Brissago will also have a nursery in a few months. This is a key element in attracting new families to the country. A project on which the City Hall has been working for some time in collaboration with the Zerosedici Foundation – directed by Jacqueline Ribi Favero – which has been operating for 25 years in the field of childcare facilities.
Two notes about her: After creating the ‘Cucciolo’ in Muralto, she founded ATAN, the umbrella association for childcare facilities, of which she was president until the end of 2018. The opening date is not yet defined, but the aim is to inaugurate the Brissago nest in December. The structure can accommodate 17 children and will be located on the ground floor of the municipal school, which overlooks a large garden. The City Hall will soon open a pre-registration for the start of the activity.
“In 2018 – recalls the mayor, Veronica Marcacci Rossi, head of the Education Department – a survey was carried out among the employees of the social institutions of Brissago – La Motta, Miralago, Casa San Giorgio – from which it emerged that many mothers would report to this service and that some would also be available to live in the country with their families. Our goal, therefore, is not only to provide a nest for those who already live in Brissago, but also to encourage families to move there. And in the wake of the social policy we are developing, there is also the extracurricular service, which has already been in operation for three years.”
‘Mira’, as it is called, is still managed by the Zerosedici foundation, which has around seventy employees and manages four nurseries – in Muralto, Locarno, Gordevio and Bellinzona – and two out-of-school centres for children aged 0 to 12, one of which is in Brissago. Also in this case, explains Jacqueline Ribi Favero, it is a very important piece to ensure work-family compatibility. The Zerosedici nurseries and extracurricular schools offer a 12-hour day care service from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. – and are open almost all year round, excluding the two weeks of Christmas and the first two weeks of July in the case of the nest, and the two weeks of Christmas in the case of the extracurricular school. Not only: during the canonical holiday weeks (Deaths, Easter, Carnival and the summer period) the Zerosedici Foundation offers daytime colonies with various educational and recreational activities.
But back to the nest. “I would like to state – says Veronica Marcacci Rossi – that the project was promoted and supported by all the political forces in Brissago. And one of our prides is that we are one of the few municipalities to have activated an additional contribution, in addition to the so-called ‘universal’ contribution guaranteed by the canton: to the families domiciled we offer a discount of 30% on the amount of the tuition fee (after deducting the cantonal subsidies) and we also assume the cost of the tuition fee for both services because we are convinced that work-family reconciliation is fundamental today’.
The nest was supposed to open in recent months, but the design phase was laborious, as was the choice of the final location in compliance with the strict cantonal parameters. “In the end – adds the mayor – we decided to centralise everything in the school, where there were still spaces available. And I believe that this is the best solution for everyone.”
The birth of the nursery closes the circle of a collaboration between the Municipality and the Zerosedici Foundation that began three years ago, in September 2021, with the opening of the extracurricular service. “And in this regard – concludes Jacqueline Ribi Favero – I would like to underline the excellent cooperation that I have found from all those with whom I worked in Brissago: openness, kindness and availability that are truly exceptional’.