Of those attended to, 64% were women and 36% were men, percentages very similar to the last few years. By district, and taking into account the total volume of support provided as each person can receive more than one appointment, the areas with the most activity were Nou Barris (35,752) and Sant Martí (35,220).

Benefits were down compared to the previous year but the budget for these increased by 20.6%. Specifically, the city’s social services centres awarded 136,470 emergency benefits last year, compared to 156,037 the previous year, while the overall budget rose from 41.3 million euros in 2021 to 49.8 million euros last year.

A large part of the 2022 budget was used for benefits to help people cover housing costs, some 32.6 million euros to be precise. In addition, 11.6 million euros was awarded to the 0-16 fund for families with young children and 4.1 million euros in food subsidies.

Social services as a priority

Barcelona is the city with the highest social investment per inhabitant in the Spanish state, according to the classification by the State Association of Social Services Directors and Managers, which analyses the situation of municipal social services in the 404 municipal councils in the Spanish state with more than 20,000 inhabitants. The city is one of the municipalities which spends more than 200 euros per head in social services.