Starting shot for parking care: 160 places for Vienna's children and adolescents!

Starting shot for parking care: 160 places for Vienna's children and adolescents!

From May 2025, parking support will start in around 160 parks in Vienna and in school, sports and residential complexes. This program is carried out by around 260 qualified employees who provide free afternoon offers for children from 6 years and young people. The programs are voluntary and low -threshold, which means that participation is simple and uncomplicated for all children and adolescents. The offers include a variety of activities that are geared towards the interests of young people. This includes movement, play, creative projects, excursions, tournaments and visits to museums or bathrooms.

The programs designed according to the requirements of parking are part of the open child and youth work. They are based on a professional social pedagogical concept that focuses on focuses such as games, sports, listening, support and active participation of children and adolescents. In the event of concerns or problems, the teams are available to provide advice seekers at advice centers. A central goal of parking is the improvement of the social climate and the reduction of prejudices, which is further promoted by the involvement of parents, accompanying persons and the elderly.

a proven concept

Viennese parking support in the 1990s when the city initiated child and youth care in public parks to promote the “right to play” for all children. Today this model is considered a "best practice" in Europe. Renate Kraft from MA 13 and Katharina Röggla from Juvivo explain that the parking support is not only limited to summer, but is now offered all year round. In view of past social developments, in particular the escape movements from Bosnia, the parking support gained particular importance. In this context, Juvivo introduced one of the first year -round projects in the Grünwaldpark.

The challenges are the involvement of girls who often have to take care of siblings. In order to take this into account, gender -sensitive offers such as "dancing in the park" and "Slack Lines" were developed. Statistics show that about 70% of the participating boys and about 30% girls are in indoor activities, which underlines the need to promote girls in public space.

social responsibility and inclusion

Viennese park support has also been committed to promoting social justice and intergenerational projects. The association has been active in the care of children and adolescents since 1994 and offers a variety of participatory experiences. These include democracy workshops in cooperation with schools.

Vienna continues to pursue the goal of creating equal opportunities and promoting acceptance between different generations and cultural backgrounds. In addition, the need for a meal supply for children from poorer conditions is recognized. Many of the participants receive their first meal of the day with the parking offer. The Fair Play team in Margareten promotes encounters and compensation for interests among the residents and thus supports social interaction.

The concept of park support is an important building block for social integration and intercultural dialogue and ensures that all children, especially disadvantaged, are given the opportunity to play and develop creatively. Further information on locations and times of parking is available on the website www.parkbetreuung.wien.gv.at.

In view of the challenges due to climatic changes and the need for a natural city design, this also remains an important goal of Viennese park support, which adapts continuously to the needs of children and the changing social framework.

For interested parties and everyone who would like to find out more, the links to the respective organizations offer useful information: Wiener Park support , Let’s Talk Equal , and IFEP .