Parents' tempers run short over city's long-day offer

The parents say they are already paying significantly more than parents in other cities.

By MIRIAM BULWAR DAVID-HAY (TRANSLATED)
Hundreds of Kfar Saba parents are fuming after the city sent them a letter offering to operate long-day kindergartens for an extra half-hour each day for an additional NIS 100 per month, reports www.local.co.il. The parents say they are already paying significantly more than parents in other cities and yet the days in Kfar Saba are shorter, and they should not have to pay any extra for an additional half-hour. According to the report, Kfar Saba parents pay about NIS 1,000 per month to have their children in kindergartens until 4 p.m., while in other Sharon-area cities parents pay about NIS 800 per month for kindergartens that operate until 4:30 p.m. "This is unbelievable cheek," one parent said. "It isn't enough that we already pay the highest sum in the entire area - now they are demanding NIS 100 more for just half an hour." The city has justified its fees in the past by saying that Kfar Saba is the only city in which two qualified kindergarten teachers remain with the children for the entire day, rather than the teacher going home at lunchtime and leaving the children with a substitute for the afternoon. But parents say Herzliya also has the same system of two teachers for the entire day, and yet its fee is around NIS 800 until 4:30 p.m. A Kfar Saba municipal spokesman said that about one-third of parents had expressed interest in the extended hours, and that the extra cost would cover the salaries of the staff and security guards. The spokesman said the city considers it important that the children remain with qualified educational staff for the entire day, and that this comes at a cost.