Next Family Council network meeting to take place in Chemnitz
The city of Chemnitz is hosting the 18th German-language Family Council Network Meeting from 20 to 22 October 2025. Around 150 interested people from Germany, Switzerland and Austria - mainly professionals from the field of child and youth welfare - usually take part in the Family Council network meetings, which have been held annually since 2007.
At this year's meeting in Berlin in October, the baton was passed to Chemnitz after a Chemnitz delegation from the youth welfare office of the city of Chemnitz, the independent organisation Kinder-, Jugend- und Familienhilfe e. V. Chemnitz and the Mittweida University of Applied Sciences presented themselves on site. Another partner for the organisation of the event in 2025 is the Berufsakademie Sachsen with the Staatliche Studienakademie Breitenbrunn.
The family council is a family support tool that originated in New Zealand. Supported by a specialist, the family's own resources are used to solve problems. The family is empowered to overcome difficulties together for the benefit of all. Families are unique, as are their challenges and strengths. In a family council, the family looks for a way forward themselves, possibly bringing in relatives or friends who have a good insight and discussing ideas that can help. A plan is drawn up and the so-called "follow-up council" looks at what worked well in the plan and what should be changed. The family's own solution takes centre stage.
Family councils have been used in Chemnitz since 2013. The contact partner is Kinder-, Jugend- und Familienhilfe e. V. Chemnitz. The Family Council 2025 network meeting in Chemnitz is an opportunity to raise awareness of the topic and get more organisations involved in order to reach more families and help them before more expensive assistance becomes necessary.