Community-Based Integration Assistance—Adults

Manageable Social Spaces

Manageable social spaces are more conducive to fostering social interactions and support arrangements than anonymous, large, and unmanageable social spaces (Röh/Meins 2021). The often limited mobility of recipients of integration assistance must be taken into account when dividing social spaces.

Division into Five Social Spaces

To also account for the heterogeneity of the individual spaces and to think on a small scale, this results in a division into five social spaces. The resulting spatial proximity facilitates, for example, access to public services. Another advantage is that comprehensive data analysis remains possible (Degree of Disability [GdB] case files are address-specific and unambiguous; analysis by the Jenarbeit Job Center is also detailed). This classification is also already used internally by the administration for planning purposes (daycare needs planning).

Affiliating Localities with Planning Areas

For the purpose of dividing Jena into social areas, it makes sense to affiliate localities with the “nearest” planning area. This approach takes a small-scale perspective while still allowing localities to be considered individually (or more individually).

Advantages of this classification

This classification also enables the use of neighborhood development concepts. The small-scale nature of the division allows for greater individuality. The social area can be better explored and utilized on an individual basis.

Potential participation centers are thus more accessible. Likewise, potential social space conferences can be easily organized.

All concepts for social-spatial work submitted to date by service providers take all planning areas into account and can therefore be easily applied to this classification. In the North, despite its large area and strong (construction) development potential, there have been fewer open integration assistance services to date. This social space must be specifically targeted to enable low-threshold support. 

Disadvantage of this division

Another disadvantage of this division is that the villages continue to be somewhat neglected in the analysis. It should be noted, however, that the social structure there is generally different from that in urban neighborhoods, and a higher level of mobility is expected from all residents.

Goal: Sustainable improvement of living conditions for people in their neighborhoods

For the City of Jena’s Social Services Department, a community-based approach means much more than just a change in responsibilities or administrative structures. It represents a holistic strategy aimed at sustainably improving the living conditions of people in their neighborhoods. The goal is to identify and mobilize the existing resources and potential in the neighborhoods and to align them with the needs of the people living there.

Citizens as Active Shapers of Their Lives and Social Space

The social space orientation approach deliberately builds on the strengths of people, their environment, and their social networks. It views citizens as active shapers of their own lives and their social space. Support services should therefore be more closely aligned with people’s real-life contexts and developed in collaboration with those affected, their families, and the stakeholders in the social space.

Enabling and Strengthening Social Participation in the Living Environment

For integration assistance, this means going beyond traditional case-by-case assistance. The focus is no longer exclusively on individual services, but also on the question of how social participation in daily life can be enabled and strengthened. This involves professionals, service providers, and administrative bodies working together to determine how they can support people in need of assistance in a way that actively incorporates their living environment—neighborhood, leisure, work, and education.

Social Space Orientation Working Group

To shape this transformation in practice, the City of Jena is collaborating with a specially established working group on social space orientation. This group includes representatives from service providers, administrative staff, and individuals with personal experience. The goal is a coordinated approach that effectively pools resources and strengthens people’s self-determination.

Step by step, this is giving rise to a new understanding of inclusion assistance—one based on trust, networking, and shared responsibility, and one that consistently places participation in the social environment at the center.

The idea of jointly and cooperatively developing a new partnership that incorporates the resources of both individuals and the community was presented during a meeting of the Community Psychiatric Network in late 2022. Participation in the working group was optional. Since January 2023, this working group has been meeting monthly.

The goal of the working group is to develop a jointly supported BTHG concept for the city of Jena—based on a shared mission statement, jointly developed professional standards for collaboration, and social space profiles—which is to be tested as part of a pilot project.

To this end, the first meetings were used to develop the shared guiding principles and to divide Jena into social spaces.

Working Group Members

The members of the working group are:

• Service Providers
  • Aktion Wandlungswelten Wohnverbund gGmbH
  • Diako Teilhabe und Inklusion gemeinnützige GmbH
  • Ein Dach für Alle e. V. Jena
  • Grenzenlos e. V. – Association for People with Disabilities and People in Emergency Situations
  • Saale Support Services of Lebenshilfe Jena gGmbH
  • Help for Self-Help – Begegnung Jena e. V.
  • TSA Education and Social Services gGmbH
  • AWO Regional Association of Central-Western Thuringia e. V.
• Administrative Staff
  • Health Services Department
  • Social Services Department
  • Cross-Functional Staff Office, Department 4
  • Jena Work - City of Jena Job Center
• People with personal experience.

In addition, the day centers operated by Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe – Begegnung Jena e. V. and Aktion Wandlungswelten Tageszentrum gGmbH are initially participating in the pilot project without transitioning to person-centered comprehensive services.

The years 2024 and 2025 were used to work out the details of a framework agreement for the pilot project—which included:

• professional standards
• the development of a committee structure
• details of community-based collaboration
• and the development of a new financial structure.

Regular reports on the current status of the work are provided to the Advisory Board for People with Disabilities and the Community Psychiatric Network.

Aligning Service Offerings with a Socially and Geographically Delimited Area

The concept of “social space orientation” refers to the orientation of services toward a socially and geographically defined area. This can be a city district, a neighborhood, or a region.

However, the term also encompasses a focus on a socially constructed space—that is, a specific living environment or social microcosm that places residents in relation to their surroundings. In the field of integration assistance in Jena, we therefore base our development of the conceptual framework for social space orientation primarily on the views of Wolfgang Hinte.

According to this view, the social space should not be narrowly defined as merely “the physical environment”; rather, with the active participation of the people involved, it is essential to shape living environments and create arrangements that help people cope even in difficult life situations.

Five Principles

Five principles are crucial in this regard:

1. The interests and wishes of those eligible for services are always at the center.
2. We avoid a purely supportive approach and focus on empowerment.
3. In a social space-based approach, we consistently focus on the resources of both individuals and neighborhoods.
4. Socio-spatial work must be designed to span different target groups and sectors.
5. Networking and coordination among the numerous social services form the foundation for effective individualized support.

Systematic work with the potential of those eligible for benefits and consideration of their living environment

By systematically working with the potential of service recipients and taking their living environment into account, we consistently respect people’s will and interests. A person’s natural, cultural, structural, and social environments are integrated into person-centered support to enable self-determined and equal participation in social and community processes.

Therefore, it is important to identify and utilize existing resources—such as self-help groups, open meeting places, etc.—as well as location-based resources, such as clubs, flea markets, etc.

Guiding Principles

In summary, the working group established the following guiding principles:

• We consistently focus on people’s interests and wishes so that everyone can realize their personal potential.
• The goal is to experience the social space as a place of participation and to make it tangible.
• A focus on the social space takes precedence over a focus on specific target groups.
• Social spaces should be designed in a participatory manner so that they are attractive to all citizens.
• A person-centered approach is a primary principle.
• Working within the social space means opening up networks and utilizing resources from the social environment.
• A social space orientation should be understood as a shared process of learning, innovation, and development.
• All people shape the social space.
• Transparent services and mutual cooperation—or the networking of services—are important.
• The dynamic resources of the social space are the driving force behind participation.
• A person can engage with many social spaces and should be able to do so.
• Social spaces are also conceived in spatial terms.
• A living space is not automatically a social space.

In 2027, a joint pilot project between the City of Jena and selected providers of integration assistance is set to begin in Jena. The goal of the project is the conceptual and practical advancement of social space-oriented work, as well as the implementation of person-centered complex services (PKL) in accordance with the provisions of the Thuringian State Framework Agreement pursuant to Section 131(1) of SGB IX.

Implementation and Procedures

The project partners will jointly assume responsibility for the professional and economic development of the social spaces in Jena.

Planned implementation components are:

• Establishing binding cooperation structures between the city administration, service providers, and other stakeholders,
• Conducting a socio-spatial needs assessment and analysis,
• Developing and testing integrated support settings within the framework of the PKL,
• Establishing regular project committees (steering group, expert forums, evaluation circles),
• Ongoing reflection, documentation, and adaptation of the approaches.

The project is conceived as a learning system. Through a combination of practical testing, professional reflection, and evaluation, continuous development processes are initiated.

Process Design and Participation

The model project is implemented in accordance with the provisions of the Thuringian State Framework Agreement pursuant to Section 131 of SGB IX—in particular, in accordance with the principles of person-centered comprehensive services (PKL) and a socio-spatial orientation.
All participants jointly assume responsibility for the professional and economic development of the social spaces.

A central element of the project is its participatory approach: people with participation needs and their advocacy groups are actively involved in the design, implementation, and evaluation.

To this end, funding agencies and service providers provide transparent information on goals, content, and implementation processes and encourage the participation of the target population.

The self-determination of those eligible for services remains guaranteed—the individual choice of service provider continues to be made independently and voluntarily.

Added Value for All Stakeholders

The project is based on the conviction that community-based work benefits all participants—especially people in need of support.

They benefit from a more diverse and better-coordinated range of support services that focus on their individual needs. Through close collaboration among service providers, assistance is better coordinated and barriers that could arise from working in isolation are broken down.

This creates a comprehensive support network that not only provides immediate assistance but also opens up long-term opportunities.

Each individual is informed about the structures, participants, and potential impacts and receives an information sheet on the subject.

Expected Impact and Sustainability

The pilot project aims to:

• enhance the capacity for cooperation and innovation in regional integration assistance,
• use resources more efficiently and strengthen professional synergies,
• generate systemic learning effects for the widespread implementation of social-space-oriented structures.

In the long term, the project will help strengthen the resilience and quality of the social infrastructure in Jena and foster a culture of shared responsibility based on cooperation among service providers, institutions, and beneficiaries.

Insight into Social-Space-Oriented Integration Services—A Pilot Project Introduces Itself

As part of Mental Health Week 2025 and to mark the tenth anniversary of the Community Psychiatric Network, the City of Jena took the opportunity to present its current initiative for the further development of community-based integration assistance to the public. 

On October 29, 2025, numerous representatives from politics, administration, independent agencies, integration assistance facilities, and individuals with personal experience gathered at the Volkshaus. They learned about the current status of implementation and the future direction of community-based integration assistance in Jena. A particular highlight of the event was the lecture by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Hinte, the founder and long-time pioneer of the social space approach in Germany. In his presentation, Prof. Hinte impressively demonstrated that a social-space-oriented approach goes far beyond organizational changes: It means consistently placing people at the center, strengthening their self-determination, and actively incorporating local resources—in neighborhoods, districts, and networks.

Using concrete examples from practice, he showed how a shift in attitude—away from welfare and toward personal responsibility and participation—can lead to new solutions. His insights inspired the participants to continue on the path they have embarked upon in Jena and to further develop social space-oriented thinking as a shared endeavor.

Following the presentation, Prof. Hinte’s suggestions were explored in thematic workshops. Professionals in the field of social integration exchanged ideason the topics of participation, “New Attitude—New Thinking,” and networking. In small groups, concrete ideas and approaches were developed on how social space-oriented action can be strengthened and further developed in daily practice. The lively exchange clearly demonstrated the high level of interest in breaking new ground together and embedding the principle of participation in all areas of work.

The very well-attended event demonstrated that community-based work is met with great commitment and a high level of willingness to collaborate. Through the exchange between professionals, administrative staff, policymakers, and people with lived experience, another important step was taken toward actively promoting participation and networking in the city of Jena and sustainably improving the quality of life for people in need of support.

Detailed documentation of the event and additional materials are available in the download section.