A prerequisite for the current certification is the successful completion of the re-audit process, which focused on the extent to which the existing family- and life-stage-sensitive measures already in place had been implemented. Through a series of reviews, the framework and culture of the work-life balance policy were examined; the findings were presented to the Executive Board and, in areas where action was required, concrete solutions were developed through targeted in-depth analysis.
As part of the re-audit, not only were strategic objectives defined, but also specific measures, which are set out in a target agreement. These must now be implemented as required during the three-year certification period. Practical implementation is reviewed annually by berufundfamilie Service GmbH. The project is supervised by the external auditor Elena de Graat, led at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences by Stefanie Aunkofer, and carried out in collaboration with an inter-faculty working group comprising Dr Alina Leson, Prof. Dr Steffi Wiedemann, Sandra Gardian and Andrea da Silva.
Among the measures already in place at Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences to support a balance between work, study, family and private life are, amongst others, the establishment of a family services office, the provision of allocated nursery places close to the campus in Kleve, partnerships with regional advice centres and the pme Familienservice Group in the area of childcare, as well as with benefit@work in the area of care, service agreements on flexible working hours and for remote and home working, e-learning programmes, parent-child study rooms, consolidated information platforms and much more.
In the coming period, further measures are to be addressed as part of the new target agreement, including the further expansion of needs-based childcare provision – also with a view to the Kamp-Lintfort campus, a service agreement for mobile working, family-friendly committee organisation, discussions on the continuation of digital and hybrid provision and participation, as well as family-oriented teaching and study models, social support contacts and a fathers’ representative, the revision of the KIT parental leave support programme, and a collegial and supportive approach to family leave.
