News
The EIB and CEB support Apprentis d’Auteuil’s Project 40 with €80 million in loans
09 October 2026
Paris – In the presence of Emmanuel Grégoire, Mayor of Paris, and Jérémy Redler, Mayor of the 16th arrondissement of Paris, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) today signed two €40 million loans with the Fondation Apprentis d’Auteuil to help finance the transformation and development of the foundation’s historic site.
To continue and expand its mission serving the most vulnerable young people and families, the foundation is undertaking a unique educational and social project in the heart of Paris. The EIB and CEB are supporting this ambitious project with backing from the European Union through the InvestEU guarantee.
From 2030, more than 1 200 children, young people and families will receive support each year at 40 rue Jean de La Fontaine in Paris’s 16th arrondissement through integrated pathways combining child protection, education, social and professional inclusion, parenting support and social housing.
François Villeroy de Galhau, Chair of the Fondation Apprentis d’Auteuil, said: “The foundation is proud to lead this unique educational and social project in the heart of Paris, with the support of its public and private partners, including two major European financial institutions, as well as donors, all united and mobilised in support of vulnerable young people and families. It reflects a dual responsibility: the one we bear today and the one we owe to those who will come after us.”
Carlo Monticelli, Governor of the Council of Europe Development Bank, said: “Project 40 demonstrates our commitment to the most vulnerable young people and families. At a time of mounting educational and social challenges, it provides an ambitious and sustainable response to strengthen social cohesion in the Île-de-France region. It builds on the CEB’s support for the Fondation Apprentis d’Auteuil, following the financing of the renovation and development of the Saint-Philippe Educational and Ecological Campus in Meudon. I am delighted that the CEB and the EIB, backed by InvestEU, are joining forces to finance this new initiative with a strong social impact.”
Ambroise Fayolle, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank, added: “This is the EIB’s first-ever financing for the Fondation Apprentis d’Auteuil. I am very pleased that we can support such an important social project, which reflects several of the EIB’s core objectives: education, professional integration, social cohesion and housing, as well as the green transition, with more- environment-friendly and energy-efficient spaces. Through the EIB, the CEB and the European Commission’s InvestEU programme, Europe is partnering with the Fondation Apprentis d’Auteuil to give our young people more opportunities.”
A project supporting child protection, education, integration and families
In Île-de-France, the number of child placement orders (almost 30 000 in 2021, according to URIOPSS Île-de-France) continues to rise. The shortage of places in care facilities is particularly acute: according to the latest data, judges responsible for deciding on child placements report having refrained from ordering protection measures because suitable solutions were unavailable. There has also been a marked increase in the number of unaccompanied minors, single-parent families and young people living below the poverty line, whose need for support are growing while the available provision remains insufficient.
Project 40 provides a concrete response to these challenges, including:
- Education, training and social and professional integration: expanding and modernising the hospitality management school; creating programmes to prevent school dropout and help young people re-engage; and establishing social and professional integration schemes offering short training courses, including a solidarity café.
- Child protection and family support: creating and modernising care facilities for young people in the child protection system and for unaccompanied minors, and creating a welcoming family space where families can be heard, supported and share experiences.
- Social housing: building a residence for young workers, family social housing and a supported residence for people facing severe hardship.
- Openness and integration of the site in its urban environment: preserving its historic heritage and creating a more harmonious site that is open to the neighbourhood, with shared spaces.
- Environmental sustainability: renovating 70% of the existing buildings, creating 6 000 m² of planted areas, using bio-based materials, harvesting rainwater, connecting to district heating and employing passive building-cooling techniques.
This initiative illustrates the joint commitment of the EIB and the CEB to mobilising long-term financing for essential social investment that strengthens social cohesion and equal opportunities across France.
Press contacts:
Fondation Apprentis d’Auteuil
Morgane Joffredo – Apprentis d’Auteuil – Tel. +33 7 62 19 67 07 morgane.joffredo@apprentis-auteuil.org
EIB
Andrea Morawski | a.morawski@eib.org | Tel. +352 691 284 349
Website: www.eib.org/press | Press Office: press@eib.org
CEB
Alice Vandenberghe, Communications Coordinator: alice.vandenberghe@coebank.org
About the Fondation Apprentis d’Auteuil
A Catholic foundation recognised as serving the public interest and an active participant in child welfare and protection, Apprentis d’Auteuil develops reception, education, training and integration programmes in France and internationally to restore what vulnerable young people and families need most: confidence. Apprentis d’Auteuil supports more than 40 000 young people and 9 000 families through over 450 establishments and programmes. These young people are entrusted to it by their families or by child welfare services. The foundation provides 90 vocational training courses across 12 sectors. Internationally, Apprentis d’Auteuil has chosen to work in partnership. The foundation operates in 36 countries alongside 70 local partners. Each year, nearly 15 000 young people and families worldwide benefit from these programmes. www.apprentis-auteuil.org
About the EIB
The European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group), whose shareholders are the 27 Member States of the European Union (EU), is the EU’s long-term financing institution and one of the world’s largest multilateral development banks. In 2025, it signed €100 billion in new financing and advisory assignments in support of more than 870 high-impact projects spanning eight core priorities that contribute to the EU’s major objectives: climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, territorial cohesion, agriculture and the bioeconomy, social infrastructure, strong global partnerships, and the savings and investments union. Media representatives can find here photographs of EIB Group management and headquarters, logos and B-roll footage.
About the CEB
The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) is a multilateral development bank with an exclusively social mandate from its 43 member countries. The CEB finances investment projects and provides technical assistance in social sectors such as education, health and affordable housing, while focusing on the needs of vulnerable people, as well as on the social dimensions of climate change and the environment. Borrowers include governments, local and regional authorities, public and private banks, non-profit organisations and others. The CEB, which has a triple-A credit rating, funds itself through international capital markets. In addition, the CEB receives funds from donors to complement its activities.
About InvestEU
The InvestEU programme provides the European Union with essential long-term financing by mobilising substantial public and private funds in support of a sustainable economy. It helps generate additional investment aligned with EU policy priorities, such as the European Green Deal, the digital transition and support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The programme consists of three components: the InvestEU Fund, the InvestEU Advisory Hub and the InvestEU Portal. The InvestEU Fund is implemented through financial partners that invest in projects using the EU budget guarantee. This guarantee increases their risk-bearing capacity, thereby mobilising at least €372 billion in additional investment by 2027. The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) are both implementing partners of the InvestEU programme.