Funded with PNRR funds, the service aims to support families and counter the depopulation of the village. Mayor Di Gioia: "An accurate choice to attract new families".
Cutting the ribbon Monday, May 5 for what is a significant novelty in the panorama of childcare in Calabria. The municipality of Cerisano will open in the premises of the School Village of Via Chiusa Quintieri, its first municipal nursery, characterized by free access for families. The municipal administration presents it as the first such service with total gratuitousness in the region. The initiative is part of a national context where, as the municipality pointed out, the availability of places in nurseries and associated costs are often an obstacle for households. Cerisano thus aims to set himself as a model, offering concrete support.
Innovative idea and concrete investment for families
"The opening of a free nursery is much more than a new service. It is a clear political choice, a concrete investment towards families and their freedom to plan the future," said the Mayor Lucio Di Gioia. According to the first citizen, the goal is "to break down one of the main barriers that often discourages young people from building their own life path here. Offering an accessible and quality educational service – continues Di Gioia – aims both to support current residents and to "attract new families who want to raise their children in a healthy, safe and stimulating environment".
A project made possible by PNRR funding
The project was made possible thanks to the funding of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) and is integrated into a broader strategy of enhancing the village carried out by the administration. This strategy includes urban regeneration interventions and collaborations with the University of Calabria and the "Stanislao Giacomantonio" Conservatory of Cosenza to promote high education activities, cultural workshops and artist residences, with the aim of creating intergenerational opportunities. "We want Cerisano to be a place where families feel welcomed and supported", concludes Mayor Di Gioia, highlighting how culture and education are seen as "tools of social rebirth". For the administration, in a small centre, offering a free service of this magnitude represents "a choice of courage and responsibility" based on trust "in people, in families, in the future".
