The Local Committee of Nueva Canarias-Bloque Canarista (NC-bc) in Arrecife has expressed its intention to commence the school year by urging the municipal government, comprising the Popular Party (PP) and Coalición Canaria (CC), to invest public funds in constructing childcare centres for children aged 0 to 3 years.
Call for Action
Sheila Guillén, spokesperson for the Canaristas in Arrecife, emphasised that “currently, Arrecife has only one public nursery school, which offers 50 places this academic year out of a total of 90 available. This number is insufficient for a city of 70,000 inhabitants, where the child population is approximately 3 per cent.”
Demand for More Places
Guillén stated that “the Strategic Plan for the Education of Children Aged 0 to 2 years from the Government of the Canary Islands sets a minimum coverage of 40 per cent in early childhood education. This implies that Arrecife should provide around 700 public places.” She argues that this figure is “far from the current reality, where most families cannot enroll their children as private options are also inadequate.”
Importance of Early Education
“Arrecife neglects important matters for its residents, and nursery schools are essential for many families attempting to balance work and home life,” Guillén asserted. She believes it is “crucial” to begin efforts to ensure Arrecife has more public nursery schools that guarantee accessible, quality education, as mandated by the agreement between the Federation of Municipalities of the Canary Islands and the Government of the Canary Islands, which commit municipalities to assist in the construction of public nursery schools.
Two-Pronged Approach
According to the Canaristas, “the Council can work on two fronts; the first is to promote the construction of nursery schools with its own resources; the second is to demand, through the Federation of Municipalities of the Canary Islands, that the Government of the Canary Islands approves more public places in educational centres within the municipality.”
Future of Children’s Education
“Investing in early childhood education is investing in the future of the children of Arrecife and should not be determined by postcode or the island of residence,” commented Guillén. She contends that “both the PP and CC do not support early childhood education. They choose to make each family pay or struggle to find solutions. This model neglects the welfare of our neighbours and the education of our children.”
