In Mönchengladbach, there were fewer children in the care of the youth welfare office in 2021 than in the previous year. symbol photo:
Photo: dpa/Christian Charisius
The youth welfare offices in North Rhine-Westphalia took fewer children and young people into care last year than in the previous year. The State Statistical Office IT.NRW announced that there were a total of 12,193 such protective measures in 2021. In 2020 there were still 12,308, which means the number has fallen by 0.9 percent. A child is taken into care if there is a risk to the child’s well-being. There must be concrete evidence for this.
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The Gladbach Youth Welfare Office also took less children and young people into care in 2021. While there were 325 children and young people in 2020, a year later it is 292. Although the value has fallen, it is still higher than other cities in the region. For example, there were 181 people taken into care in Krefeld and 241 in Oberhausen last year.
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The State Statistical Office IT.NRW also provides information on the socio-demographic characteristics of the children and young people. Of the 292 children taken into care in Gladbach, more than half (153) have a migration background. 149 people taken in by the youth welfare office were under 14 years old, 143 were between 14 and 17. 36 children and young people were taken in by the youth welfare office at their own request, and 256 were taken into care because they were endangered. For 104 children and young people, the reason given was that their parents were overwhelmed. In 31 families it was due to the parents’ relationship problems and in 35 cases it was due to neglect.
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This is also how it looks in the overall overview for NRW: In 4324 measures in 2021, one of the reasons for this drastic step was the excessive demands on one or both parents – a drop of 3.9 percent compared to the previous year. In 1614 cases, indications of neglect were reasons for taking into care and in 1655 cases, indications of physical abuse. A criminal offense committed by the juveniles played a role in 923 cases. When reporting a protective measure, several reasons can also be decisive.
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According to the statisticians, the number of people taken into care due to unaccompanied entry from abroad has increased, bucking the trend. It increased in NRW by 38.6 percent to 2490 cases.
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In Gladbach, too, this value has risen significantly again. In 2020 there were 35 children, a year later 57. During the refugee crisis, however, this figure was even higher. In 2015, 81 children came unaccompanied from abroad, in 2017 there were 74.
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In NRW, a total of 1565 of the provisional protective measures were limited to one day, 1516 taking into care lasted 90 or more days. Three quarters of the minors were housed in a facility during the protection measure, the rest with suitable people or in a form of assisted living.
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