Jugendwohlfahrt

Youth Welfare, all measures listed under the Jugendwohlfahrtsgesetz (youth welfare law, JWG 1989) and the respective provincial youth welfare laws. Public youth welfare comprises juvenile welfare and mother-and-infant welfare. The purpose of youth welfare is to provide counselling and support for families; intervention is only permissible in cases where parents or legal guardians do not fulfil their legal obligations, particularly as laid down in the Civil Code. In detail, youth welfare comprises: 1) social services (e.g. counselling for mothers, day-nurseries, mothers-by-the-day, supervised residential units for juveniles); 2) foster care; 3) orphanages and other institutions for minors; 4) adoption services; 5) child guidance service (e.g. child-rearing counselling and family counselling, family therapy, family helpers). Each province is responsible for its respective youth welfare. Basically, the duties of youth welfare are divided between the provincial government and the district administrative authorities. (Youth Affairs, Office of). Private youth welfare institutions such as Caritas) are also enlisted for tasks which come under the category of private law.

Literature: O. Lehner (ed.), Kinder- und Jugendrecht, Vienna 1993.