One of the main goals of an NCP is the support of applicants in Horizon 2020 SC1 proposals, especially through the transmission of valuable information they can benefit from. HNN2.0 has contributed to the enhancement and alignment the NCP services across Europe by providing all SC1 NCPs with easy access to all the information, training, materials and skills they need for delivering quality support for their clients in different areas.
One of the main materials developed are the five module SC1 NCP Handbook, created in a collaborative process by all project members, and additionally nine new templates.
The HNN 2.0 website (www.healthncp.net) constitutes an essential element of the project because it acts as a central repository of information developed by the HNN 2.0 partners, with restricted access for all the SC1 NCPs. A new platform for interaction between the SC1 NCPs, called the Forum, was created inside the intranet, offering the chance to directly discuss and exchange opinions and information between SC1 NCP colleagues.
With the objective to guarantee constant learning, capacity building and exchange of knowledge, 10 onsite Trainings, 19 Webinars, 10 Staff exchange programmes and 3 Personalized mentoring programme for new SC1 NCPs and 5 Meet and Exchange Workshops have taken pace during the action.
Also, HNN2.0 has created links between the HNN 2.0 project and the community of SC1 NCPs and experts of other Health-related programmes, and several actions have been undertaken with other major programmes and initiatives implementing SC1 and other NCP networks, support networks and projects, which has materialized in several joint collaborations.
In order to support formation of high quality consortia and widen participation in Health-related projects, seven Partnering Events have been organized during the action: 4 in Brussels, back to back to the EC Info day, and 3 Decentralized in Paris, Zagreb and Oslo.
For dissemination, complementary to the website, HNN2.0 has continued using notification emails to reach SC1 NCPs directly and has created a twitter account with 659 subscribers that has proven to be a popular and effective dissemination tool being widely used by the targeted community. HNN2.0 created several promotional materials and a video presenting the NCP services to the applicant’s community, which has been disseminated via multiple communication channels and participated in more than 20 events to promote the NCP services.
From the overall feedback received from SC1 NCPs collected through evaluation surveys of our activities, HNN 2.0 has efficiently contributed to support NCPs in their daily job and to enhance their services to their clients and has been “the platform” used by SC1 NCPs that facilitated exchange of knowledge and know-how and networking with peers.