Overview
- The Federal Statistical Office reported Wednesday that roughly 805,200 children started first grade in 2026/27, a 0.7% decline from the prior school year.
- Enrollments fell in almost every state with the largest percentage drops in Mecklenburg‑Vorpommern (‑4.5%), Thuringia (‑4.3%) and Brandenburg (‑3.7%); Saarland, Bavaria and Lower Saxony recorded increases.
- Both German and foreign children aged five to six declined, with German children down 0.9% and foreign children down 4.5%, leaving the 5–6 age group 1.5% smaller at the end of 2025 than a year earlier.
- Most children (93%) began at primary schools, 3.6% entered special schools and 2.6% started at school types with three educational tracks, where enrollments rose by 2.0%.
- The figures come from a Schnellmeldung preliminary report and may be revised during validation; the fall follows a peak in 2023/24 driven by migration and could affect local school planning, class sizes and budget forecasts in different states.