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Daycare fee exemption remains: Families in MV save 18,000 euros!
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania continues to lead the way with non-contributory daycare centers. Families save an average of 18,000 euros before starting school.
Daycare fee exemption remains: Families in MV save 18,000 euros!
A reason to be happy for all parents in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: the freedom to pay fees in daycare centers remains! Since 2020, families in this federal state have not had to pay any contributions for the care of their children in crèche, kindergarten or after-school care. This regulation has proven to be a blessing, because on average parents save around 18,000 euros by the time their child starts school World reported. SPD parliamentary group leader Julian Barlen emphasizes the socio-political significance of this decision and speaks of it as an important step to relieve the burden on families.
What is particularly pleasing is that the holiday center has also been free of contributions since summer 2022. This shows the efforts of the coalition of the SPD and the Left to ensure freedom of contribution in the next two years. At the beginning of December, a double budget for 2026 and 2027 was approved, which underlines the intention to continue the valuable support of non-contributory education in daycare centers and schools in the long term.
Improvements in care
Education Minister Simone Oldenburg (Die Linke) announced that an improved childcare key would be introduced at the start of the new daycare year. The focus is on criticism from the municipalities, which point to one of the lowest care ratios nationwide. According to the Bertelsmann Foundation, 14 children over the age of three are looked after by a specialist. The minister also announced that the number of trainees in teacher training has doubled - a step that should help to remedy this situation.
Despite negative voices about the challenges of financial responsibility in daycare financing, non-contributory care remains in place. However, Oldenburg emphasizes that a 100% guarantee cannot be given for the future of freedom from contributions.
Looking into the future
Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, together with Berlin, is one of the only federal states that offers complete exemption from contributions in early childhood care. This development comes in the context of an increase in the use of child day care of around 38 percent between 2006 and 2023, which is mainly due to the increasing number of children under three years of age. In addition, the skilled worker quota in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is the highest in a nationwide comparison, as almost all employees are trained educators.
The high daycare opening times of up to ten hours a day also help to meet the needs of working parents. In view of these positive developments, however, the rising costs must also be absorbed, as non-contributory daycare is becoming increasingly more expensive for state and local budgets. The fact is: Financial support for early childhood education is borne by public budgets, with a total of 40.5 billion euros flowing into child day care in 2022.
In summary, it should be noted that non-contributory daycare not only relieves the burden on families, but also points to challenges that the social and economic sector must overcome in education policy. An essential issue in which all actors - from politicians to educators to municipalities - should act with a good hand in order to keep the quality of care consistently high.