Activity report of the Children and Family Commissioner

At the same time, the Children and Families Commissioner is presenting a report on her activities in the Department for the Promotion of Children and Families.

The guidelines process, from the initial data collection through the participation and implementation phase to the final project description, was a major focus of the work. Here, the Children and Family Commissioner was the coordinating body and initiator.

For projects in kindergartens, schools and facilities, the children and family commissioner also provided impetus and participated in the implementation. Through this commitment, new and additional stakeholders were recruited for projects. These in turn successfully continued impulse projects.

Thanks to the work of the Children and Families Commissioner, all specialist services of the city administration were able to develop and implement effective projects for children and families in a more targeted manner than before. The range of measures to create child- and family-friendly working and living conditions has become more extensive. The attitude towards child and family friendliness has changed noticeably and sustainably. Child and family friendliness is the guiding principle behind actions and decisions.

Institutions and associations also supported the city administration's efforts with their own projects through and in cooperation with the child and family commissioner. In doing so, they made clear their approval and support for family policy in Salzgitter.

Family friendliness made tangible

The child and family commissioner drew attention to the many aspects of child and family friendliness with products that had a high public profile. These include the family calendar and the intercultural calendar, the child-friendly house rules, the city memory, the "Salzgitter spielt" play booklet, materials for welcoming babies to Salzgitter and the "Salzgitter spielt" play festival.
These products make it clear how many facets child and family friendliness has. It is not about individual population groups, but about an entire urban society.

Child and family friendliness is and remains a location factor to be taken seriously. This is why this collection of factual data forms a further basis for the further development of a child- and family-friendly learning city.
To this end, the facts must be evaluated and current developments taken into account.

Child and family friendliness are important location factors

"I still see myself as an ambassador for the interests of children and families and would like to continue to help ensure that the living conditions for Salzgitter residents of all ages are designed to meet their needs," says Sylvia Fiedler, looking ahead to her future work.

The structures created in 2008 have proved their worth. However, developments over the years have also shown that in the process of child- and family-friendly urban development, forms and approaches have emerged that independently carry forward the guiding principle of child- and family-friendliness.

As a result, the remit and scope of the work of the child and family commissioner is also changing. Making family policy public, informing children and families about services and advising stakeholders in terms of intergenerational action will be the focus of the work in future.