Interview with Konstanze Fritsch

Austerity cuts leave youth welfare in crisis as young adults struggle

our website: What special challenges do young adults transitioning out of youth welfare services face?

Konstanze Fritsch: We're dealing with a group facing extremely difficult life circumstances. Many have little to no contact with their families—or only under great strain—and have already experienced multiple ruptures in their relationships. On top of the usual challenges of becoming an adult, they often have entirely different battles to fight. What they really need is highly specialized support. A sense of security is the foundation for them to get everything else in their lives in order.

our website: How is the transition out of youth welfare services regulated by law?

Fritsch: A year before support ends, the youth welfare office is supposed to work with the young person to clarify their next steps: Where do they go from here, and what needs to be done to get there? The legislative justification also explicitly states that a so-called "risk assessment" must take place: Could this young person end up on the streets? We actually have excellent laws—for example, the "right to return" option, which allows them to re-enter youth welfare support. There's also the "aftercare option," which provides six more months of assistance, with six hours of support per week. That's an absolutely sensible measure.

our website: And how does this work in practice?

Fritsch: The number of young people coming to us with legal problems has risen—despite the 2021 reform. Those who have just turned 18, or even 17-year-olds, make up the largest proportion of our clients. Conducting a "risk assessment" is far from standard practice. There are also cases where support is terminated without a single care planning meeting ever taking place. And if someone says, "I still need residential care," would the youth welfare office actually be willing to provide more funding? We'd all say: probably not.

our website: Where do these complications come from?

Fritsch: Even though we should assume that the authorities responsible are familiar with the law, we know that isn't always the case. Sometimes, it even seems like there's an assumption that those affected won't know their rights. Since 2024, at the latest, we've been clearly feeling the impact of austerity measures. We always assume that social workers in youth welfare offices genuinely want to help. But these cuts are hitting a group that has no safety net to fall back on.

Too often, young people from youth welfare are seen purely as a financial burden. But if we're going to reduce it to that level, then we should also say: We simply can't afford to lose these young people! We need them educated, we need them in the workforce, and we need them as active participants in society.