Smes

What Smes does

Smes ASBL (formerly SMES-B, Santé Mentale & Exclusion Sociale – Belgique) is a Brussels-based non-profit association founded in 1993 to improve access to mental healthcare and social aid for people experiencing compounded precarity, mental health issues, and addictions. It operates three interconnected programs: Connect, which runs intersectoral intervisions and exchange spaces among psycho-medico-social professionals; Support, which delivers a mobile intervention team, clinical supervisions, professional trainings, and the PAT (Peer and Team Support) sub-program that integrates peer workers into social and health organizations; and Housing First, which provides direct, unconditional permanent housing with intensive multidisciplinary accompaniment for chronically homeless individuals with severe mental illness and addictions, delivered via Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) and Intensive Case Management (ICM) teams. Additional service lines include the ISSUE/UITWEG temporary housing project with partner organizations.

The organization is governed by a General Assembly of 40+ member institutions and a Board of Directors; it employs 11–50 multidisciplinary staff including social workers, psychologists, peer support specialists, and dedicated program coordinators. Revenue is generated almost entirely through public subsidies from Belgian federal and regional bodies (COCOF, COCOM, Federal Public Service for Social Integration via the State Secretary for Poverty Reduction, National Lottery) and foundation grants (King Baudouin Foundation), supplemented by modest training/intervision fees (120€ members, 150€ non-members for intersectoral cycles; 50€ for peer intervision cycles) and individual donations. Distribution is through direct service delivery and a dense referral and housing-partner network spanning street-work organizations (Diogènes), emergency shelters (SAMU Social, Centre Ariane), drug services (Lama, Transit), social housing operators (SISP, AIS, CityDev), and hospital and judicial partners (Centre Hospitalier Jean Titeca, Brussels Court of Appeal TSI Coordination).

The organization holds no proprietary technology products, patents, or AI capabilities; service delivery is human-led. It has been recognized with the Belgian Federal Prize for Poverty Reduction (2019) and operates across the Brussels-Capital Region and Wallonia.

Name

Smes

Legal name

Smes ASBL

Website

https://smes.be

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Smes ASBL is a Brussels-based non-profit founded in 1993 that operates three programs—Connect, Support, and Housing First—to improve mental healthcare and social aid access for people experiencing compounded precarity, mental health issues, and addictions in Belgium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Schaerbeek

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Public Subsidies and Grants: Primary revenue source from federal and regional government funding including COCOF (Commission communautaire française), COCOM (Commission communautaire commune), Federal Public Service for Social Integration, and State Secretary for Poverty Reduction. Housing First program also receives support through corporate patronage and individual donations.
2. Training and Intervision Fees: Fees charged for participation in intervision cycles: 120€ for Smes members and 150€ for non-members for intersectorial intervisions. 50€ for peer support intervision cycles. Training services provided to professionals in the psycho-medico-social sector.
3. Individual Donations: Donations from individuals supporting Housing First project activities. Donations of €40 or more are tax-deductible (30% tax reduction in Belgium). IBAN: BE69 0689 3779 1478

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Smes is a Brussels-based non-profit association that promotes access to mental healthcare and social support through three interconnected pillars: Connect (intersectoral intervisions and exchange spaces for psycho-medico-social professionals), Support (mobile team interventions, clinical supervisions, and trainings for first-line workers), and Housing First (direct, unconditional access to permanent housing with intensive multidisciplinary accompaniment for chronically homeless persons with mental health issues and addictions).

Product overview

Smes is a Brussels-based non-profit organization operating three interconnected programs — Connect, Support, and Housing First — focused on improving access to healthcare and social aid for people experiencing cumulative poverty, mental health issues, and addictions. Connect facilitates intersectoral networking and intervision among professionals; Support provides mobile interventions, clinical supervisions, trainings, and the PAT (Peer and Team) sub-program which trains and accompanies peer workers; and Housing First provides unconditional permanent housing with intensive multidisciplinary psychosocial support for chronically homeless individuals. All three pillars work at the intersection of social and mental health sectors to promote intersectorality and holistic care.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Connect: Connects and mobilizes the psycho-medico-social field, the target group, and policymakers through think tanks, debates, awareness campaigns, representation, consultation bodies, etc.
• Support
• Housing First
• PAT (Peer and Team Support)
• ISSUE (UITWEG)

Products and services

• Connect Connect facilitates networking and intervision among psycho-medico-social professionals and policymakers through intersectoral intervision groups, exchange tables, advocacy, and awareness campaigns, aiming to decompartmentalize practices and promote intersectorality in Brussels.
• Support Support provides direct assistance to first-line social-health professionals facing complex situations, offering interventions via a mobile team, clinical team supervisions, and trainings on topics such as mental health, violence management, and low-threshold welcoming practices.
• Housing First Housing First offers direct, unconditional access to permanent, low-rent housing for chronically homeless individuals with severe mental illness and addictions, combined with intensive, mobile, multidisciplinary, tailored psychosocial support through Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) and Intensive Case Management (ICM) teams.
• PAT – Peer and Team Support PAT supports the integration of peer workers (people with lived experience of mental health issues, addiction, or homelessness) into social-health organizations through training, individual and collective accompaniment, and intervision sessions for peer workers.
• ISSUE (UITWEG) ISSUE is an innovative project for accompaniment and inclusion through temporary housing, operated in partnership with L'Ilot, DIOGENES, Pierre d'Angle, and New Samusocial, providing intensive coaching for beneficiaries with stable income seeking permanent housing.
• Formations (Trainings) Training modules on mental health, violence management, low-threshold welcoming, harm reduction, and peer support, delivered by Support team members to the broader social-health network.

Quantifiable outcome

• 87 persons housed and accompanied through Housing First in 2024
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered major, core, primary and supporting.

• Cour d'appel de Bruxelles - TSI CoordinationmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partnership for 'Trajets de Soins pour Internés' supporting release of institutionalized persons with housing and accompaniment through Housing First methodology.
• Centre Hospitalier Jean TitecamajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Hospital partner in internment exit program, providing psychiatric care and support for reintegration through housing accompaniment.
• L'ÎlotcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2020ISSUE temporary housing project partner responsible for housing capture and creation (axe 1), providing intensive coaching for beneficiaries with stable income seeking permanent housing.
• En RoutecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for PAT (Peer and Team Support) project, which develops and supports peer aidance integration in social and health organizations across Brussels and Wallonia. En Route and Smes co-implement training, accompaniment, and intervision services for peer workers.
• DiogènescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStreet work organization that refers potential Housing First beneficiaries and participates in the selection of persons to be rehoused. Also partner in the ISSUE temporary housing project.
• SAMU Social BrusselscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEmergency shelter services that refer potential Housing First beneficiaries and participate in the selection process for persons to be rehoused from emergency situations.
• Centre ArianecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerShelter services that refer potential Housing First beneficiaries, selecting persons with complex profiles for direct housing access from emergency situations.
• Pierre d'AnglecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization referring potential Housing First beneficiaries and participating in selection process for persons with mental health and addiction issues.
• La Gerbe (Mental Health Service)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMental health service partner providing clinical expertise and referrals to the Housing First program, contributing to the multidisciplinary support approach.
• Projet LamacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDrug services organization that refers potential Housing First beneficiaries and participates in selection of persons with addiction issues for housing support.
• TransitcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerServices for drug users that refer potential Housing First beneficiaries, supporting the housing-first approach for persons with substance use issues.
• Le Forum – Bruxelles contre les inégalitésmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing collaboration on poverty reduction, peer aidance research, and publications including 'Stand van zaken over peerhulp in de Federatie Wallonië-Brussel' (2020) and joint advocacy for access to care and social aid.
• COCOF (Commission communautaire française)primaryOthersPrimary funder through health and welfare budgets. Provides institutional support for Smes programs in the French-speaking Brussels-Capital community.
• COCOM (Commission communautaire commune)primaryOthersMajor funder supporting Health and Welfare programs including Housing First and ISSUE project through the Common Community Commission.
• King Baudouin Foundation (Fondation Roi Baudouin)majorOthersFoundation providing funding support for innovative practices documentation, particularly for Housing First and internment exit programs.
• National LotterysupportingOthersProvides funding through the State Secretary for Poverty Reduction and SPF Social Integration for social aid programs.
• Réseau NomadesupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in organizing events on peer aidance and participatory practices, contributing to professional development and sectoral reflection.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Centre Ariane: Brussels emergency shelter organization for homeless individuals with complex needs. Direct referral partner to Smes Housing First and operational peer in the Brussels non-profit homelessness services landscape.
• CAW (Centrum Algemeen Welzijnswerk): Belgian Centre for General Welfare Work offers intersectoral welfare services across Flanders including housing support, mental health guidance, and professional training. Comparable to Smes in combining housing, mental health, and social service coordination under a non-profit model with public funding.
• Pierre d'Angle: Brussels emergency shelter organization serving homeless individuals with complex profiles including mental health and addiction issues. Direct referral partner and operational peer in the Brussels homelessness ecosystem with overlapping beneficiary populations.
• New Samusocial Brussels: Brussels emergency shelter and street outreach organization serving homeless populations, including those with mental health and addiction issues. Direct operational peer to Smes' Housing First program and a co-implementation partner on the ISSUE project.
• En Route ASBL: Belgian cooperative specializing in peer support integration in social and health organizations, co-implementing the PAT project with Smes since 2020. Comparable in peer-support training methodology and intersectoral approach to mental health workforce development.
• DoucheFLUX: Brussels day center providing hygiene, laundry, and social services to homeless and precariously housed individuals. Direct peer in the Brussels homelessness services ecosystem with overlapping beneficiary populations and public funding sources.
• L'Ilot ASBL: Brussels-based non-profit providing housing and social reintegration services for people in precarious situations, including co-partner on Smes' ISSUE temporary housing project. Comparable in target population, housing-led methodology, and Brussels non-profit funding model.

Others

• FEANTSA: European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless, representing homelessness non-profits across Europe including those operating Housing First programs. Thematically aligned as the pan-European umbrella and policy advocacy body for organizations pursuing the same Housing First and social-inclusion missions as Smes.

Broad incumbents

• OCMW/CPAS Brussels: Public Centers for Social Welfare in Belgium deliver statutory social aid, income support, and social services including housing. Comparable as the broader incumbent system within which Smes operates, providing both referral flows and a public-sector benchmark for Smes' specialized services.

Regional players

• Pathway (UK): UK-based charity pioneering healthcare interventions for homeless people through multidisciplinary teams in hospital and community settings. Comparable in delivering integrated health-and-housing services to people with co-occurring mental illness, addiction, and homelessness, though operating under the UK NHS/charity model rather than Belgian public funding.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC40w26oEarNZP33nkKN5x-w
• Facebookfacebook.com/smes.asbl.vzw
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smes-asbl-vzw

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Smes