Kindergarten Fees Abolished by Berlin in German First

Berlin’s regional government announced Monday that, beginning of this month, parents will no longer have to pay any fees to place their children in municipal day care centers in a move expected to make the German capital even more attractive to young families.
Among 16 states the city is the first to abolish fees, in a country where the cost of sending children to kindergarten differs vastly depending on where you live.
“Berlin has kept its promise and has resumed its policy to be family-friendly,” said Sandra Scheeres, the Berlin senator for youth and a member of the Social Democrats.
However, parents with children across all age groups — from ages zero to six — will still have to pay for food in daycare centers. They will have to pay a €23 (about £20) monthly fee for food and a monthly fee of €90 to cover extra activities such as sport and music lessons.
“For many Berlin families it makes a big difference whether or not they have to pay contributions to the day care center,” said Sandra Scheeres, Berlin’s Social Democratic (SPD) Senator for Education, Youth and Family. “The free day care center for all means a noticeable financial relief for many parents. Childcare facilities are educational institutions, and education must be free of charge.”
But even as many parents were celebrating the move, the opprtunity will save them hundreds of euros a month, critics were warning that the apparently generous gesture threatened to sink the city’s creaking childcare infrastructure.
> Shiuly Rina