Gladbeck

Family-Friendly Community 2024: A Young, Diverse, and Family-Friendly City

Gladbeck is a family-friendly city

With this slogan, the city of Gladbeck applied for the 2024 State Award for Family-Friendly Municipalities in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Gladbeck is part of the Recklinghausen district, has a population of around 76,000, and is located in the Emscher-Lippe region. For several years now, Gladbeck has been implementing a citywide strategy to promote family-friendliness. A wide range of projects and initiatives contribute to this effort.

A young and diverse city facing socioeconomic challenges

Gladbeck has a higher proportion of young residents (35.9 percent) compared to the Recklinghausen district (32.0 percent). In total, people from about 113 countries live in Gladbeck. At the end of 2023, the foreign-born population stood at 19.3 percent. Gladbeck is the city with the third-highest poverty rate in Germany—a particular challenge.

To counter this, Gladbeck is focusing on various projects and participatory initiatives for family-oriented future planning. As part of the “Gladbeck Family Reports,” citizens are surveyed on a regular basis. The Gladbeck Alliance for Families brings together experts and city officials to promote and support families and children.

2024 State Award for Family-Friendly Communities

For its wide range of initiatives and its efforts to establish family-friendliness as a cross-cutting priority across all administrative areas, Gladbeck was honored with the State Award for Family-Friendly Municipalities 2024 in the “Large Medium-Sized City” category.

Here, we’d like to introduce you to some of the city’s offerings. Further information, links to the project descriptions, and details about the State of North Rhine-Westphalia’s award can be found in the sidebar.

Family-Friendly Activities in Gladbeck

  1. Gladbeck Family Report

    Since 2007, Gladbeck has conducted a comprehensive family survey every five years. The results are published, along with social and demographic data, in the Gladbeck Family Report. The needs of the population identified in the report serve as the basis for family-friendly policies and administrative measures.

  2. Award for Family-Friendly Employers

    Since 2017, the city of Gladbeck has been recognizing family-friendly employers every two years. Employers apply by completing a questionnaire and are then visited by two jury members.

    The family-friendly aspects recognized include:
    – Support for working parents and employees with caregiving responsibilities,
    – Health promotion, and
    – General initiatives to promote employee satisfaction.

    The award is valid for four years. After recertification, a permanent award may be granted.

  3. Gladbeck Alliance for Families

    In 2005, representatives from municipal agencies, social and welfare organizations, independent agencies, and local business leaders founded the Gladbeck Alliance for Families. Several times a year, experts from these fields meet in five workshops to develop project ideas aimed at promoting and supporting families and children.

    The workshop topics include: school and youth services, early childhood education, physical activity and health, cultural education, as well as migration and community life.

The Other Award-Winning Municipalities for 2024

The cities of Hamm and Brühl, the district of Düren with its 15 member cities, and the municipalities of Windeck and Dörentrup were also recognized for their innovative, family-friendly initiatives . These range from family-oriented intergenerational projects to family-friendly town halls.

  • Hamm

    Family-Friendly Community 2024: Focus on Family-Friendliness

  • Brühl

    Family-Friendly Municipality 2024: Committed to a City That Is Child- and People-Friendly

  • Düren District

    Family-Friendly Community 2024: An Attractive Living Environment for Families

Further Information Activities for Families in Gladbeck

The Gladbeck Family Report, in which approximately 1,000 families provided information about their living situations, has given the city important insights and highlighted areas where the city can continue to improve.

Gladbeck Family Report

The goal of the “Family-Friendly Employer” award is to certify family-friendly companies that are committed to helping employees balance family and work.

Awards and Certifications

The Gladbeck Alliance for Family, Upbringing, Education, and the Future is a coalition of many community groups whose goal is to further improve the situation for families in Gladbeck.

Gladbeck Alliance for Families

Further Information Video of the winning municipality

YouTube

The video featuring our winning municipality, Gladbeck, impressively demonstrates the kinds of family-friendly municipal services that can be offered locally.

YouTube

Further Information Links for Further Reading

“We Embrace Diversity”: Under this motto, the Ministry of Family Affairs in North Rhine-Westphalia has established a state award for municipalities that are particularly committed to meeting the needs of families.

State Award for Municipalities Press Release dated September 18, 2024

Whether it’s people living together in different living arrangements and household structures, the diversity of family life, varied educational and career paths, or different immigration histories: diversity is part of North Rhine-Westphalia’s DNA.

Diversity in North Rhine-Westphalia: Facts and Figures