Editor in chief at IamExpat Media
In an effort to curb the spread of coronavirus, Germany's federal states have announced that almost all schools and daycare centres will close next week. There are a few exceptions.
The closure, which applies to all daycare facilities, other forms of childcare, and all primary and secondary schools in the states, will last until the beginning of the school holidays. This means that the institutions will effectively be closed until mid-April, when the Easter holidays end.
The Minister President of Baden-Württemberg, Winfriend Kretschman, announced on Friday in Stuttgart that all schools and daycare centres would close from Tuesday, March 17, until the end of the Easter holidays.
The free state of Bavaria was the second to announce school closures. Minister President Markus Söder said that all schools and daycare centres would remain closed from Monday, March 16, until the beginning of the Easter holidays on April 6, to slow the spread of the virus.
Daycare centres and schools in Berlin are also due to be closed, but in stages. The closures will begin with secondary schools on Monday. All other schools will then be closed from Tuesday until the end of the Easter Holidays. This was announced by the Senate Department for Education on Friday.
Brandenburg will also close schools and daycare centres from Wednesday, March 18. The Ministry of Education released a statement on Friday afternoon denying earlier reports that the closures would begin on Monday. The government also plans to announce more information on emergency childcare later this afternoon.
On Friday, the state of Bremen announced that it too would shut all schools and kindergartens from Monday, March 16, until the end of the Easter holidays.
All schools in Hamburg will be closed from Monday, March 16 until March 29. The Senate also decided that regular operations at daycare centres should be discontinued.
Hesse will also close all schools for the time being. The exact details will be decided on Friday. Abitur exams, which are due to begin in Hesse next Thursday, March 19, will likely go ahead as planned.
Lower Saxony agreed on Friday morning that all schools and daycare centres should be closed to halt the spread of coronavirus. The closure will apply from Monday, March 16 until the end of the Easter holidays on April 18.
There will be emergency care provision for the children of employees in the fields of care, health, medicine and public safety (e.g. police, justice, emergency services and civil protection).
It will only be decided on Saturday whether schools and daycare centres throughout Mecklenburg-Vorpommern will be closed. However, it has been confirmed that schools and daycare centres in Rostock and the Ludwigslust-Parchim district will be closed.
In the coming weeks, all schools and daycare centres in North Rhine-Westphalia will effectively close from Monday, March 16, until the end of the Easter holidays. This was announced by Minister President Armin Laschet on Friday.
However, there is some suggestion that some schools will remain open on Monday and Tuesday, to ensure childcare for nurses, medical staff and police officers.
Rhineland-Palatinate announced on Friday afternoon that all schools and daycare centres would close from Monday until the end of the Easter Holidays on April 17. Emergency childcare will also be made available to parents.
Saarland was the first state to announce the closure of all schools and daycare centres, late on Thursday. State leaders said they reached the decision based on the state’s vulnerable location on the border with France.
In Saxony, schools will remain open, but state authorities have lifted compulsory schooling, meaning that parents are free to keep their children at home, if they want. This should give teachers, students and parents more time to prepare for school closings, the exact timings of which are still to be decided.
Saxony-Anhalt was one of the last federal states to declare that schools and kindergartens would close on Monday. The regulation will last until April 13, according to the state government.
All schools and Kitas in Schleswig-Holstein will also remain closed from Monday, March 16, until April 19. This was announced by the Education and Health Ministries in Kiel on Friday.
A little while later, Thuringia became the next federal state to order school closures next week. All schools and daycare facilities will also be closed from Tuesday, March 17.
State authorities said they wished to avoid a situation like that of Italy, where the number of coronavirus infections has now risen above 12.000. Italy has already closed all schools nationwide, and on Thursday, France followed suit.
As of March 12, there have been 2.369 laboratory confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Germany, according to the Robert Koch Institute. That is an increase of 802 from the day before. So far, there have been five fatalities.