https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Europe in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed When I moved to Umeå with my Swedish husband, our two-year-old understood Swedish but spoke only in English. After a month of preschool in Sweden, that flipped – long before I could follow along, writes The Local's Mandy Pipher. https://www.thelocal.com/20260529/the-hardest-part-of-moving-to-sweden-suddenly-not-understanding-my-own-child Fri, 29 May 2026 09:52:09 +0200 the-hardest-part-of-moving-to-sweden-suddenly-not-understanding-my-own-child Sweden's public health agency announced it was recommending that parents not give children their own smartphones before the age of 13, citing several risks associated with their use. https://www.thelocal.com/20260612/swedish-public-health-agency-recommends-no-smartphones-for-children-under-13 Fri, 12 Jun 2026 10:46:01 +0200 swedish-public-health-agency-recommends-no-smartphones-for-children-under-13 Sweden's government tasked the public health agency last autumn to compile research on how parental screen use affects children. Now the results are in and the recommendations are clear: parents should stay off their phones around their kids. https://www.thelocal.com/20260602/public-health-agency-of-sweden-tells-parents-to-put-away-their-phones Tue, 02 Jun 2026 15:27:59 +0200 public-health-agency-of-sweden-tells-parents-to-put-away-their-phones Raising a child is expensive, but in Germany parents also get supportive benefits, as well as affordable childcare and health insurance. Here's a look at how much it really costs to raise a family here. https://www.thelocal.com/20260318/how-much-does-it-cost-to-raise-children-in-germany Wed, 18 Mar 2026 15:13:46 +0100 how-much-does-it-cost-to-raise-children-in-germany From where to stay, what to do and how to travel, Berlin-based journalist and mom Rachel Stern lays out some tested tips on going on a family holiday in and around Germany. https://www.thelocal.com/20240710/10-tips-for-travelling-with-kids-in-germany Wed, 10 Jul 2024 14:19:08 +0200 10-tips-for-travelling-with-kids-in-germany Spain is a fantastic country to bring up kids thanks to the weather, the safety and Spaniards' overall love of children, but that doesn't mean there aren't aspects of Spanish child-rearing that surprise foreigners. https://www.thelocal.com/20240919/the-strange-things-spanish-parents-do-raising-their-children Thu, 19 Sep 2024 13:02:03 +0200 the-strange-things-spanish-parents-do-raising-their-children The number of babies born in Spain rose slightly for the first time in more than a decade in 2025, official data showed Wednesday, a boost for a country facing one of Europe's most serious demographic crises. https://www.thelocal.com/20260218/births-in-spain-rise-for-first-time-in-over-a-decade Wed, 18 Feb 2026 12:59:06 +0100 births-in-spain-rise-for-first-time-in-over-a-decade Germany is known for having a substantial support system, especially for families with kids. So how much do parents tend to spend on childcare and how does it stack up against other countries in Europe? https://www.thelocal.com/20260127/how-does-the-price-of-childcare-in-germany-compare-to-countries-in-europe Tue, 27 Jan 2026 10:51:18 +0100 how-does-the-price-of-childcare-in-germany-compare-to-countries-in-europe In this week's Inside Spain, we look at how attitudes towards relationships, marriage and childbearing are changing quickly in a country where "structural infertility" is rife. https://www.thelocal.com/20251213/inside-spain-a-country-of-singletons-old-mums-and-frozen-eggs Sat, 13 Dec 2025 11:34:47 +0100 inside-spain-a-country-of-singletons-old-mums-and-frozen-eggs Germany's Bundestag on Friday approved a landmark military service law as thousands of school students walked out of classrooms to protest against the return of compulsory assessments for 18-year-olds. https://www.thelocal.com/20251205/german-parliament-passes-military-service-law-as-school-students-protest Fri, 05 Dec 2025 13:48:53 +0100 german-parliament-passes-military-service-law-as-school-students-protest Getting divorced or separating in Sweden is much simpler than in most readers' home countries, and men and women are treated much more equally, according to the readers who answered our survey. But not everyone welcomed these differences. https://www.thelocal.com/20251104/not-seen-as-a-taboo-or-failure-what-its-like-getting-divorced-in-sweden Tue, 04 Nov 2025 15:43:32 +0100 not-seen-as-a-taboo-or-failure-what-its-like-getting-divorced-in-sweden Across Sweden, children are starting or returning to school after the summer holidays. Here are the crucial pieces of Swedish vocabulary that will help international families navigate the school year. https://www.thelocal.com/20190816/the-swedish-words-parents-need-to-know-for-back-to-school-season Fri, 16 Aug 2019 15:58:33 +0200 the-swedish-words-parents-need-to-know-for-back-to-school-season All but two German states rotate their summer holidays to prevent gridlock on the roads and railways and spread demand at holiday destinations. Irritation at Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg’s refusal to join in may finally be coming to a head. https://www.thelocal.com/20250716/explained-why-german-states-are-clashing-over-the-school-holiday-schedule Wed, 16 Jul 2025 12:33:15 +0200 explained-why-german-states-are-clashing-over-the-school-holiday-schedule The Swedish government has launched an inquiry over concerns about the country's low birth rate, with the aim of proposing concrete measures to improve it. https://www.thelocal.com/20250702/whats-causing-swedens-record-low-birth-rate-a-new-inquiry-is-set-to-find-out Wed, 02 Jul 2025 12:31:30 +0200 whats-causing-swedens-record-low-birth-rate-a-new-inquiry-is-set-to-find-out Sweden should ban international adoptions, set up a national centre to provide resources for adoptees and provide up to 14,700 kronor for them to travel to their country of origin, an inquiry has proposed. https://www.thelocal.com/20250602/swedish-inquiry-calls-for-official-state-apology-to-international-adoptees Mon, 02 Jun 2025 13:58:01 +0200 swedish-inquiry-calls-for-official-state-apology-to-international-adoptees The Local's Nordic Editor Richard Orange took advantage of Sweden's generous parental leave by taking six months off work (twice) to look after his baby daughter and baby son. It was an experience that changed his life. https://www.thelocal.com/20240816/opinion-i-still-carry-so-much-with-me-from-swedish-parental-leave Fri, 16 Aug 2024 11:44:06 +0200 opinion-i-still-carry-so-much-with-me-from-swedish-parental-leave For English-speaking parents in Germany, successfully raising bilingual children can require a surprising amount of forward planning – and vast reserves of patience, explains father of two Tom Pugh. https://www.thelocal.com/20250514/how-i-made-sure-my-german-born-children-were-bilingual-in-english Wed, 14 May 2025 17:00:35 +0200 how-i-made-sure-my-german-born-children-were-bilingual-in-english Europe's population is getting older and its set to shrink in many countries. One of the keys to sustaining societies and economies will be the integration of immigrants into the workforce, the author of a new study tells Claudia Delpero. https://www.thelocal.com/20250427/integrate-immigrants-how-europe-can-deal-with-its-population-challenge Sun, 27 Apr 2025 15:48:54 +0200 integrate-immigrants-how-europe-can-deal-with-its-population-challenge Have you heard a group of Spanish teenagers slipping English terms like 'bro' or 'mood' into their speech? That's because English has come to dominate teen talk in Spain in recent years. https://www.thelocal.com/20250411/bro-que-cringe-how-english-now-dominates-teen-talk-in-spain Fri, 11 Apr 2025 13:12:16 +0200 bro-que-cringe-how-english-now-dominates-teen-talk-in-spain The number of babies born in the EU was down 5.4 percent to 3.67 million in 2023, the largest drop in decades, official data showed Friday, underscoring the bloc's demographic issues. https://www.thelocal.com/20250308/eu-sees-record-drop-in-births-data-shows Sat, 08 Mar 2025 10:36:35 +0100 eu-sees-record-drop-in-births-data-shows