Herbie e.V.

Herbie e.V. has been a recognised private agency of child and youth welfare services in Leipzig since 1991. Our main fields of activity include ambulant and stationary help with education, voluntary services and the sponsorship of day care centres. We currently employ a total of 180 qualified personnel. We support and advise children, young people and their families with our wide range of services. We are a member of the “Deutscher Paritätischer Wohlfahrtsverband”. Furthermore, we work in various socio-educational working groups and are networked with other voluntary service organisations. Based on the principle of "help for self-help", we focus our daily work on identifying, activating and using existing resources of people and systems. The motivation to find individual solutions is the focus of our work. Our holistic actions in the sense of a lifeworld-oriented child and youth welfare service are derived from the humanistic view of man. It is characterised by respect for all ways of living and aims at social justice, participation and co-determination. We would be pleased if future volunteers would also represent our mission statement and bring the following to the volunteer service: - Motivation - Desire for learning and new experiences - Interest in other people - Empathy - Intercultural skills - Openness towards other socialisation backgrounds and world views - Wish for exchange and further development of their own personality European volunteers can get involved in the following areas of our association: Day care centre "Rosentalzwerge": This day care centre is located in the immediate vicinity of Leipzig's city centre directly at the beautiful park "Rosental" and currently offers space for 141 children aged 0 to 6 years. The special feature of this day care centre is its proximity to nature. Thus, the "nature children's group" spends every day outside and explores and researches the changes in nature throughout the year. But all other children also take part in "forest days" and excursions. It´s an essential part of the organisations core values, that we take the needs and personality of the children into account and the children's lives are shaped in accordance with their environment. The participation of the children in shaping everyday life and in democratic processes is of great importance. Day care centre “Joseph Haydn": The day care centre is centrally located near the Clara-Zetkin-Park and the alluvial forest. As an integrative day care centre, it offers space for 77 children between 0 and 6 years of age with and without disabilities. A special feature is the musical profile of the day care centre. The daily routine is accompanied by a wide range of musical activities. For early musical education there is close cooperation with the music school and the older children take part in music lessons at the music academy. Due to the proximity to the park and the forest, the experience of nature and the fun of movement also play a important role in the children's everyday life. During the weekly park and forest days, the children develop an understanding of natural phenomena and a conscious approach to nature and its resources. Day care centre "Gohliser Höfe": The "Gohliser Höfe" day care centre, which opened in 2020, is located in the middle of the old industrial site of the former world market leader for cable cars - the Bleichert factories. The day care centre has room for 90 children from the age of one year until school entry. Due to the natural science-oriented profile this day care centre creates a stimulating environment that invites them to experiment, research and discover. In this way, the children can develop their creativity and pursue their natural exploratory urge. The proximity to the park also enables the children to discover and explore nature and observe changes. A conscious approach to nature and its resources should also be important. Supervised group home: Currently six kids with different backgroun