In the process of approval of the European Commission Horizon 2020, research in the Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) has been under threat. Not only new liberals, but also migrant movements, Roma organizations, feminists, and other citizens have questioned social sciences as a valid instrument to contribute to overcome the crisis and its related inequalities, especially in Europe. In this framework, this article discusses the role that public sociology plays for social sciences to regain legitimacy in current times. Particularly, the article defends that this regaining of prestige can be done through the study of Successful Actions, which have proven effective in reducing inequalities wherever they have been implemented. Drawing on the INCLUD-ED research, a large-scale project of the EU Framework Programme of Research (2006-2011), the article analyses the impact of implementing Successful Actions in the improvement of quality of life in one of the poorest neighbourhoods of Spain