14
Basis for this co-operation is the so-called principle of subsidiarity which assigns prior-
ity to private, non-profit provision over public provision of welfare and social ser-vices.
This principle - originally a Catholic social doctrine - 33 became after World War II
part of the German social assistance legislation combined with a general state gua-
rantee of financial support. 34
The services and facilities of the associations provide different forms of support for
persons in need. The services are provided with the help of all methods of social work
(individual assistance, group work, community outreach) and within the framework of
an approach covering everything, from fully out-patient to fully in-patient.35
The volunteer services and self-help groups are organized and defined by the volunteers
themselves, but they receive support from the associations (e. g. social insurance cover-
age against accidents or further training).
Examples of services and facilities36:
• provisions for children and young people,
• support for mothers, marriages and the family,
• services for the mentally, physically and emotionally disabled,
• nursing of the sick,
• assistance for elderly people,
• counseling for people in particular social difficulties,
• measures to alleviate the burdens of unemployment,
• provision of social counseling and assistance for people from abroad,
• services for people travelling,
• basic, further and continuing training,
• training voluntary workers and World-wide emergency,
• disaster and reconstruction aid.
According to the last survey of all services and facilities provided37 the voluntary wel-
fare associations were active in many sectors:
33 Dahme/Schütter/Wohlfahrt 2008: 76.
34 Priller/Zimmer/Anheier/Toepler/Salamon 1999:105; Priller/Zimmer 2001: 212. See to the development
of the principle of susidiarity in the Weimar Republic and after World War II: Dah-
me/Schütter/Wohlfahrt 2008:76-81.
35See very detailed: BAGFW 2002: 55-65.
36 BAGFW 2003: 10.
37 BAGFW 2004:14-15.