Round Table on Skilled Worker Demand in Social and Educational Professions
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The shortage of skilled workers in social and educational professions presents significant challenges for the Oberberg district. Particularly with regard to the legal entitlement to all-day care for primary school-aged children, effective from the 2026/2027 school year, proactive measures to secure skilled professionals are of paramount importance.
To address this development collectively, the Education Office of the Oberberg district has initiated the Round Table on Skilled Worker Demand in Social and Educational Professions. The goal is to bring together the relevant stakeholders in the region and jointly develop sustainable strategies for securing skilled workers.
The Round Table sees itself as a district-wide network and strategic body. Representatives include vocational colleges, youth welfare offices, child and youth welfare organizations, the Employment Agency, economic development entities, as well as other partners from the education and social sectors. Together, current developments are analyzed, regional challenges identified, and solutions for recruiting, training, and retaining skilled workers are developed.
The Round Table focuses intensely on the quality of education, the support of aspiring professionals, and the development of suitable support and qualification measures for daycare center managers. Topic-specific working groups delve deeper into the results, develop action recommendations, and create concrete measures to effectively meet the future demands in social and educational professions.
At the 2nd Round Table on January 21, 2026 at the Vocational College Dieringhausen, the joint process was further specified. The focus was on the two areas of action: "Training" and "Personnel Development". Ongoing measures and new approaches were presented, discussed jointly, and examined for further implementation and consolidation.
The discussion was not only about how additional skilled workers can be recruited. Equally important is training young professionals effectively, strengthening career development opportunities, and attracting and retaining skilled workers for the work fields in the long term.
A particular focus of the meeting was on the shared commitment: The participants discussed the goals of the two areas of action and agreed on further collaboration in working groups and joint measures.
The kickoff event in January 2025 initiated a long-term, district-wide development process. The Round Table serves as the strategic framework from which specific measures are gradually developed at the operational level. The goal is to sustainably ensure the quality of early childhood education and care and to further strengthen the Oberberg district as an attractive location for education and employment.
