STIFTI: Halle's Digital Helper for Education Funding Access

Halle (Saale) Job Center Reviews 15 Years of Education and Participation Program: 330,000 Applications Filed, 40% for School Lunches

Halle's New Digital Assistant STIFTI Simplifies Access to Education Support

Fifteen years of the Education and Participation (Bildung und Teilhabe) program have above all meant a decade and a half of commitment to children, young people, and families. Since 2011, over 330,000 applications have been processed. Behind each of these applications lie vastly different personal stories and circumstances in which support from the education package has made a tangible difference—enabling participation and improving educational opportunities.

What Benefits Are Available When Needed?

The Education and Participation Package is designed first and foremost to give disadvantaged individuals a strong start in their future careers and to ensure their inclusion in social and cultural life. This takes the form of targeted support measures, such as tutoring for learning deficits, subsidies for sports and cultural club memberships, or free school and daycare lunches.

Over the past years, significant progress has been made—particularly in Halle, where uptake of these benefits is exceptionally high. The city leads Sachsen-Anhalt by a wide margin in this regard.

This does not mean, however, that children here are in greater need than in other cities or regions. Rather, it reflects the success of intensive efforts by the Job Center, local authorities, and network partners to ensure easy access to information and benefits, allowing families to take full advantage of the support available—for the well-being and future of their children.

To make it even easier for affected families to get clear, targeted information, STIFTI, a helpful digital assistant, has recently joined the team. In a short, engaging video, STIFTI explains in simple terms what the Education and Participation benefits entail.

Eligible families can reach out to the Job Center or Halle (Saale)'s Social Services Department through various channels to receive advice on the program.

Further Information on Contact Options and the Program:

www.jobcenter-hallesaale.de/but

www.halle.de/leben-in-halle/bildung/projekte-und-foerderprogramme/bildung-und-teilhabe

"The Education and Participation benefits are a cornerstone of social justice in our country. They enable affected families and their children—regardless of financial circumstances—to develop their potential and build a better future."

—Jan Kaltofen, Managing Director of the Halle (Saale) Job Center

Background:

Children, adolescents, and young adults receiving basic unemployment benefits (Bürgergeld), social assistance (subsistence support or basic security for the elderly and those with reduced earning capacity), or whose parents receive child allowance or housing benefits are fundamentally entitled to the following education and participation services.

Those receiving benefits under the Asylum Seekers' Benefits Act may also qualify for the Education Package. Additionally, children whose families do not otherwise receive the aforementioned social benefits may still be eligible if they cannot cover specific educational and participation needs (cases of so-called needs-based entitlement).

These benefits allow children and young people to take part in school and leisure activities they could not otherwise afford, giving them better opportunities for personal growth and social inclusion.

A wide range of cultural and educational offerings are supported. The Education and Participation benefits include:

Eligible benefits under the Education and Participation Package (BuT) include:

One-day school and daycare trips (actual costs covered),
Multi-day school and daycare excursions (actual costs covered),
Personal school supplies (€130 for the first half of the school year and €65 for the second),
Student transportation to school (actual costs—even if public transit passes issued for this purpose allow general travel outside school hours),
Learning support (actual costs—tutoring can now be accessed even when a student's progression is not immediately at risk),
Participation in communal lunch programs at schools or daycare centers (actual costs covered),
Engagement in social and cultural activities (such as sports clubs or music schools, up to €15 per month).

BuT by the Numbers:

Over 15 years, roughly 330,000 approvals have been granted, with about 40% allocated to communal lunch programs. Participation rates now reach around 10% of eligible children.

Even after the latest legal reforms, education and participation remain a core component of basic social security—and in Halle (Saale), they are given particularly high priority. The impact of these benefits isn't seen in grand declarations but in everyday life: joining meals, traveling together, learning side by side, taking part.