A survey organised by the CDU / CSU faction of the German parliament has revealed that a large majority of parents believe that Germany is not child friendly.

Survey deems Germany not child friendly

A representative survey, which was organised by CDU / CSU politicians in the German parliament, has found that 75 percent of parents in Germany think that the country is not child friendly. The survey asked 1.001 parents who currently have children aged 18 or younger.

When asked whether, in their experience, Germany is a child-friendly country, 75 percent answered “Rather not” or “No, definitely not,” with more than half of the respondents giving the latter answer. Of those asked, 23,4 percent of people felt that Germany is child-friendly and 1,6 percent said they didn't know.

Parents were also asked to rank which areas of life worried them most from a list of categories. In the survey, “Costs of Shopping, Housing and Mobility” came top, with 57,7 percent of parents finding these factors concerning. “Quality of School Education” (50,8 percent) and “Unity of Family and Work” (33,1 percent) rounded out the top three.

The CDU / CSU are now in opposition after Merkel’s 16-year-long hold on the German chancellor’s office came to an end in 2021. In recent months, the party has begun to survey and assess which policies would be most likely to reignite its popularity among German voters. The conservative and Christian party’s recently revealed policy to tackle Berlin’s housing crisis is another such example.

“For almost three years, families have been at their limit,” CDU / CSU representative Silvia Breher told dpa. Breher’s party highlighted the closure of Kitas and schools, low reading and maths standards, limited beds in hospitals for children and shortages of medicine as areas of particular concern.

Parents in Germany want better recognition of childcare as work

Along with the above data, the CDU / CSU organised survey also revealed that parents in Germany would like the efforts of childcare workers to be better recognised.

When asked whether they thought that family and childcare work was sufficiently recognised in German society, only 13 percent believed so.

This question struck a particular chord with 30 to 39-year-old parents, 91 percent of whom were of the opinion that the labour involved in child rearing and children’s education should have greater recognition in German society.