Education and Science, Estonia

Deputy Mayor Vadim Belobrovtsev said that the city wishes to provide assistance and support foremost to those who need it most.

"We also consider equal treatment of the children receiving the childcare service or attending a private childcare institution with the children going to a municipal kindergarten as important,"  Belobrovtsev said according to spokespeople.

"We have been offering free meals at municipal kindergartens already since 2017, and from September of this year an exemption from the place fee is awarded to families in economic difficulty and parents of children with special education needs. Users of the private kindergarten and childcare service have been supported by the city to date with the payment of the place fee, now the city will start to also cover the costs of the meals of the children receiving private services and support the parents of special needs children with the payment of tuition," the deputy mayor said. 

The operators of private childcare institutions are supported by the city with a similar amount as  municipal kindergartens -- 187 euros per month per child. Starting from September, the city  covers the costs of the meals of children attending private childcare or a private kindergarten to the extent of the established amount of 1.80 euros a day for children of creche age and two euros a day for children of kindergarten age, and to pay 71.25 euros a month in support of the tuition of special education needs children attending a private kindergarten, which is equal to the place fee in a municipal kindergarten.

The recipient of the subsidy for the kindergarten meals of children going to a private kindergarten is the operator of the kindergarten, which will bill the parent correspondingly less. The compensation of the cost of meals in private childcare will be transferred into the account of the  parent together with the compensation of the cost of private childcare. 

Parents of special education needs children will be supported with the payment of tuition in a private preschool children's institution if their child is attending such institution on the recommendation of an extracurricular counseling team. The maximum size of the support is 71.25 euros per child per month. 

Additional measures to ease the burden of parents will also become available for the parents of children attending a municipal kindergarten. Starting from Sept. 1, the children of families whose monthly income per first family member is smaller than the valid minimum pay, and smaller than 80% of the valid minimum pay per each subsequent family member, will be fully exempted from the kindergarten place fee.

In addition, the parents of special education needs children attending special groups in Tallinn's municipal kindergartens will be fully exempted from the place fee payable for their child.

All aforementioned measures are meant for registered residents of Tallinn.