Independent council centres
Germany has specialised council centres that provide professional expertise and services for children with harmful sexual behaviour. The centres offer various services for the target group and specialise in different forms of therapy.
Funded by external actors
The specialised council centres do not belong to the state’s infrastructure, so the centre’s funding comes from other actors, such as NGOs or communities. This means that some of the council centres have more secure funding. In total, there are over 350 specialised council centres, some focusing on children with harmful sexual behaviour.
Coordination body develops standards, provides political representation
The federal ministry strengthened the specialised centres’ position in 2017 by establishing a coordination body, “Bundeskoordinierung Spezialisierter Fachberatung gegen sexualisierte Gewalt in Kindheit und Jugend” (BKSF). The main goal of BKSF is to represent the interests of the council centres. As a political representative, BKSF develops documents and statements, conducts awareness-raising activities, and supports smaller networks. The coordination body has also developed quality standards for the counselling centres. In addition to this work, BKSF provides various information on its website for the counselling centres and stakeholders working with the target group.
