The Call for Contributions for the Side Event programme of VSE’s 2026 Annual Conference is now open. The deadline for submitting your proposal is 1 March 2026.

Victim Support Europe’s Annual Conference 2026 (VSEAC2026), titled “The Frontliners: Functional, Funded, Future-Ready,” will take place in Paris on 2–3 June 2026. The conference is co-organised with VSE member France Victimes and will be hosted at Espace Saint-Martin. It will be a hybrid conference, and we hope to welcome the victim support community and affiliated professionals from around the world both on-site, at Espace Saint-Martin, and digitally.

VSE’s Annual Conference 2026 takes place at a pivotal moment for victim support in Europe, focusing on how services function in practice, how they are sustainably funded, and how they can remain future-ready in an evolving social, political, and technological landscape. Building on four decades of experience celebrated by France Victimes, the conference addresses the concrete operational, financial, and organisational challenges faced by victim support services today, alongside the tools and approaches needed to strengthen them for the years ahead.

The programme covers a wide range of practical topics, including governance and coordination of victim support systems, service delivery and accessibility, workforce development and staff wellbeing, sustainable financing models, and accountability. Participants will also examine how innovation — including digital tools and emerging technologies — can support, rather than complicate, high-quality victim-centred services.

Rather than focusing on abstract policy debates, discussions will centre on real-world implementation: what works, what does not, and how systems recover and adapt. Forward-looking sessions will highlight emerging practices, operational innovations, and collaborative approaches needed to respond to changing victim needs and future challenges across Europe and beyond.

We invite inspiring and inspired speakers to contribute to VSEAC2026 by organising a side event. This year, two FORMATS of side events will be offered:

1. Interactive Workshops (June 2, 14:30-16:30):
Engaging, hands-on sessions (1.5 hours) designed to facilitate in-depth discussions, skills-building, or collaborative problem-solving on one of the “Topics for Side Events” outlined at the end of this document. We strongly encourage the use of interactive and creative methods to ensure that participants can engage meaningfully and gain practical tools or knowledge to implement in their organisations. We are looking for practical moments that offer solutions or ideas that can be directly applied to their work in victim support. We welcome interactive and creative working methods. For example:

• Short training or instructional sessions (introducing skills or tools),
• Educational games or simulations (role-playing, quizzes, association cards),
• Short movie or documentary presentations,
• Casuistic sessions (discussion of relevant issues using real-life cases or victims’ stories).

2. Interactive Labs (June 3, 14:30-15:15, 15:15-16:00)

These sessions will last 45 minutes each.
Labs must help participants either build something or gain inspiration to create — funding plans, wellbeing strategies, AI use cases, or or apps to assist victims.

We are open to experimental lab session formats, e.g.:
– “A Day in the Life” – Experiential Frontline Practice (Functional)
– Two TED-talk-style presentations (e.g. frontline worker, helpline operator, etc.)
– Lessons drawn for functional service delivery

---

TOPICS FOR SIDE EVENTS

We invite professionals working in the field of rights and services for victims of crime to submit proposals for a side event. We encourage sessions that go beyond theory, offering real-world applications and examples that can be adapted by other organisations. The conference side events programme will focus on the following key areas:

Both Workshops on Day 1 and Labs on Day 2 should showcase innovative practices reflecting the following two aspects of our conference theme:

1. Running a victim support organisation well
Governance, staffing, training, coordination, financing, outreach, skills-building

2. Delivering victim support services well
Service models, victim accompaniment, trauma-informed practice, innovation, accessibility, long-term support, new technologies for victim support, and other delivery tools

Please share your suggestions with us!

---

PROCEDURE AND DEADLINE

Side event proposals can be submitted by filling out this online form.

Submissions close on 1 March 2026, at midnight CET.

While we appreciate the commitment and enthusiasm of all candidates, please note that we usually receive more requests for presentations than we can realistically accommodate in the conference programme. To ensure a balanced programme, the Programme Committee will review proposals using the following criteria:

• Conformity with the overall theme and focus of the VSE conference,
• Interactivity and creativity of the proposed workshop format or working method,
• Equal representation of all topics in the programme.

Attention: Please note that unfortunately we are not able to reimburse the participation fee or travel/accommodation arrangements for side event conductors. The conference’s side event programme provides a unique opportunity to give visibility to your initiatives and to create valuable connections. Furthermore, priority will be given to applications from VSE members.

We aim to complete the selection process and inform all candidates about the outcome of their submission by 10 March 2026. The final side events programme will be published on the conference website after all submitters have been informed.

If you have any questions, please contact info@victimsupporteurope.eu.