We plan on moving to Bern, Switzerland and are trying to figure out what the daycare for our children will cost us. We plan on moving Jan/Feb 2020, and we have a daughter that will be 2.5 years old by then. Our second daughter will be born in October, so she will be only about 3 months old.
I have already figured out that a kindergarten for our oldest will cost us approx. 2500 CHF per month.
Is there some kind of reduction for a second child? If so, how much is this generally?
Are there other, cheaper options?
I also noticed that you need to apply well in time to make sure you find a spot. How long beforehand would I need to start?
Kindergarten isn’t until age 4/5 iirc so you’d be looking at some other kind of daycare. Tagsmutter might be a possibility, but still expensive and no, as far as I know no reduction for a second child, but that may depend on which place you talk to. And as soon as possible for finding a place!
Bilingual daycare normally costs more than straightforward local language places.
There is often a discount for a second child but sometimes the rates for looking after a baby are higher than a toddler so it will probably work out the same price, or thereabouts.
You are going to have to look for a Krippe. Krippes can take kinds from 3 months till kindergarten age.
Just to give you an idea of the costs I live in Aarau and our local Krippe charges 165CHF per day (or 115CHF for half day) for 3-to18 month-olds, and 130CHF per day (or 91CHF for half day) for 18 months+.
From what I have heard, for example in ZUrich, the challenge can be finding one with free places.
Around here, yes, there is typically a discount for the second child in daycare (crèche) but it entirely depends on the establishment. You need to directly inquire with the ones you're interested in if the information is not on their website. It likely won't be huge, probably about 20% for the second child. If two kids full time in crèche you will still need to budget about 4400-5000.
Some state run creches are means tested so if low income, it will be subsidised and you will pay on a sliding scale based on income. Other ways to save is perhaps have one spouse work part-time, reduced hours, or try to stagger your hours so that you don't need to pay full time crèche x2. Maybe hiring a full time nanny can be more cost effective for two kids.
You might get some extra money from the kanton if they have a program where children would benefit greatly by going to a certified krippe to get extra language support so they can get along when going to kindergarten. Zürich has such, I have no clue if Bern has such and it also depends on your income. Also this will not suddenly make a krippe cheap.
I'm sure the poster means childcare, not kindergarten. 2500 for babies under 19 months and 2100 for toddlers over 19 months is a good estimate if you are happy to not have anything fancy (such as a place advertising themselves as bilingual.) You normally only get about a 10% discount for the second child. There can be a waiting list so it's best to reserve yourself a spot as soon as you are sure you need it.
Could you share more information about that? That's the first time I hear about it, although my daughter had additional German lessons in KiTa some time ago.
Let me find the papers tomorrow to see if this is a program with a special name or something. If there is no reply here within two days please remind me.