Budget Day: Reversal of Cuts to Educational Opportunities Scheme

In total, OCW has € 57 billion in expenditures planned for next year. Of this, € 29 billion is for primary and secondary education, € 18 billion for higher education, € 4.6 billion for student financing, € 2.7 billion for culture and media, and € 1.8 billion for research and science.

Minister Gouke Moes: “The Chamber has requested the cabinet to take good care of the store. I will do that. Education, culture, media, and science are crucial for our country. We will continue on the chosen path. With cuts where necessary, but also with extra money where possible and needed. This is essential for education in the region; it should not matter where you were born in the Netherlands. Everyone must have access to good education. For example, next year we will spend more money to maintain good education in regions where the population is shrinking.”

The cabinet wants all students everywhere in the Netherlands to have enough choices and that the supply of programs matches what is needed in the labor market. This does not happen automatically, as important studies are at risk of disappearing due to declining numbers of students. Therefore, the cabinet will allocate € 30 million in 2026 for vocational education in shrinking regions, and € 26 million for higher education in regions experiencing decline.

The initiated cuts will remain in place, except for those to the educational opportunities scheme. Nationwide, the cabinet has decided to make additional cuts. There will be less price adjustment for all departments. This means that OCW will receive less money to compensate schools and cultural institutions for rising prices of energy and housing, among other things. How much OCW exactly has to give up will be revealed in the spring memorandum 2026.
Additionally, the cabinet plans to cut nationwide on incidental wage space starting in 2029. For OCW, this means that from that year less money will be added to the budget for extra rewards for educational personnel, such as one-time bonuses.

The cabinet is reversing the cuts to the educational opportunities scheme, partly at the request of the House of Representatives. This will be funded by the previously mentioned nationwide cuts.
With the educational opportunities scheme, secondary schools can provide additional support to children at risk of falling behind in their education. Schools can, for example, hire an extra teaching assistant, organize smaller classes, or work on parental involvement. At the presentation of the spring memorandum, it was previously decided to halve the funding for the educational opportunities scheme (a total of € 177 million per year) in 2027 and to completely abolish it by 2028.

State Secretary Koen Becking: “I am relieved that the cuts to the educational opportunities scheme are off the books. This way, secondary schools can continue to provide students with the necessary extra support. Additionally, we will continue to tackle the teacher shortage and strengthen the basic skills of students in the coming period.”

The cabinet wants to further improve the basic skills (reading, writing, arithmetic, digital literacy, and citizenship) of students in primary and secondary schools. Schools will receive concrete assistance from the Master Plan for Basic Skills. Teachers will receive more time to enhance their subject knowledge. There will be extra attention for reading, writing, and arithmetic.
In vocational education, incoming students will receive additional support in language and arithmetic where necessary. A total of € 47.2 million is available for this for the current and upcoming academic year.

There is still a significant shortage of teachers and school leaders. Therefore, the cabinet will allocate € 272.4 million for this in 2026. The cabinet wants to continue collaborating in the education regions to train and retain teachers in the right places in the country. The shortage is not equally large everywhere. Next year, OCW will also invest extra in lateral entry, where people from other professions become teachers. Over € 54 million is available for this each year.
€ 5 million is available for teachers who want to work more hours.

Special news this Budget Day for Dutch heritage, and for Panorama Mesdag in particular. This museum, with the famous cylindrical painting with a circumference of 120 meters, is in serious financial trouble. To keep it open to the public, the intention is for Panorama Mesdag to become a Rijksmuseum. For this, € 1.8 million has been included in the budget annually.

To contribute to new world-class research in our country and to strengthen education, three programs from the National Growth Fund will enter the next phase. These include the Development Power program (for sustainable educational improvement in primary, secondary, and vocational education), the Npuls program (for future-proof education with digitalization), and the National Growth Fund program Biotech Booster (for scientific breakthroughs in biotechnology). € 77 million is allocated in the budget for 2026 for this.