Parents may still have to pay for children after ‘free kindergarten’ policy, report says
Absence of full subsidies for whole-day schools, coupled with private leases, mean some parents will still have to pay, government advisers say
Parents of about 40 per cent of kindergarten children may still have to pay school fees after a proposed "free kindergarten" policy takes effect, according to a long-awaited advisory report released yesterday.
These children will include those studying at whole-day sessions, which, unlike half-day schools, will not get full subsidies under the report's proposals.
Children enrolled in kindergartens leasing private venues will also be affected, as the recommended rental subsidy may not fully cover the rents.
Kindergarten teachers, meanwhile, can expect a salary range of HK$18,000 to HK$38,000 a month - but the government should subsidise only the median amount, of about HK$25,000 - the report recommends.
If all the proposals were put in place, government spending on kindergarten education was estimated to rise by 70 per cent, from HK$4.1 billion to HK$7 billion, said the report, compiled by a government-appointed committee on free kindergarten education after two years of study.
Parents, educators and politicians criticised the report as offering "fake free kindergarten education".