Habila GmbH

Habila GmbH is a non-profit organization based in Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, that provides individualized support and assistance for people with disabilities. It operates in 22 cities and municipalities across Baden-Württemberg, serving approximately 1,600 people with disabilities through a range of housing and support services. The organization also provides work opportunities for around 750 people with disabilities each working day, and employs about 1,500 staff members. Its workshops are certified according to DIN EN ISO 9001:2015 for care, service, and production. The roots of Habila go back to 1889, when four regional poor relief associations (Landarmenverbände) were established in Württemberg and Hohenzollern. These associations founded workhouses and custodial institutions in the late 19th century, some of which remain as Habila locations today. Over the decades, the organization evolved through various structural changes, including the formation of the Württemberg State Welfare Association in 1924 and the Landeswohlfahrtsverband Württemberg-Hohenzollern (LWV) in 1964. In 2003, the four institutions were consolidated under a non-profit limited liability company, LWV.Eingliederungshilfe GmbH. On 1 February 2019, the company was renamed Habila GmbH. Habila offers a wide range of housing options, including community-integrated living, specialized facilities, and individually supported living arrangements. It also provides work and employment opportunities through workshops, external workplaces, and inclusion enterprises such as Insiva and Zemo. The organization emphasizes community orientation and inclusion, continuously reducing central facilities and expanding smaller, regional housing and work options. It also offers voluntary service placements, including the Federal Volunteer Service (Bundesfreiwilligendienst) and the Voluntary Social Year (FSJ). Since 1 January 2018, Habila has been part of the Kommunalverband für Jugend und Soziales Baden-Württemberg (KVJS), a public-law corporation. The company remains a non-profit limited liability company (gemeinnützige GmbH). Its work is guided by the principle that people with disabilities are not recipients of services but active shapers of their own future. A core competence is the care of people with multiple disabilities and special nursing needs.

The history of Habila begins in 1889 with the establishment of four regional poor relief associations (Landarmenverbände) in the Kingdom of Württemberg and the Prussian province of Hohenzollern. These associations were responsible for needy individuals who, unlike the 'local poor', had no right of residence for support. In the following years, they founded so-called 'Armenbeschäftigungs- und Bewahranstalten' (work and custodial institutions) where homeless, elderly, sick, and disabled people were placed with little differentiation. These institutions were established in 1891 in Ulm ('Oberer Riedhof'), 1894 in Reutlingen-Rommelsbach, 1896 in Ellwangen ('Gut Rabenhof'), and 1897 in Markgröningen. Except for the Oberer Riedhof, which was closed in 1974 and replaced by Tannenhof Ulm, these original sites remain Habila locations today. In 1924, the four Landarmenverbände were merged into the Württemberg State Welfare Association (Württembergischer Landesfürsorgeverband), and the institutions were renamed 'Landesfürsorgeanstalten' (state welfare institutions). During the Nazi era, the crimes of the regime also affected these institutions. As part of the so-called 'Aktion T4' euthanasia program in 1940/41, at least 279 people from the four state welfare institutions were murdered, most of them at the Grafeneck killing center near Münsingen. In 1964, the newly created Landeswohlfahrtsverband (LWV) Württemberg-Hohenzollern took over the affairs of the state welfare association and thus the sponsorship of the homes. By resolution of the LWV assembly, the four homes were consolidated on 1 January 2003 under the umbrella of a non-profit limited liability company, LWV.Eingliederungshilfe GmbH. Its mandate was to develop innovative and decentralized housing and work opportunities for people with disabilities. Despite its dissolution on 1 January 2005, the LWV Württemberg-Hohenzollern remained the sole shareholder of LWV.Eingliederungshilfe GmbH until 1 January 2018, determining the principles through the shareholders' meeting of the 22 urban and rural districts of Württemberg-Hohenzollern. On 1 January 2018, LWV.Eingliederungshilfe was integrated into the Kommunalverband für Jugend und Soziales Baden-Württemberg (KVJS), but remained as a GmbH. The newly formed committee for inclusion assistance and integration companies within the KVJS assembly became responsible for LWV.Eingliederungshilfe. On 1 February 2019, the company was renamed Habila GmbH. The name 'Habila' is derived from 'Habilitation', reflecting the organization's focus on enabling and empowering people with disabilities. Today, Habila is represented in the urban and rural districts of Alb-Donau-Kreis and Ulm, Esslingen, Ludwigsburg, Ostalbkreis, Reutlingen, Tübingen, Heidenheim, and Schwäbisch Hall. It continues to operate a range of residential and work services, with a strong emphasis on deinstitutionalization and community inclusion.

• 2021

  QuarTeTT awarded the Bundesteilhabepreis in December 2021.

• 2020

  Start of the QuarTeTT project (1 April 2020 – 31 January 2022) to promote technology use for independent living.

• 2019

  Renaming of LWV.Eingliederungshilfe GmbH to Habila GmbH on 1 February.

• 2018

  Integration of LWV.Eingliederungshilfe into the Kommunalverband für Jugend und Soziales Baden-Württemberg (KVJS).

• 2005

  Dissolution of LWV Württemberg-Hohenzollern; it remained sole shareholder of LWV.Eingliederungshilfe GmbH until 2018.

• 2003

  The four homes consolidated under LWV.Eingliederungshilfe GmbH, a non-profit limited liability company.

• 1974

  Closure of the Oberer Riedhof institution, replaced by Tannenhof Ulm.

• 1964

  The newly created Landeswohlfahrtsverband (LWV) Württemberg-Hohenzollern took over the state welfare association and the sponsorship of the homes.

• 1940

  During 'Aktion T4', at least 279 people from the four state welfare institutions were murdered, most at Grafeneck.

• 1924

  The four Landarmenverbände merged into the Württemberg State Welfare Association; institutions renamed 'Landesfürsorgeanstalten'.

• 1897

  Opening of an institution in Markgröningen.

• 1896

  Opening of 'Gut Rabenhof' in Ellwangen.

• 1894

  Opening of an institution in Reutlingen-Rommelsbach.

• 1891

  Opening of the 'Oberer Riedhof' institution in Ulm.

• 1889

  Establishment of four regional poor relief associations (Landarmenverbände) in Württemberg and Hohenzollern, considered the founding moment of Habila.

Non-profit provider of disability support services emphasizing inclusion, self-determination, and community integration.

• Residential services

  Housing options for people with intellectual, physical, multiple, or psychological disabilities, including community-integrated living, specialized facilities, and individually supported living.

• Work and employment services

  Workshops, external workplaces, and inclusion enterprises (Insiva, Zemo) providing employment for around 750 people with disabilities daily.

• Voluntary services

  Placements for Bundesfreiwilligendienst (Federal Volunteer Service) and Freiwilliges Soziales Jahr (Voluntary Social Year).

• QuarTeTT project

  A project (2020–2022) using innovative technologies to enable more independent living for people with disabilities and care needs, supported by the Ministry of Social Affairs of Baden-Württemberg.

1. 1Habila official websitehabila.de
2. 2Über uns - Habilahabila.de
3. 3Geschichte - Habilahabila.de
4. 4QuarTeTT - Habilahabila.de
5. 5Habila - Wikipediade.wikipedia.org
6. 6Habila - Wikidatawikidata.org