Evangelical Lutheran Church District of Wolfsburg-Wittingen

What Evangelical Lutheran Church District of Wolfsburg-Wittingen does

The Evangelisch-lutherischer Kirchenkreis Wolfsburg-Wittingen is a non-profit ecclesiastical administrative district within the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Hanover (Landeskirche Hannovers), headquartered in Wolfsburg, Niedersachsen, Germany. It serves approximately 45,000 members across 27 congregations spanning more than 80 km from Sprakensehl to Rennau, and operates an extensive portfolio of religious, educational, and social services. Core offerings include regular worship services, pastoral counseling, marriage/family counseling, social work, refugee social work, telephone pastoral care, hospital and hospice chaplaincy, and youth programs. The Kirchenkreis operates 20 kindergartens (Kindertagesstätten) and 3 family centers (Familienstätten), plus two family-education centers (Evangelische Familienbildungsstätte Wolfsburg and Wittinger Bunte Dach), and is staffed by approximately 750 employees across 28 congregations and ancillary facilities.

Revenue is generated from three primary streams: the legally mandated Kirchensteuer (church tax) collected through the German state tax system on behalf of registered members of the Evangelical Church in Germany; voluntary donations processed via the Twingle donation platform (PayPal and credit card, PCI-certified, Germany-hosted servers); and parish fees for life-event ceremonies such as weddings, baptisms, and funerals. Specific pricing is not publicly disclosed because the entity is a religious non-profit, not a commercial enterprise. The Kirchenkreis also draws external project funding from the Gustav-Adolf-Werk, Martin-Luther-Bund, and the Bingo-Stiftung Niedersachsen for its international partnership work in Ethiopia (Mekane Yesus Church South Central Synodode) and Russia (Lutheran congregation in Togliatti).

The technology stack is conventional rather than proprietary: a content-managed website (kirche-wolfsburg-wittingen.de) supported by Matomo for cookie-free web analytics, OpenStreetMap integration, Google reCAPTCHA for form protection, and the Formulare-e survey tool from Evangelical Medienarbeit (EMA). The entity is DSGVO- and DSG-EKD-compliant and maintains a dedicated Datenschutzbeauftragte. Leadership is ecclesiastical in nature, headed by Superintendent Christian Berndt, supported by a Kirchenkreisvorstand and a Kirchenkreissynode, with no venture, equity, or public-market ownership. The organization is currently responding to historical sexualized-violence cases from the 1970s and 1980s in the Wolfsburg Stephanusgemeinde through the ForuM research consortium, and is undertaking heritage-preservation initiatives including the Stiftung Forum Alvar Aalto for the Heilig-Geist-Ensemble.

Name

Evangelical Lutheran Church District of Wolfsburg-Wittingen

Legal name

Evangelisch-lutherischer Kirchenkreis Wolfsburg-Wittingen

Website

https://kirche-wolfsburg-wittingen.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Evangelisch-lutherischer Kirchenkreis Wolfsburg-Wittingen is a German non-profit church district within the Landeskirche Hannovers, serving approximately 45,000 members across 27 congregations spanning 80 km, operating 20 kindergartens, 3 family centers, and pastoral, social, and educational services funded by church tax, donations, and fees.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Religious Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Religious Organizations (81311)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Denominational & Ecclesiastical Governance Bodies (Dioceses, Synods, Conferences) (BPAGAJAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Faith-Based Social Services & Community Outreach (Food Pantries, Shelters, Counseling) (BPAGAJAG), Faith-Based Education & Formation (Seminaries, Religious Schools, Catechesis) (BPAGAJAD), Faith-Based Childcare Centers (EDACAAAN)

Keywords

• Religious services
• Pastoral care
• Church administration
• Childcare services
• Social counseling

Headquarters

HQ city

Wolfsburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Church Tax (Kirchensteuer): Mandatory church tax collected through the German tax system by members of the Evangelical Church in Germany
2. Donations and Offerings: Voluntary donations from church members during services and for specific projects
3. Parish Fees: Fees for specific services such as weddings, baptisms, and funerals

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Evangelical Lutheran Church District of Wolfsburg-Wittingen is a regional church administrative body that provides Protestant religious services (worship services, baptisms, weddings, funerals), pastoral counseling and crisis intervention, early childhood education through 20 kindergartens and 3 family centers, family and adult education programs, social welfare services including refugee support, and chaplaincy in hospitals, nursing homes, and hospices, all delivered across 27 local congregations in the Wolfsburg-Wittingen area of Lower Saxony, Germany.

Product overview

The Evangelisch-lutherischer Kirchenkreis Wolfsburg-Wittingen operates as a church district with a portfolio of religious, educational, and social service offerings. The core services include worship services (Gottesdienste), pastoral counseling (Seelsorge), and children/youth programs through 20 kindergartens and 3 family centers. Educational services are provided through two family education centers. Social services encompass church district social work, refugee support, marriage/family counseling, telephone pastoral care, hospital and hospice chaplaincy. The district also maintains international partnerships with churches in Ethiopia and Russia, supporting theological education and humanitarian projects including a solar panel installation for a health station in Ethiopia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gottesdienste und Andachten (Worship Services and Devotionals) Regular Protestant worship services, life-event ceremonies (weddings, baptisms, confirmations, funerals), and devotional/meditation content provided for community members across all 27 congregations.
• Beratung und Seelsorge (Counseling and Pastoral Care) Pastoral counseling, spiritual guidance, crisis intervention, telephone pastoral care, nursing home pastoral care, hospital pastoral care, and hospice pastoral care for individuals and families in need.
• Kinder- und Jugendangebote (Children and Youth Programs) Early childhood education and daycare through 20 kindergartens, family center programming, school and youth services for children and adolescents across the district.
• Bildung (Education) Family and adult education programs delivered through the Evangelische Familienbildungsstätte Wolfsburg and the Wittinger Bunte Dach family education center, open independent of age, origin, religion, income, or nationality.
• Kirchenkreissozialarbeit (Church District Social Work) Social work services including refugee social work, marriage and family counseling, life counseling, crisis hotlines, hospital chaplaincy, and hospice pastoral care for vulnerable community members.
• U25-Lektoren-Kurs (Lector Training for Youth) Training course for young people aged 16-25 to become lay readers (Lektoren), teaching them to design and lead worship services.
• Internationale Partnerschaften (International Partnerships) International church partnerships supporting theological education scholarships, aid projects, and congregational development with Mekane Yesus Church (South Central Synodode) in Ethiopia and the Evangelical Lutheran St. Georg Congregation in Togliatti, Russia.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Mekane Yesus Church (South Central Synodode) - EthiopiacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019The church district maintains a partnership with the South Central Synodode of the Evangelical Lutheran Mekane Yesus Church in Ethiopia. The partnership focuses on theological education support, including scholarships for young women, and development projects such as a solar installation for a health station in Kosha, southern Ethiopia. Joint visits and exchanges strengthen the relationship.
• Evangelical Lutheran St. Georg Congregation - Togliatti, RussiacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Since 2016, the church district has partnered with the Lutheran congregation in Togliatti, led by Pastorin Tatjana Zhivoderova. The partnership supports the congregation's social-diakonal work with children, youth, and young adults with disabilities through the 'Klub Initiative Togliatti' (KIT) project. The German congregation in Togliatti has approximately 70 members and focuses on disability support work in a region where state support is limited.
• Togliatti Children's Aid (Since 1991)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSince 1991, the church district has invited children from Chernobyl-affected areas for recuperative stays, part of a church-wide aid program.
• ForuM Research ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe church district participates in the ForuM study (Forschung zur Aufarbeitung von sexualisierter Gewalt und anderen Missbrauchsformen in der evangelischen Kirche) - a research consortium studying sexual abuse and other forms of abuse in the Evangelical Church. Cases from the 1970s and 1980s in the Wolfsburg Stephanus congregation are part of this scientific study published in January 2024.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Diakonie Deutschland: The social services arm of the Evangelical Church in Germany. Comparable because the church district's counseling, refugee, and family services overlap heavily with Diakonie's welfare mission and delivery model.
• Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland (EKD): The umbrella confederation of German Protestant churches. Comparable as the higher-level administrative body under which this Kirchenkreis operates and which publishes aggregate membership data driving policy.
• Caritas Deutschland: The Catholic counterpart social services organization operating in Germany. Comparable as a parallel faith-based social services provider serving overlapping community needs (childcare, counseling, refugee aid, hospice).
• Evangelisch-lutherische Landeskirche Hannovers: The parent ecclesiastical body (Landeskirche) of the Kirchenkreis Wolfsburg-Wittingen. Operates across all of Lower Saxony and is the direct governance hierarchy above this district, making it the most structurally comparable entity.

Direct peers

• Kirchenkreis Hildesheim-Sarstedt: A neighboring Evangelical Lutheran church district within the same Landeskirche Hannovers. Directly comparable as a peer Kirchenkreis with similar governance, funding (church tax), and operational structure across multiple congregations.
• Verband Evangelischer Kindertageseinrichtungen: Association of Protestant kindergartens in Germany. Directly comparable to the church district's 20 kindergartens and 3 family centers, representing the same operational model of faith-affiliated early childhood education.
• Gustav-Adolf-Werk (GAW): German Protestant diaspora organization that financially supports the Wolfsburg-Wittingen district's Togliatti partnership. Comparable as a faith-based organization with similar international partnership and member-funded grantmaking model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• Instagraminstagram.com/kirchewolfsburgwittingen
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kirchenkreis-wolfsburg

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Evangelical Lutheran Church District of Wolfsburg-Wittingen