Victoria primary school has opened an after-school care (BSO) facility, local outlet De Ster Online reports. With this new provision, parents can have their children looked after before and after school in a familiar setting — without needing to drop them off at a separate childcare location.
What is after-school care?
After-school care (BSO) is designed for primary school-age children, typically between 4 and 13 years old. It provides supervision outside of school hours: before school, after school, and on school-free days and during holidays. An after-school care facility located on or directly next to a school — sometimes called an 'on-site BSO' or school-based care — has the added benefit that children don't need to travel between school and childcare.
A growing trend: bringing care and education closer together
Opening an after-school care facility on a school site fits into a broader national trend. More and more primary schools are partnering with childcare organisations to form what is known as an Integrated Child Centre (Integraal Kindcentrum/IKC) model, in which education and childcare are closely integrated. This also aligns with government plans to make childcare more accessible and affordable — including a proposed overhaul of the childcare system under which parents could eventually have up to 96 percent of their costs reimbursed.
What does this mean for parents?
For parents near Victoria school, the new after-school care facility offers a number of practical benefits:
- Less travel: children no longer need to be dropped off or picked up at a separate childcare location.
- A familiar environment: children stay in a place they already know from school.
- Childcare benefit (kinderopvangtoeslag): after-school care costs are eligible for childcare benefit through the Dutch Tax Authority (Belastingdienst), provided the childcare organisation is registered in the National Childcare Register (Landelijk Register Kinderopvang/LRK).
- Flexibility: many after-school care locations offer flexible half-day sessions tailored to parents' working hours.
Parents who wish to use the new after-school care facility at Victoria are advised to contact the school or the relevant childcare organisation for information about availability, rates, and applying for childcare benefit.
Source: De Ster Online