Education Committee

The committee decided to establish a new small group for 5-6-year-old children who have behavioral and self-regulation challenges. The group will start its activities on January 7, 2026 at Lempoisten school and will later move to Saikantaloon. The group will have a maximum of 6 children and three adults (special education teacher, childcare worker and school attendance counselor), which enables intensive support and a safe learning environment. The decision was made because current services are not sufficient to meet the special needs of these children.

The Education and Training Board approved the agenda of its meeting and the order of handling matters as planned. This is a standard procedure at the beginning of each meeting, which ensures that all matters to be discussed are known and in order. The decision enables the meeting to proceed smoothly according to the planned program.

The Education Director presented several current affairs to the board, including the situation of youth services in cooperation with the welfare and vitality board. The regional situation review of education services, the financial implementation of operations, and the early childhood education placement situation in December were also discussed. The board noted all presented matters for information. The meeting was exceptionally held in two different venues, and members from both boards participated.

The committee approved a report proposing that morning and afternoon activities be organized in the future using a multi-provider model in cooperation with private service providers and organizations. Market dialogue with potential partners will be organized in January 2026, and the new operating model will be piloted at Saikantalon school starting in August 2026. After the pilot period, feedback will be collected from children, guardians and staff, and a child impact assessment will be conducted. Based on the feedback, a decision will be made on whether to continue operating with this model.

The Education and Training Board acknowledged the administrative decisions made by education sector officials between November 13 and December 3, 2025. This is a routine procedure where the board is informed of decisions made by officials within their authority. The board did not take any of the decisions for reconsideration, so they remained in force as they were.

The board approved the procurement of furniture for the Saikantalon school building to be completed in 2026, which will provide early childhood education as well as pre-primary and basic education. The procurement was implemented through reverse tendering, where the municipality defined budget frameworks (totaling 264,000 euros) and companies designed furniture within these limits. The best designs for different spaces, such as classrooms, lobby areas, and early childhood education facilities, were selected from the tender competition. The furniture will be delivered and installed before the school begins operations.

The Education Committee approved a new procurement decision for Saikantalo furniture based on line-item competitive bidding. Saikantalo will be completed for the 2026 housing fair and will provide early childhood education as well as pre-primary and basic education for grades pre-6. The furniture procurement was divided into three parts: learning space furniture, office and public space furniture, and early childhood education furniture. In the competitive bidding, offers were compared product by product and the cheapest offer was selected for each piece of furniture, ensuring a cost-effective solution for the new school building.

The Education and Teaching Committee approved an agreement on the Osake development service, which provides training and competence development for early childhood education, school and youth work staff throughout the Tampere region. The service focuses on three areas: growth and learning, wellbeing, and leadership. The 2026 budget is at most 400,000 euros, and municipalities pay their share based on the number of children. The agreement enters into force from the beginning of 2026 and is valid indefinitely, but a municipality can terminate it by giving notice by the end of September at the latest.

The Education and Teaching Committee approved revisions to the 2025 budget, where the largest changes relate to an increase in home municipality compensation expenses by 500,000 euros and a rise in service voucher expenses by 260,000 euros. The cost-saving measures agreed upon in the budget have been partially implemented: the reduction of daycare groups was successful, but layoffs of school attendance counselors could not be carried out due to increased support needs. Personnel costs will exceed the budget by approximately 150,000 euros due to larger-than-expected salary increases and the implementation of the equal pay system. Overall, the education and teaching service area has 6.5 fewer full-time equivalent positions than the previous year.

The board approved the service plan for education and teaching for the year 2026, which implements the budget decided by the municipal council. The plan focuses on supporting learning and well-being, preventive operating models, and ensuring a safe daily environment in schools and early childhood education. Due to declining student numbers, eight teaching and guidance staff positions will remain unfilled starting from August 2026. The current service network and statutory services will be maintained, but new services will not be expanded due to the tight financial situation.