As part of a restructuration in the scope of agencies depending from the Ministry of Social Affairs in Estonia, the scope of activities for Astangu Vocational Rehabilitation Center (commonly referred to as Astangu) is been reshaped. A few years ago, a Centre for Quality in Social Services had been created as a part of Astangu. The Centre, led by Keiu Talve, has the objective of supporting the promotion, development and co-ordination of quality in social services in Estonia. (read more...)
This Center left Astangu as of February 1st 2017 and will be coordinated under a different agency, the Social Insurance Board (SIB) of Estonia. This reorganisation would now have all service-quality related activities be coordinated and developed by one organisation. The two specialists at the Center (Keiu Talve and Maarika Aro) will continue their work at the Social Insurance Board.
The EQUASS Local Licence in Estonia has been held by Astangu VRC since 2012, after the successful implementation of an ESF-funded project dedicated to enhance the quality of social services in Estonia. This impact of this project has earned Astangu an Achievement Award for the year 2011 by the Estonian Quality Association.
With the EQUASS Local Licence agreement coming to an end on the first of January 2017, the EQUASS Department of the EPR is in talks with the potential successors, including the SIB, to find a replacement LLH.
EPR and its EQUASS department would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate the Astangu and their quality specialists, Keiu and Maarika, for all their efforts to promote quality topics in the social services sector in Estonia, in the context of the 2010-2011 project, as well as the contribution to the development of the EQUASS2018 in the past couple of years.