Potsdam: Daycare centers remain in municipal hands despite falling birth rates

Potsdam: Daycare centers remain in municipal hands despite falling birth rates

Given the declining birth rates, the situation of daycare centers in Potsdam is a challenge that requires both planning and foresight. Current reports show that a significant proportion of daycare places remain unused. Loud Daily Mirror There are currently around 1,500 of the total 11,400 daycare places available in the Brandeburg state capital. This accounts for almost a quarter!

The numbers are alarming: In September, 3,011 places in daycare centers and crèches could not be filled, including 1,297 in crèches. A significant increase compared to the 2,296 free places last year. The decline in births, which will fall to an estimated 677,000 in 2024, also has an impact on Potsdam's daycare landscape. In 2016, 1,997 newborns were counted, while in 2024 there were only 1,444. Some facilities are even reporting below 50 percent occupancy, making the situation even more complicated. RBB24 provides detailed information on this.

Daycare closures and usage

In order to meet this challenge, the Youth Welfare Committee has decided that daycare or after-school buildings that are no longer needed should not be sold. In the event of possible closures, it should first be examined whether the buildings can alternatively be used as a family center or youth welfare facility. This is seen as a strategic commitment to keeping municipal resources in public hands. Tiemo Reimann (SPD), chairman of the committee, sees this as a “milestone for Potsdam” and emphasizes the need to invest savings from closures and mergers in the qualitative support of existing daycare centers in order to ensure a high quality of care. Daily Mirror emphasizes that the committee also thinks long-term.

The decision is not only perceived as a reaction to the current situation, but also as an opportunity to prepare the daycare centers for the future. And what is particularly being discussed here is the repurposing of empty spaces, which have been in short supply in recent years but are now being discussed to be rethought. IWD makes it clear that we are moving in the historical context of birth rates, which shows that there will be a drastic decline in 2024.

Impact and outlook

The falling birth rates not only affect Potsdam, but are a Germany-wide phenomenon. It is predicted that the number of children under three will decline by around 12 percent by 2028. In order to meet the challenges, differentiated concepts are required. This affects the regionally different needs for daycare and school places, which will have to be taken into account more in the future. IWD explains that in eastern Germany, where the number of children under three has been falling continuously since 2017, there will be significant underutilization in daycare centers by 2028.

Overall, it can be said that Potsdam is well on its way to actively tackling the challenges of the future. The strategic decisions of the past few days could set the course for better care for children in the long term. This remains to be seen.