Hobby school support down by a third over five years in Estonia

Funding for extracurricular education has decreased by a third over the past five years, with the majority of hobby schools now concentrated in larger municipalities. According to experts, extracurricular or hobby education plays a significant role in preventing social and economic costs, highlighting the need for a more comprehensive national strategy to support the system.
The Martin Reim Football School, operating in Viimsi Municipality, has over 600 young members. In fact, 66 percent of Viimsi's youth participate in some form of extracurricular activity or sports training. However, funding cuts have left many hobby schools, particularly sports schools, reliant on the wallets of more affluent families.
"If sports clubs have received the same level of support in recent years, but the cost of living has increased sharply, those expenses ultimately fall on parents. I believe we're very close to the point where extracurricular activities will be the first thing families cut," said Martin Reim, head of the football school.
Over the past five years, state support for extracurricular education has decreased to varying degrees. As of 2023, funding in Lääne County has dropped by 4 percent, while Saare County has seen a 60 percent decline, Hiiumaa 50 percent and Põlva County 49 percent.
In Haljala, about 20 students attend a music hobby group, while many others travel to Rakvere every week for additional lessons.
"They study here what is available locally, and they go to Rakvere for everything else that isn't offered here," said Mari Saamot, instructor at the Rakvere Music School and the Haljala hobby group. "If a child from Haljala attends Rakvere Music School, they have to pay significantly more because the municipality doesn't offer as much support for attending music schools outside the area."
To ensure that regions beyond the so-called "golden ring" municipalities near Tallinn also have access to extracurricular activities, more cooperation between the state and the private sector is needed.
"We need to figure out how the state can encourage private hobby schools to expand their operations beyond Tallinn and establish branches in other areas. Since private hobby schools depend heavily on student enrollment numbers, they need more support to take that step," explained Eneli Kindsiko, associate professor of qualitative research at the University of Tartu.
Both Kindsiko and hobby school leaders emphasize that extracurricular education plays a crucial role in preventing risky behavior among youth, which helps reduce future costs across various sectors.
"The economic impact is indirect, but significant. Extracurricular education can prevent mental health issues among young people by teaching them how to manage their inner world. This, in turn, reduces future demand for psychologists and mental health services," Kindsiko added.
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Editor: Valner Väino, Marcus Turovski