End of an Era for Suara and Home Care Service

Suara Cooperativa has formally concluded its 45-year leadership of Barcelona City Council's Home Care Service (SAD), marking a significant shift in the city's social care provision. The handover, confirmed yesterday, means more than 2,300 direct care and support professionals are beginning a new phase outside the organisation. The cooperative, founded in 1981 by CTF, expressed gratitude to "the thousands of people and families who have opened their doors" over the decades. It highlighted that its final year of service delivery achieved a user-rated excellence score of 9.1 out of 10 in 2025, according to internal data.

High Marks, Uncertain Future for Care Model

Despite the transition, Suara continues to collaborate with the City Council on other social projects. In a public statement, the cooperative's Governing Council and General Co-direction, comprising Laia Bonastra, Laura Peracaula, and Tomàs Llompart, emphasised growing concerns about the sustainability of public service contracts.

Care for people in situations of vulnerability and dependency cannot be subject to tender mechanisms based on price competition.

The leadership team called for a fundamental shift toward valuing the social economy and committing to non-profit, community-rooted organisations that prioritise quality employment.

Continuity and Innovation Beyond the Contract

While the end of the SAD contract marks a major change, Suara reaffirmed its financial stability and ongoing mission. The organisation remains committed to transforming care in Catalonia through innovation and social economy principles. As the first social economy organisation recognised by the Generalitat de Catalunya as a Catalonia Exponential Leader, Suara leads initiatives such as the Social Digital Lab and the Care Hub with Eurecat. Projects include CasalTV, Domis assistive robotics, and immersive virtual reality applications to support emotional well-being and combat cognitive decline.

Barcelona’s home support services received an average user rating of 8.3 out of 10 in 2025, according to a city-wide survey of 3,400 users. The SAD service alone supported nearly 20,000 people and delivered over four million hours of care that year.

Primary sources: accio.gencat.cat, Barcelona City Council, ACCIÓ - Agència per la Competitivitat de l'Empresa. Reported by viaempresa.cat.