of their care. Convinced that the respect of users of services depends on the quality of the care offered, members are particularly concerned by the conditions of hygiene, comfort, privacy and the aesthetic quality of their premises.

Since 1984, Groupe SOS has attempted to demonstrate that each individual possesses a personal wealth which can be of use to others. The most difficult life-histories, the deepest trauma should never lead to the shattering of this deeply-rooted wealth, present in us all. The organisation of social provisions must therefore be of service to all individuals sharing a common territory.

Assertion of the principle of health democracy

The patient must be at the centre of the health care service. The patients, their relatives and their social/ health environments are taken into account according to the rules which are inspired by the ethical and democratic principles of the care provided.

Health democracy involves taking into account the various points of view which allow for the defence of a public health policy that respects each and every person.

Promoting the adaptation of each person’s social potential

Economic reinsertion is an important element of social reintegration which can be, in itself, a tool in fighting exclusion. The main principle is to promote the appropriation of each person’s social potential, giving a new dimension to the idea of the creation of initiatives within a wider perspective. Without denying the complexity and the range of the answers to be found, this social action emphasises work rather than employment, promotes initiative-taking rather than charity, encourages desire rather than need.

In addition social insertion companies, through their particular way of holding the capital concerned, show that social relationships can be considered differently. This mode of functioning gives a strong indication of the shared values of those concerned.

The insertion enterprises of Groupe SOS show that a business can be competitive and profitable using employees often considered to be insufficiently productive or even unemployable.

Meeting emerging needs and improving the answers to existing ones

Groupe SOS is constantly adapting its institutions and actions in order to remain useful in the face of permanently evolving needs.

This process takes two forms:
- social innovation : Groupe SOS is constantly innovating by offering new ways of working which promote access to information, facilitate the access to medical care and develop the range of solutions offered.
- acquisition of structures : on several occasions the Groupe SOS has been approached by public authorities to take over the management of associations in difficulty, allowing for the maintenance of employment and the continuation of care provision.