Järvenpää wants to bail out Finland’s oldest English-language daycare centre
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The City of Järvenpää is trying to save Finland’s oldest daycare centre with instruction in English.
The city’s municipal board of social affairs and health decided on Wednesday to offer the centre to the Parasta pienelle (“Best for the Small One”), in return for a commitment to continue the operations.
The wooden building where the 35-year-old daycare centre has operated will be allowed to stay in use at least until the summer. Before Wednesday’s decision, the wooden art nouveau building was to have been left empty from the beginning of next year.
The fate of the English-language daycare centre still appeared doubtful during the day on Wednesday. “We had heard that the movers had been booked for Saturday next week. The group of 16 children would have been split up”, says Sari Holi, chairwoman of the support organisation for the Järvenpää English-language playschool.
The fate of the Aksentti daycare centre has been a topic of debate in Järvenpää all autumn. On Wednesday the social affairs and health care board resolved that an extension for the use of the building, which was to have been shut down, should be applied for. The board also decided to allow the entrepreneur that was found by the support organisation, to apply for the right to operate the daycare centre.
“The situation has been difficult for the parents as well. We moved to Järvenpää specifically because it was possible to get English-language instruction in daycare”, Sari Holi says.
In addition to Järvenpää, child daycare in English has been available in the Central Uusimaa region in Kerava and Hyvinkää.
In the Helsinki region, much more is available. In Helisnki there are 13 daycare centres which operate exclusively in English, or which put a special emphasis on the language. In Espoo there are 10, and in Vantaa one daycare centre operates in English alone.
In Järvenpää English-language daycare began in 1973, and in 1995 the school began to offer full-day daycare. Last year the support organisation sold the daycare centre to an entrepreneur, which quickly sold it on to a new entrepreneur, which does not want to continue to offer preschool education in English.
Mirja Varis, head of early education for the City of Järvenpää, notes that the city was unable to oblige the present owners to maintain teaching in English.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 11.12.2008 - TODAY |
 Järvenpää wants to bail out Finland’s oldest English-language daycare centre |
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