Project lead:  

Prof. Dr Stephan Beetz 

Duration

August 2018 – February 2020

Over the past two decades, the topic of ‘carers’ has repeatedly come to the fore in discussions about the organisation of essential public services and quality of life in rural areas. Yet there are many questions surrounding this: Who are these ‘carers’? What motivates them? What role do they play in voluntary work in the social sector? How can they be supported?

The aim of this project was to identify people who act as ‘carers’ without necessarily describing themselves as such. They look after other people (e.g. those facing life crises or in need of care) in their social environment; they provide support or help to arrange it; they organise social activities (e.g. games evenings), and so on. These people often do not work in the public eye and are only partially linked to formal, official support structures. Together with our partners, the Saxon Rural Women’s Association and the District of Central Saxony, we developed a conceptual framework for how ‘carers’ can be supported.

The project consisted of four key steps:

• Research into ‘Kümmer*innen’ structures in a selected sub-region of the Mittelsachsen district and the Sachsenkreuz+ LEADER region
• Interviews with ‘Kümmer*innen’ as well as other stakeholders in local politics and associations
• A joint workshop with ‘Kümmer*innen’ at Mittweida University of Applied Sciences
• Conceptual discussions with cooperation partners and supra-regional professional exchange
   

The final report, including the conceptual considerations, can be requested at beetz@hs-mittweida.de.