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Childcare and schools

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Consultation with us

We are happy to help our guests with questions about childcare and schools. When looking for the right childcare it always depends on the period of time and what kind of care is needed.
Below you will find general information and links about the topic of childcare and schools. Furthermore, we provide information about help that you can get from various counseling centers on the respective topics and especially from us.
In general, it is important that you take care of childcare matters as early as possible so that a suitable solution can be found for you and your family.

You are welcome to contact us through housing$@$mpim-bonn$.$mpg$.$de with any questions you might have.
 

Childcare

The city of Bonn offers a Counseling center for family affairs (website only available in German).

Childcare facilities in Bonn

The city of Bonn provides detailed information about childcare facilities in Bonn and offers the Kita-Net, which allows a targeted search and application for kindergarten (or "Kindertagesstätten", short "Kita") places or other childcare facilities. It is a Kita information and waiting list management system.

The school and Kita year starts in August and the decision on acceptance or rejection is usually made in January / February of the same year, mostly through the Kita-Net. If you apply later or would like to start in the middle of the Kita-year it is very unlikely that you will get a place in one of the public kitas. In this case, a private facility or another way of childcare should be considered.

Sometimes, Kitas prefer to get to know the child / family before making a decision on admissions. As our guests are often still abroad at that point, it should be communicated whether and how it can be arranged.

Care by childminders (Tagesmutter/-vater)

For shorter stays in Bonn or if your stay does not begin around August, it is usually difficult to find a place in a childcare facility. A good alternative is therefore care by childminders / daycare parents. Here, a small group of four to five children is usually cared for by the childminders at home. The Netzwerk Kindertagespflege in Bonn ("Child daycare Network in Bonn", website only in German but flyers and consultation available in English.) is a consortium of six non-profit institutions in the city of Bonn and offers further information on daycare. Supported by the Office for Children, Youth and Families, the network has set itself the task of expanding the range of childcare options in line with demand.

International childcare in Bonn

There are several international facilities in Bonn that offer care for preschool children in English, French or Spanish and some of them bilingual. Here is a selection of the facilities we know of:

Use of the pme family service for free

When it comes to childcare for children aged 0-14, we can rely on a cooperation with pme Familienservice, which helps to arrange childcare. As an institute, we cover the costs of this service for our guests, but not the childcare costs themselves.

Childcare services for non-school-age and school-age children

at the age from 0 to 14 years

  • Mediation of child care in the household (babysitter)
  • Placement of au-pair/granny to go
  • possibly mediation of KITA facility places or day care places for children
  • Procurement of vacation childcare places through pme or cooperating third-party providers
Arrangement of back-up emergency care
  • Emergency care for children aged 0-12 if required at pme service facilities (can be booked free of charge per employee per child for a maximum of 2 days per year).
Emergency care at home
  • for payment of the childcare costs by the parents. As a rule, the request must be received by pme by 6:00 p.m. the day before, e.g. by using the pme hotline 0800-801007080.
Homecare-Eldercare
  • Cross-location counseling in the event of illness and need for care of close relatives
  • Individual comprehensive advice on alternative care solutions
  • Comprehensive advice on financing care, arranging care and domestic staff
  • Possibility of arranging care and domestic staff, outpatient services and possibly home care places
  • Under certain circumstances, short-term emergency care in a private household (care costs must be borne by the patient).

To use this service, you need a certificate of eligibility from us, which you can request at housing@mpim-bonn.mpg.de. Please think about what kind of care you need before you contact pme family service.

For more information on this service, please refer to the associated flyer (see attachment at the end of the website) and the pme-website.
 

Childcare during business travel

If you are planning a business trip and would like to check if you can apply for reimbursement of additional childcare expenses, please contact us for further information about this.

 

Financial support for young female scientists: Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard-Foundation

"Buying time with money"
The Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard-Foundation supports gifted, young female scientists with children who want to create free space for their activities in science. The help goes towards female doctoral students in managing the daily balancing act between work and family.  This is where the monthly scholarship of up to 400 euros, which the foundation awards for a maximum of three years during the doctorate, is intended to help. The prerequisite is that the child's livelihood and full-time care are already guaranteed. Applications are possible twice a year - deadlines: 30 June and 31 December.

 

Schools

In Germany, school attendance is compulsory for children from the age of 6. The children must be registered accordingly at the school office, unless you want to attend an international school. In these cases, the contact persons of the respective schools should be contacted in advance. Attendance at public schools in Germany is free of charge. Private schools or international schools, on the other hand, usually charge a fee. Parents should inform themselves in advance about school hours, school types and vacation periods.

Please find here some general information on the school system in Germany and on research stays with the family in Germany. The city of Bonn has summarized some information regarding schools and education. You can also find a list of all schools in Bonn (in German).

You are welcome to contact us if you have questions or need help with finding the right school for your child.

International schools

In Bonn there are multiple international or bilingual schools that teach in English, French or Spanish. Please find here a selection:

Elementary schools
Secondary schools / high schools
Counseling for school-age children and adolescents without sufficient knowledge of German

The city of Bonn has also set up a counseling center for school-age children and adolescents without sufficient knowledge of German at the Education Authority for the City of Bonn to help them find a suitable school place for their children. Counseling is available in German, English, Spanish, French (by phone or e-mail).

contact:

ifk@bonn.de

0159 - 01 91 30 17
0228 - 77 57 84

Telephone office hours:
Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

 

Family benefits

Under certain circumstances, you could claim some financial benefits. Child benefit (Kindergeld) and child allowance (Kinderzuschlag) is a payment made by the state to parents or guardians, calculated according to the number and age of the children. It is the responsibility of the family benefits department (Familienkasse) within the Employment Agency Bonn/Rhein-Sieg (Agentur für Arbeit Bonn/Rhein-Sieg).

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File Flyer pme deutsch_0.pdf540.26 KB
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