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Child and Youth Services in Germany

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Tasks and fields of work > Integration support

Integration support for young people with a psychological disability

Areas of integration for which child and youth services are responsible: medical participation, professional participation, participation in education, participation in society

Notes

Child and youth services is one of the rehabilitation providers of integration support for young people with disabilities. Under the current legislation, they are solely responsible for providing them to young people with a psychological disability (on legislative developments concerning child and youth services for young people with physical and/or mental disabilities until 2028, see Child and youth services and inclusion). Provided the requirements in accordance with Article 35a of Book 8 of the Social Code (SGB VIII) are met (see Integration support – Legal basis), support can on principle be provided in any form (non-/semi-residential, residential), as in the case of socio-educational support services (Article 35a [2]). The services to be delivered are chosen in accordance with Book 9 of the Social Code (SGB IX) (cf. Article 5a [3] of Book 8).

In accordance with Article 6 (1) no. 6 of Book 9, child and youth services is responsible for delivering the following types of integration service:

  • Medical participation: Normally, responsibility for these services lies with the statutory health insurance funds. However, in the case of services outside of the funds’ remit (e.g., dyslexia therapy), child and youth services may be responsible in accordance with Article 35a of Book 8.
  • Professional/vocational participation: Again, in the vast majority of cases the responsibility lies with another provider (here: the Federal Employment Office), even if socio-educational services are required in connection with a professional/vocational measure (e.g., boarding school accommodation). However, if the socio-educational service in question is unrelated to the professional/vocational measure, the individual may have a claim under Article 35a of Book 8.
  • Participation in education: Responsibility for ensuring equal participation in education (especially mainstream education) lies primarily with the education system. However, given the major delays in implementing this (see Disability, strong demand for special needs support), child and youth services is frequently called upon, particularly when it comes to personal classroom assistance for (school or university) students (Article 112 of Book 9).
  • Participation in society: Ensuring that children and adolescents with a psychological disability can participate in society is one of the primary responsibilities of child and youth services. This includes, in particular, curative education services (Article 79 of Book 9) for children under school age, and recreational assistance in, e.g., after-school settings, for school-age children (Article 113 of Book 9).

Selected statistics on integration support in accordance with Article 35a of Book 8 (2019):

  Non-residential Residential
Number of young recipients: 101,765 22,571
Average age at initial delivery: 10.8 14.7
With single parent at initial delivery: 30.6% 40.2%
Family on benefits at initial delivery: 24.0% 39.4%
Family language other than German: 12.2% 9.3%
Proportion of female recipients: 26.6% 37.9%
Average duration of service delivery: 24 months 23 months

In 2021 a total of 142,885 young people received services in accordance with Article 35a, Book 8 of the Social Code (SGB VIII). Although 17,487 (12%) of these young people had attained full age, they were included not in the statistics under Article 41 (support for young adults) (see slide 2.5.1) but rather in the context of integration support. In 119,062 instances (83%), services were provided in a non-residential/semi-residential setting, in 1,430 instances (1%), they were provided as part of family care and in 22,393 instances (16%) in facilities.

Further reading
  • Arbeitsstelle Kinder- und Jugendhilfestatistik (AKJStat) (2023): Monitor Hilfen zur Erziehung 2023 – Datenbasis 2021 (last accessed 1 August 2023).
  • Schönecker, Lydia/Meysen, Thomas: § 10 SGB VIII. In: Münder, Johannes/Meysen, Thomas/Trenczek, Thomas (eds.) (2022). Frankfurter Kommentar zum SGB VIII. Kinder- und Jugendhilfe. 9th edition, Baden-Baden.
  • Statistisches Bundesamt (2022): Statistiken der Kinder- und Jugendhilfe – Erzieherische Hilfe, Eingliederungshilfe, Hilfe für junge Volljährige 2021, Wiesbaden.
  • Tabel, Agathe/Fendrich, Sandra (2021): Eingliederungshilfen (§ 35a SGB VIII und 6. Kapitel SGB XII), In: Autorengruppe Kinder- und Jugendhilfestatistik (2021). Kinder- und Jugendhilfereport Extra 2021. Dortmund, p. 26−30.
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