VHS Hannover

VHS Hannover

Burgstraße 14
30159 Hannover, Germany

Website: www.vhs-hannover.de

VHS Hannover, founded in 1919, is a non-profit adult education institution affiliated to the municipality of Hannover. With a salaried staff of about 100 (74 FTE), plus up to 800 freelance teachers, it offers a programme of around 115 000 teaching hours per year, attended by 30 000 participants per year. The programme includes all aspects of general, vocational, social and cultural education.

- Society, environment, education,
- Culture, creativity, design,
- Health, nutrition, well-being
- Foreign languages
- Basic skills, school-leaving certificates,
- Work, vocational training, career development, IT skills
- Integration and German language courses for immigrants

VHS Hannover also organises public events, exhibitions, panel discussions regarding topics of public interest etc.

As local continuing education centre, VHS Hannover is operating every day including weekends. It offers daytime courses, evening classes, weekend seminars, study excursions and other events.

The main objective of VHS Hannover, laid down in its statutes, is to help citizens to participate in all aspects of society and to develop their personality. 

VHS Hannover is a member of the Deutscher Volkshochschulverband, a national umbrella organisation including 900 (typically municipal, or similar) adult education centres. They are financed though course fees and public subsidies. Volkshochschulen are regarded as Germany’s most visible non-profit providers of general adult education including continuing and vocational training, second-chance education, and all sorts of activities in the field of culture and health education.

VHS Hannover is part of the administrative structure of Hanover municipality. Its learning offers, however, are independently designed, without interference from overall administration.

VHS Hannover holds several certificates of quality management.

Experience with learning offers for disadvantaged

In Lower Saxony with its 8 million inhabitants, about 750 000 individuals are found being not able to read even simple texts.  Nation-wide, 14 % of those aged 18-65 are considered functional illiterate. (Figures for persons with German as first language.)

In this context, VHS Hannover has been developing numerous learning offers for low-skilled adults in recent years.

400 persons per year participate in literacy courses (40 courses, 4200 teaching hours) offered by VHS Hannover. Another 1000 adults attend courses to achieve a school leaving certificate (basic secondary or higher).

In addition, VHS Hannover is one of 8 adult education providers in Lowers Saxony chosen by the government to serve as Regional Basic Education Centres (RGZ), meaning that they get special funding in order to develop and provide special offers to low skilled.

VHS Hannover also offers courses for immigrants to learn German language and culture. Currently, about 120 classes with 14 participants each are held per semester. (4000 participants and 27 000 teaching hours per year).

A special field of work is providing courses for adults to achieve a school certificate missed when yet at school-age. Courses are offered on all levels (secondary education equivalent to 9-13 years of regular school). VHS Hannover employs 20 full-time teachers to provide such courses.