When the Schulbegleitung is absent – what matters now

The message arrives in the morning:

“The Schulbegleitung (school-support assistant) is off sick today.”

And suddenly the whole day is up in the air.

Can the child even go to school today? Who stays at home? What happens with work? And how do you organise, within a few minutes, a day that was actually planned quite differently?

For families with a child with a disability, the short-notice absence of a school or nursery support assistant can change the entire course of the day.

It is precisely in situations like this that it can be incredibly valuable to already have another familiar person as part of family life.

Can the au pair replace the Schulbegleitung?

The basic principle is:

An au pair is not a Schulbegleitung (school-support assistant) and does not replace one.

They are neither deployed by the school as a Schulbegleitung nor do they automatically take on its tasks or responsibility.

Even so, it can be worth speaking early on with the school or nursery about what individual options exist for short-notice absences.

Depending on the setting and the situation, it can, for example, be clarified whether and under what conditions the au pair would be allowed to accompany the child in such an exceptional situation.

This is not a one-size-fits-all solution and must always be agreed individually with the relevant setting and, where applicable, any other responsible bodies.

And if the child has to stay at home?

This is exactly where a further advantage of an au pair becomes clear.

Because a cancelled school day doesn't automatically have to mean that the whole family routine collapses.

Within the agreed working hours, the au pair can spend part of that time with the child.

Perhaps familiar exercises from school are practised again.

There is reading, drawing or crafting together.

Perhaps there is a little activity session, a walk, or a visit to the playground.

Naturally, this does not replace a regular school day, and it does not turn the au pair into a teacher.

But the morning can be made meaningful, familiar and structured.

The child already knows this person

For children who find change difficult, a day like this, unplanned, can be a real challenge.

The usual Schulbegleitung is missing. The normal daily routine changes. Perhaps school is cancelled altogether.

In this situation, the au pair is not some unfamiliar emergency carer.

They already know the child.

They know what the child likes to play with, which activities bring them joy, and how certain routines work at home.

That can give an unplanned day a bit of familiarity again.

The siblings don't automatically have to take a back seat either

Perhaps the child with a disability needs more support that day.

Then the au pair can provide support exactly there.

Or the roles are shared differently: one parent looks after the child, while the au pair is there for the siblings and helps carry them through their normal daily routine.

The decisive advantage remains the same:

The family has one more person with whom they can reorganise the day.

A cancelled day becomes a different day

An au pair cannot prevent a Schulbegleitung from being absent.

Nor can they simply replace the Schulbegleitung.

But they can help cushion the impact on the whole family.

Instead of having to organise unfamiliar care within a few minutes in the morning, there is already someone there who knows the child and the family's daily routine.

And if school or nursery genuinely isn't possible that day, a chaotic cancelled day can at least become a structured day at home:

a bit of practising, a bit of playing, going outside, eating together – and shaping the day in whatever way suits the child at that moment.

Our tip from Besondere Sterne

If your child relies on a school or nursery support assistant, speak to the setting as early as possible about what options exist for short-notice absences.

If an au pair lives with your family, you can also clarify at the same time whether, and within what framework, they could provide additional support in such an exceptional situation.

And even if accompaniment within the setting isn't possible, one decisive advantage remains:

At home, there is already a familiar person who can cover part of the day.

An au pair does not replace a Schulbegleitung.

But they can make sure that its absence doesn't automatically become an absence for the whole family.