Childcare available from the kihz Foundation
Are you looking for childcare? Centres operated by the kihz Foundation will have some spaces available as of August. Interested parents can find an overview of the vacancies and all information about registration on the kihz website.
Good news for parents who are still looking for childcare: the daycare centres operated by the external page kihz Foundation (“kihz” stands for “Kinderbetreuung im Hochschulraum Zürich”: childcare in the Zurich university area) still have a few places available after the summer holidays. The reason for this is the start of the new daycare year: “Since many children ‘graduate’ to kindergarten in August, this is the best time of year for parents to obtain a spot,” explains Claudia Sigrist-Balsiger, who has been Managing Director of the kihz Foundation since May 1. “That can be difficult to do at individual daycare centres during the academic year. That’s why we’re all the more pleased to now be able to offer this opportunity to members of ETH and the University of Zurich. Depending on their financial circumstances, these parents can also take advantage of subsidies from the city of Zurich as well as from the universities.”
Anyone interested in childcare at kihz would do well to sign up as soon as possible using the registration form. Interested parties can find a list of the vacancies currently available at external page https://www.kihz.uzh.ch/en/kitas/frei.html.
Introducing kihz
The two universities, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, use the kihz Foundation to offer childcare for children aged four months and up until they enter kindergarten. Spots are given first to children of parents who are members of either university (i.e. professors, staff or students); any remaining spots are made available outside the university communities.
The Foundation runs 7 daycare centres with around 210 full-day places, providing care for around 350 children. The centres are located at the heart of the universities: on the Hönggerberg campus or near the Irchel campus. Their spacious buildings and extensive gardens offer the children plenty of room to move around, explore and discover.
But, as Sigrist-Balsiger points out, it’s not only this attractive environment that sets the kihz daycare centres apart from other options: “What makes us special is our high quality and professionalism. These characteristics are extremely important and valuable, especially when it comes to childcare. For instance, we have a higher care ratio than specified – in other words, we have more caregivers available per number of children than the norm – and we also firmly believe in the importance of good conditions for our employees. We provide children with an environment full of diverse learning and development opportunities, and we continually adapt it to meet their needs, interests and stage of development.”
International character a special plus
Another special feature is the international flavour of the kihz daycare centres. Many of the scientific staff in particular who send their children here have an international background. “This multiculturalism offers a huge wealth of experience from which we all benefit, and it often makes the day-to-day at the daycare centre particularly exciting,” Sigrist-Balsiger says.
Looking for childcare? Sign up now online!
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