Clariane University and the Fondation Œuvre de la Croix Saint-Simon join forces to develop healthcare and social care training in Île-de-France
Following the decision handed down yesterday by the Paris Economic Activities Court, the Training and Research Division of the Fondation Œuvre de la Croix Saint-Simon is joining Clariane University. This move brings together the experience and expertise of both organisations to support the provision of healthcare and social care training in Île-de-France, both in initial training, an area of excellence for the Training and Research Division of the Fondation Œuvre de la Croix Saint-Simon, and in continuing professional training, a field in which Clariane University has developed expertise over nearly 10 years.
Due to difficulties affecting some of its activities, the Fondation Œuvre de la Croix Saint-Simon had been placed under judicial reorganisation proceedings in November 2025. Yesterday, the Paris Economic Activities Court selected Clariane University's offer to ensure the continuity of the Training and Research Division.
With seven training institutes and nearly 800 students each year, the division prepares students for careers as nurses, care assistants, childcare auxiliaries, specialist paediatric nurses and social workers. It also offers continuing training for practising professionals.
This move will first and foremost ensure the continuity of the activities of the Training and Research Division of the Fondation Œuvre de la Croix Saint-Simon. All employees will transfer to Clariane University. Existing training programmes, teaching teams and management will be maintained, and the identity of each institute will be preserved. Students will continue their studies under the same conditions and will remain entirely free to choose where they do their placements and who they work for in future, within or outside the Clariane Group.
Beyond ensuring continuity, the partnership also aims to address one of the major challenges facing our healthcare system: the development of healthcare and social care training pathways. Training more care professionals is essential to guarantee everyone access to high-quality care. By combining the teaching experience of Croix Saint-Simon with that of Clariane University, the two teams intend to learn from one another and to strengthen the appeal of these professions together. They also want to multiply the routes into training leading to a qualification throughout working life, for care professionals and for people considering a career change alike. Finally, they wish to develop European exchange opportunities under the Erasmus programme, drawing on the Clariane Group’s presence in Germany, Spain, Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Clariane University, which is structured around three fields — management, care and services — already supports more than 7,700 Clariane Group employees each year who are undertaking diploma programmes, representing 12% of the Group's workforce. It also provides nearly one million hours of continuing training in France, either directly or through partner training centres.
We are pleased to welcome to Clariane University the teams from the Fondation Œuvre de la Croix Saint-Simon, who have built up remarkable expertise in training care professionals over the years. We will work to uphold this tradition of excellence for the benefit of as many people as possible, students and professionals alike. Faced with the growing need for qualified professionals, those involved in healthcare have an essential role to play in developing skills and preparing the next generation. It is the responsibility of the Clariane Group, as Europe’s leading network providing care for older and vulnerable people, to take an active part in this effort.
Training skilled and committed care professionals is essential to meeting the needs arising from an ageing population and the rise in chronic diseases. At the same time, many institutions, both in the hospital sector and in the health and social care sector, are struggling to recruit. By combining our talents, we will be able to train more care professionals, under the best possible conditions, and help care practices evolve. The Croix Saint-Simon division has also developed research activities, and this is an asset: advancing research in the paramedical professions is a priority for us.
I am pleased that Clariane University is taking over the Training and Research Division, which represents a valuable opportunity to highlight the commitment and expertise of the teams and give them the resources to continue and expand their mission: promoting care professions through innovative and meaningful teaching approaches.
