Will reduce opening hours – thinks children improved in ‘crown kindergarten’ – NRK Norway – Summary of news from different parts of the country

– I think the children experienced it for sure. They were allowed to be with the same adults all day and there was more peace in the delivery situation.

The educational leader in the Ilebrekke kindergarten, Agnetha Nakken, remembers the first time after the closure of Norway. Tight infection control measures with small groups, permanent staff, and shorter opening hours contributed to creating what many kindergarten employees have described as a “dream kindergarten.”

Parents also noticed the changes.

– They were some of the best weeks we’ve had in kindergarten. It was calm, predictability and security that characterized both the children and the employees, says Christina Grefsrud-Halvorsen.

She has the experiences as a mother in another kindergarten in Tønsberg. She emphasizes that the son’s kindergarten was good and that understaffing is a structural problem in Norway. In most kindergartens, there are only fully staffed in the middle of the day because employees have to “cover” all opening hours.

– Better staffing is an important key to the well-being of children. That in itself is positive. When opening hours are shortened, they don’t have to “lubricate the staff too little,” and basic staffing gets better.

Will change permanently

The positive experiences of the “crown kindergarten” have led to a debate about opening hours across the country, including Trondheim, Bergen, Hammerfest, Mo i Rana and Levanger. Kindergarten employees and politicians have floated the idea of ​​cutting opening hours a bit for the sake of children.

At Levanger, this has received a mixed reception.

– I and many other parents in the municipality think that it is gibberish, and we believe that it will never come true, says Guro Martine Bjerkan, who has just picked up her son Bendik (5) from kindergarten.

Bjerkan, who is also on the Staup Kindergarten Parent Committee, has a 45-minute commute from work at Steinkjer. This makes it a challenge to get to the kindergarten, which still closes at 4pm due to infection control.

– I am lucky to have flexible hours, but as a rule the days are full of meetings and telephone inquiries from which it is difficult to escape.

I think nine hours is enough

Kari Olafsen Aunet, head of the Levanger Township Kindergarten Unit, is behind the proposal to reduce the opening hours to nine hours. The background is the desire to improve the staffing and quality of the kindergarten with the funds available to it.

She says they have received clear signals from the children about how they experienced having a shorter time in kindergarten.

– During the time with Korona, the children always knew that the adult was close. We experience a completely different calm than we normally do.

She says the municipality has mapped the needs of parents and verified with employers. The bottom line is that nine hours of open time, and at least residency time, is sufficient for most people.

– Some people come and go to kindergarten so that the children have as much time as possible with the family, but there are also those who think that it is good to stop by the store, exercise and clean the house first.

– Do you understand the frustration of parents struggling to increase daily logistics?

– Yes, and especially if you have a long trip. At the same time, the Work Environment Act says something about the rights of adults. When children have to spend nine to ten hours in kindergarten, they have a long workday. Because it is a working day for children to be in kindergarten.

Must pick up at SFO

Guro Martine Bjerkan does not acknowledge that parents use kindergarten opening hours more than absolutely necessary.

– I don’t know what survey the municipality has done with businessmen, but businesspeople cannot define my needs. For example, they don’t know if I should also pick up at SFO.

– Time to take the debate

Proposals to shorten the kindergarten opening hours have met with strong reactions in several places.

A local politician described it as “anti-gender” in an interview with Rana Blad. In Trondheim, the proposal was called “reactionary” by NHO, and Mayor Rita Ottervik (Labor) said it was “a debate that I didn’t want to expose people to.”

Christina Grefsrud-Halvorsen, who is also a spokesperson for the “Parent Uprising” on Facebook, thinks it’s time to raise the debate on opening hours:

– We have said for a long time that the framework needs to be increased and staffing strengthened, but we are not being listened to. Then we have to look for other solutions, such as shorter opening hours. Just cutting an hour or an hour and a half is likely to have a great effect.

She believes that working life should contribute to finding solutions.

– Now we have tried to be more flexible in working life, and many did well. We must get to a point where the need for safety of children and many adults is the guiding principle, not just the best in working life. Children don’t scream it themselves. We must be the voices of the children.