2,892 kroner a month separates the country’s most expensive and less expensive after school program (SFO). The price difference is quite large, and it is not only between municipalities and districts, but also from school to school.
In Berlevåg, parents must pay 850 NOK for a full-time placement in the program for a child, while parents in Rana must spend 3,742 NOK a month, according to NTNU Social Research.
The institute states that 160,000 children, 62 percent of all children in grades 1 to 4, use a municipal after school program such as SFO. According to the institute national quality assurance is weak and the variation is too high.
– There are few or no specific requirements for content or competence of employees, neither at the price level of the offer, NTNU states. Therefore, together with researchers from Stockholm University, they will now map the Norwegian SFO offer on behalf of the Directorate of Education.
The starting point for the survey is Parliament’s wish for a review of today’s SFO scheme. All schools are required to have an after school-free offer that will give the children care and supervision. The offer will also ensure that children with disabilities receive favorable development conditions.
© NTB Scanpix / Norway Today
