Reykjavík City is working to significantly increase preschool capacity in the coming months, aiming to add 850 new openings this year. In total, eight new preschools will open in the city this year.
A revised plan from the Bridging the Gap steering group for preschool development, presented to the City Executive Council today, calls for preschool openings to increase by up to 1,680 over the next three years.
Officials expect about half of these openings to become available this year. The City's preschools will begin accepting 12-month-old children this fall, with enrollment for these openings starting later in March. Eight new preschools will open in the city this year, including four Ævintýraborg preschools.
Strong growth in early childhood education
The population of Reykjavík has grown rapidly in recent years, and new population projections forecast a significant increase in the number of preschool-age children. The new action plan calls for more than twice as many new preschool openings as the original plan the City Council approved Nov. 18, 2018. The Bridging the Gap steering group has worked to bridge the gap between parental leave and preschool. Many City staff members have contributed to the planning and implementation of these ambitious goals.
The project's revised action plan includes the following:
- Instead of five new preschools, there will be 10 total: Kirkjusandur, Miðborg, Vogabyggð, Völvufell, Brákarborg/Kleppsvegur, Bríetartún, Safamýri, Ármúla (Múlaborg), Skerjafjörður, and Dalskóli.
- Four additional preschools, called Ævintýraborg, will open at Eggertsgata, Nauthólsvegur, Vogabyggð and Vörðuskóli. Up to three preschool buses will also be repurposed as mobile preschool units.
- Expansions and modifications will now take place at six schools instead of five: Funaborg, Laugasól, Hof, Kvistaborg, Sæborg and Seljakot.
- Instead of new preschool units in portable facilities at four preschools, they will be at seven to eight schools: Gullborg, Hagaborg, Hof, Jöklaborg, Kvistaborg, Maríuborg, Seljakot and likely at a preschool in Breiðholt where a feasibility study is underway.
- Instead of 166 new openings at private preschools, there will be at least 220, provided all contracts proceed as planned.
In addition to expanding preschool capacity, the City has also focused on improving the work environment through numerous initiatives over the past three years. These include adding staff to the oldest divisions, expanding facilities for children and employees, increasing preparation time, providing more funding for professional development and teamwork, and offering more study leaves. More than 4 billion króna has been spent on these efforts, which are aimed at making the city's preschools more desirable workplaces.