District Administrator visits holiday care at the Henkel School in Vöhl
Tempting smells wafted through the Henkel School in Vöhl during the last week of the summer holidays. 13 little bakers had taken over the canteen of the primary school and tried their hand at making a chocolate tartlet. With success, as District Administrator Jürgen van der Horst was able to convince himself by tasting them.
During his visit to the Henkel School's holiday care programme as part of the "Pakt für den Ganztag", the district administrator took the opportunity to lend a hand in the bakery himself. His support was enthusiastically accepted by the girls and boys. After all, who else can say at such a young age that they went to school with the head of the district authority?
Headmistress Christine Wolff had briefly introduced the Pact for All-day Care at the Henkel School to the District Administrator during a tour. Two large rooms are available for childcare. In addition, there is a "quiet room" which is very popular with the children. There they have the opportunity to withdraw, rest and relax.
"This is the seventh time we have offered holiday care during the summer holidays," the headmistress pointed out. This year it was the last two weeks of the holidays, during which up to 14 registered children could do something together from 8 am - 4 pm. Especially playing together in the school, the excursions to the Basdorf corn maze, the Hemfurth/ Edersee wildlife park and the visit to the Asel playground had given the children and carers a lot of pleasure.
"With such a great offer, one likes to go to school voluntarily even during the summer holidays," said district administrator van der Horst, putting himself in the mind of the primary school children. Getting together with their peers, doing handicrafts together, maybe even playing theatre or baking their own provisions for the afternoon "coffee" - that's how rainy days can be endured.
It is to be hoped that many more primary schools will join the all-day pact and thus the holiday care. More children should definitely have this opportunity for supervised playful activities, concluded the district administrator during his visit to the Henkel School.
Background Pact for All-day Education
The Pact for All-day Education is a joint offer of the State of Hesse and the school authorities. It serves to implement educational and childcare programmes at Hessian primary schools and primary grades of special schools. On the one hand, the aim is to provide even better support for children by offering additional educational opportunities in the afternoon. On the other hand, it also contributes to a better compatibility of family and work - childcare is guaranteed until 5 pm.
In the district of Waldeck-Frankenberg, the offer has existed since the 2016/2017 school year. While there were seven in the beginning, 18 of the 38 primary schools are now participating in the Pact for All-Day Education. The childcare offer during the Hessian holidays is provided by 17 Pakt schools during the summer holidays, one Pakt school during the autumn and Easter holidays and by one school during the Easter holidays in addition to the summer holidays. Depending on local needs, the schools decide individually on the time and scope of holiday care. During the holiday care, the district bears the costs alone; the state of Hesse and the district share the costs for care during school hours.