City plans daycare closings: is the bouncy castle in front of that?

City plans daycare closings: is the bouncy castle in front of that?

Ebersbach-Neugersdorf, Deutschland - in Ebersbach-Neugersdorf, a small but lively city in Saxony, is flimming in childcare. The city administration has considered the closure of two daycare centers, the "bouncy castle" under the direction of Silvana Havel and the AWO daycare center "Sprequellspatzen". The motives? Financial bottlenecks and a dramatic decline in children's numbers. As sächsische.de Closes in the room, since over 100 daycare places remained unused within just two years.

The entire extent of the situation felt Silvana Havel as early as March 2023 when she was surprisingly informed about the closure plans. According to Mayor Steffen Ain, who is independent, the city provides for the closures for the end of 2026 or possibly until the summer of 2027. A working group will keep an eye on the future demand for childcare places by the end of 2025, but the uncertainty is heavily on the shoulders of those affected.

falling birth rates and unused places

Last year only 38 newborns were counted in Ebersbach-Neugersdorf, in the previous year there were 60th forecasts that the district of Görlitz could soon fight with an oversupply in daycare places. The city council has already decided to close the two daycare centers because they can attract fewer and fewer children. In other cities of Saxony, too, you are faced with similar challenges. In Chemnitz, for example, about 1000 places will soon be unused, while in Dresden daycare centers are reduced because the demand has decreased rapidly nd-aktuell.de.

"The Bouncy Castle", which only opened 22 years ago due to a lack of space at the time, was long as a popular care facility. However, Havel pointed out that the city used misleading information to justify the closures, and she was never interested in a closure. The daycare center is now looking for a new carrier to save the facility.

The initiative of the parents and educators

In response to the impending closings, Silvana Havel and her colleague started a petition to rethink the city council's decision. So far, 2200 signatures have been collected - a clear sign of the support of parents and the community. The signature lists are available in various shops and public institutions to achieve as many people as possible.

As in other cities, the closure of daycare centers in Ebersbach-Neugersdorf not only affects children and parents, but also affects the employees: inside the facilities. In Saxony, a significant increase in vacancies in the educational industry is expected, since fewer and fewer children are coming to daycare centers and many employees are already: to shorten their working hours inside. This situation could create further problems in childcare in the near future, while the Verdi union warns of the episodes MDR.de.

The developments in the region are also a reflection of a change in society as a whole - the birth rate drops, and many daycare centers remain empty. Despite the challenges, those responsible in Ebersbach-Neugersdorf hope that the ongoing discussions and the collected signatures bring a solution to the valuable facilities.