Berlin: The Best Place to Raise Kids
It turns out that you don’t have to give up big-city life in order to provide your children with a safe and pleasant place to grow up.
According to a new study, Berlin ranks as the top town in Germany in which to raise kids. This was the result of an analysis of thirty German towns by internet platform savoo. They found out that Berlin has more family-friendly restaurants, more daycare centers, more parks, and more kid-friendly attractions than anywhere else in the country.
Other factors the study takes into account are average monthly income, crime rate, the number of doctors in relation to the number of inhabitants, affordability of housing, and the general sense of security and safety felt by inhabitants. All in all, they found the best German city for families with children is Berlin. Which is ironic given that the younger generation or childless inhabitants probably think Berlin is the best city for partying.
The capital offers the most parks (87), all manner of daytime child care centers (2,316), and 2,906 kid-friendly restaurants. Berlin also offers the widest range of family friendly activities. The 187 activities the study counts no doubt include the dedicated children’s universe FEZ, the numerous children’s and puppet theaters, children’s farms, children’s museums, the animal park and the zoo.
The survey even notes that Berlin is top in terms of sustainability since it is for instance the city with the most stores that offer their goods without packaging, the more environment-friendly way to shop.
Berlin has 243 doctors per 100,000 inhabitants, which is in midfield (at over 331, ex-capital Bonn has the largest number of doctors). Berlin is also in midfield when it comes to the level of air pollution. The average wage is relatively high in the capital, which is just as well because so is the average rent and the hourly wage of babysitters.
Despite a relatively high crime rate as measured per capita, Berlin is not a city in which you feel unsafe. So when it comes to living with kids, Berlin ranks first in Germany, due mainly to the high average salaries as well as the high number of child-friendly leisure facilities, preschool nursery child care services, and green spaces.
The multitude of options for leisure activities gives Berlin a decisive advantage; because of the huge variety there’s always plenty of things to do with and for the offspring.
Family in Berlin: What The Study Missed
Of course, it is not really news to us that Berlin is great for children. Back at the end of 2017, Kimberley Bohle said in a reason-why interview, “All in all, Berlin makes raising a family a lot easier.”
The study doesn’t mention that there are playgrounds all over the place, approximately 1,750 within the city limits. Berlin offers subsidized swimming courses for children. Many cafés cater specifically to parents with children, many doctor’s offices have play areas for children, and there are pushchair spaces in all means of public transport.
Flexible working hours for parents are standard with employers in Berlin. Children receive discounts on many leisure activities. Furthermore, the Family Pass was specially created for the whole family. It offers reduced admission to swimming pools and other leisure programmes such as the zoo, exhibitions and some sports clubs, as well as discounts on public transport.
The Berlin Talent portal sums up the advantages of Berlin for family life, with further information on child care, schools and old age in Berlin.
The Berlin Family portal offers concrete advice, news, and event listings on everything to do with having a family in the city, from pregnancy and giving birth over applying for daycare or schools to managing as a single parent.
The German government offers a national family portal which lists benefits.
Every child of school age is required to attend school in Berlin. The Senate provides this overview of education in Berlin. There are a number of different types of schools, half-day or full-day. Next to state schools and the international schools, there are schools with various pedagogical concepts such as Montessori or Waldorf education, also known as Steiner education. And while schools must to an extent follow a standardized curriculum, especially for examinations, many schools have particular thematic orientation such as a focus on technical or humanistic subjects such as the arts. The Talent portal describes how to find the right school for your child.
All in all, you can be sure that whatever their age, your kids will love it in Berlin!
Text: Olaf Bryan Wielk, ideenmanufaktur
Header image: © pexels.com
