Integration assistance

On the basis of Section 35a SGB VIII, the City of Aachen's integration assistance is responsible for children (from school age), young people and young adults (up to the age of 21) with an exclusively mental disability. The entitlement to integration assistance exists if there is a mental disability or a high probability of imminent mental disability. The determination of this fact is the original and sole responsibility of the youth welfare office. The concept of (imminent) mental disability is twofold. It is made up of the determination of a deviation in mental health, i.e. the determination of a mental disorder and the resulting (at least highly probable) impairment of participation in social life.

There is an (imminent) impairment of participation if the young person

• Has not yet been able to develop age-appropriate independence and there is a deviation in mental health of more than six months,
• experienced noticeable exclusions in terms of age-appropriate contacts and opportunities for participation,
• and/or is significantly restricted in his/her personal development opportunities. The prerequisite for the assessment is a specific written application for integration assistance or a written declaration of intent by the authorized representative or the young person themselves.

The following documents must be available to process the application:

• Expert opinion in accordance with § 35 a SGB VIII para. 1 with a statement on intelligence
• Release from confidentiality for other professionals and agencies involved (school, therapist, etc.)

The statement must be based on the ICD 10 (International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems) and the confirmed diagnosed disorders must be named with the corresponding coding. The statement may contain a medical assessment of the overall situation, but this has no binding effect on the decision on benefits.

You can request a specialist opinion for your child from the following diagnostic centers:

• Outpatient psychiatric practices (child and adolescent psychiatrists)
• Clinics for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Institute Outpatient Clinic
• Established child and adolescent psychotherapists
• Social pediatric centers
• Doctors with special experience in the field of mental disorders in children and adolescents

The expert opinion should be up-to-date and not older than one year.

Procedure for assessing the impairment of participation

Once the above-mentioned documents have been submitted, the youth welfare office (integration assistance) will initiate the assessment procedure. The Youth Welfare Office is responsible for the entire procedure and it is essential that the various information required to determine the impairment of participation is obtained. This is done on the basis of the statement and the necessary feedback with the person making the statement, as well as personal discussions with the young person concerned, their family environment and assessments by third parties, in particular carers from institutions such as schools, etc. It is necessary for these persons to be released from their duty of confidentiality. The individual areas of life, the social environment in the interaction, the structural context of the living environment, as well as the development of the personality and the level of activity are important in the participation assessment.

Aim of the review for impairment of participation

The aim of the assessment procedure is to identify or rule out an existing impairment of participation in your child. The impairment of participation is a basic prerequisite for the granting of integration assistance in accordance with §35a SGB VIII. The specialist from the youth welfare office also assesses the situation using the indicators in order to be able to make a well-founded assessment of the overall situation on the basis of all the information. This overall assessment then leads to a concrete statement as to whether there is an (impending) mental disability.

Result of the check for impairment of participation

If an impairment of participation is identified, it is the responsibility of the Aachen Youth Welfare Office to provide you with an offer of assistance that meets your needs. If there is no (impending) mental disability, there is no entitlement to integration assistance. In this case, it is necessary to check whether there is a need for educational assistance in accordance with § 27ff. of SGB VIII.