Recreation: The History of Verschickungskinder in Germany

This training course focused on the history of the Verschickungskinder (“sent away children”), children who were sent to children’s health resorts and sanatoriums in Germany, the Netherlands or Italy, between the 1950s and 1980s, under the guise of “recreation”, medical care and recovery. Many of these children, sent alone and without their parents, were subjected to harsh conditions, neglect, and abuse - experiences that have long remained in the shadows of post- war history until recently. This was an ERASMUS + training course that gathered 30 participants from Belgium, Croatia, Czechia, Germany, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Türkiye.

This project was managed by Kreisau-Initiative e. V. (Germany) in collaboration with Świat Rozpędu (Poland) and workshop partners Aufarbeitung Kinderverschickungen-NRW e.V. and Intitiative Verschickungskinder e.V. (Germany)

This project took part between 31.1.2024 - 01.04.2026 in Detmold, Germany

To find out more info about Verschickungskinder (“sent away children”): Check out the websites of Aufarbeitung Kinderverschickungen-NRW e.V. and Intitiative Verschickungskinder e.V.  websites (In German).