The creation of family centers in 2006/2007 was a successful attempt to make it easier for parents to access low-threshold support services. With the further development of daycare facilities into family centers, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia is contributing to an expanded support structure for children and parents in order to meet the growing challenges of everyday family life.

The aim of the state program is to support families in their upbringing and everyday life and thus contribute to early support and prevention as well as to a better work-life balance and more equal opportunities and education.

Strengthening early childhood education - combined with the best possible support for families - is one of the state government's most important goals. Family centers play a key role in the early support of young families in particular. They are successful prevention models and indispensable when it comes to giving children the best possible starting opportunities. They are equally indispensable when it comes to promoting parents' parenting and educational skills.

The family centers organize and provide numerous support services that support the well-being of families and are easily accessible for parents and children on a day-to-day basis. For example, they offer open consultation hours for parenting and family counseling or provide referrals and support for further counseling. Families in special circumstances, such as single parents and families with a migration background, also benefit from this. Low-threshold parent cafés, parenting events on educational topics and parenting skills courses contribute to prevention and early support, as do artistic, creative, exercise and nutritional activities for parents and children. In addition, the family centers are involved in the transition of children to elementary school, advise parents on partnership issues and much more.

By bundling the services of various providers, education, upbringing and care are brought together in family centers with existing family education, advice and support services. The guiding principle of the family centers is to offer families a reliable point of contact for everyday issues in their district.

In practice, it has been shown that family support and advice services are particularly effective when they are offered "from a single source". As part of the state program "Family Centre NRW", education, upbringing and advice are therefore combined as tasks of the daycare facility with advice and support services for families. Family centers thus offer a wide range of services and support for families. Each family center should know the needs of families in the district and react flexibly to them. Flexibility and low-threshold are the central guidelines for family centers, which create tailor-made access to services for families in their environment.

Further information on family centers in North Rhine-Westphalia can be found at: www.familienzentrum.nrw.de.

On the page KiTa-Finder NRW you will find information on all daycare facilities and family centers in North Rhine-Westphalia. The free online service allows you to search for a specific center near your place of residence. You can find an overview of all family centers in North Rhine-Westphalia via the following link:

The aim of the state program is to support families in their upbringing and everyday life and thus contribute to early support and prevention as well as to more equal opportunities and education.

Strengthening early childhood education - combined with the best possible support for families - is one of the most important goals of the state government. Family centers play a key role in the early support of young families in particular. They are successful prevention models and indispensable when it comes to giving children the best possible starting opportunities. They are also indispensable when it comes to promoting parents' parenting and educational skills.Because of their low-threshold access, they are particularly suitable for reaching as many parents and their children as possible, but also the population in the social area as a whole with family support services. Particularly in early childhood, precarious developmental processes and parenting situations can be identified in good time and educational measures can be initiated effectively. In practice, it has been shown that family support and advice services are particularly effective when they are offered "from a single source". As part of the state program "Family Centre NRW", education, upbringing and advice are therefore combined as tasks of the daycare facility with advice and support services for families

The KiBiz reform will also provide more financial support for family centers. All family centers will receive significantly increased funding of €20,000 per year, which will also be dynamized from the 2021/2022 kindergarten year. This means that not only the child allowances will be adjusted to the actual cost development in future. The financial subsidies for family centers will also be adjusted annually, and the funding will also continue to develop dynamically.

The state of North Rhine-Westphalia offers a wide range of support services for prospective and existing family centers. You can find an overview of contact points and contacts here.

1. state youth welfare offices (LVR and LWL)

The state youth welfare offices support the family centers with funds from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. They also provide advice on specialist pedagogical topics.

Questions about expansion and funding can be answered by:

In the area of the Westphalia-Lippe State Youth Welfare Office
Mrs. Eilting, Tel.: +49(0)251 591-3195, raphaela.eilting [at] lwl.org (raphaela[dot]eilting[at]lwl[dot]org)

In the area of the Rhineland State Youth Welfare Office
Katja Bonneß, Tel.: +49(0)221 809-4286, katja.bonness [at] lvr.de (katja[dot]bonness[at]lvr[dot]de)

Answer questions on pedagogical topics:

In the area of the State Youth Welfare Office of Westphalia-Lippe
Mrs. Prinz, Tel.: +49(0)251 591-8385, beatrice.prinz [at] lwl.org (beatrice[dot]prinz[at]lwl[dot]org)

In the area of the Rhineland State Youth Welfare Office

Jens Arand, Tel.: +49(0)221 809-4097, jens.arand [at] lvr.de (jens[dot]arand[at]lvr[dot]de)

Web: Landschaftsverband Rheinland, Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe

2. Certification body PädQUIS

The certification body advises the facilities and checks whether the criteria of the seal of approval are met. The family centers must document their activities with appropriate materials/presentations. The evaluation is followed by a visit to the family center. At the end of the procedure, the family center receives a quality profile describing its services and indicating any potential for further development. The certification body awards the "Family Center NRW" seal of approval in the name of and on behalf of the Ministry for Children, Family, Refugees and Integration of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. The seal of approval is valid for four years.

Questions about the certification and re-certification process can be answered by:

Mrs. Ferjan, Ms. Sarpong, Ms. Orschinski
Tel.: +49(0)30 720061-30
Fax: +49(0)30 720061-163

The certification body can be contacted by e-mail at familienzentrum [at] paedquis.de (familienzentrum[at]paedquis[dot]de)

pädquis Stiftung
Projekt "Familienzentrum NRW"
Ordensmeisterstraße 15-16
12099 Berlin

Current information, tutorials, materials for (re-)certification can be found at: www.paedquis-familienzentrum.de
The (re-)certification database can be found at: www.pq-zertifizierung.de

3. ISA - Institut für soziale Arbeit e.V. als Servicestelle für Familienzentren

The Institute for Social Work (ISA) in Münster accompanies and supports as a service point in terms of professional content, especially for family centers that are currently being set up.

ISA e.V.
Julia Kilp
Friesenring 40
48147 Münster

Tel.: +49(0)251 200 799-0
Fax: +49(0)251 200 799-10

Phone consultation:
Monday - Friday 10:00-16:00

Email:
julia.kilp [at] isa-muenster.de (julia[dot]kilp[at]isa-muenster[dot]de)

familienzentrum [at] isa-muenster.de (familienzentrum[at]isa-muenster[dot]de)

Web: www.isa-muenster.de

Project website "www.familienzentrum.nrw.de"
This website serves as a central information and communication platform for family centers, the interested professional public and parents seeking help. It provides up-to-date information on the state program, events, training courses and frequently asked questions.

4. Electronic training calendar

An electronic training calendar is available for family center professionals on the website www.familienzentrum.nrw.de.

Web: www.familienzentrum.nrw.de/informationen-material/fortbildungskalender

Annual regional events for family centers

In the information events that take place regularly each kindergarten year, family centers are introduced to the support services they can take advantage of during certification and recertification, among other things.

Up-to-date information on these events can be found on the project website www.familienzentrum.nrw.de.

Brochures and other useful materials can be found on the project website www.familienzentrum.nrw.de.