ROTTERDAM, 2 March 2026 – Rotterdam has launched a new Sport and Culture Credit (Sport- en Cultuurtegoed) from 1 March 2026, giving children in low-income families automatic vouchers via their Rotterdampas. The municipality says the change is designed to make participation easier for more than 20,000 children across the city.

The key shift is simple: instead of a separate application process, the credit appears automatically on the child’s pass if the parents have a Rotterdampas at the low tariff.

Who can use the sport and culture credit

The Sport and Culture Credit is for Rotterdam children aged 0 to 17 in families with a low income, where the parents have purchased a Rotterdampas at the low tariff. Eligible children receive the credit automatically as vouchers on their Rotterdampas, which can be used for lessons and activities such as football, boxing, dance, singing, or drawing.

One income check, then automatic vouchers

Rotterdam says parents now only need to have their income assessed once, when applying for the low-tariff Rotterdampas. After that, the Sport and Culture Credit is automatically added to the child’s pass. With the voucher, children can go straight to a participating sports or culture provider. The city says there is no longer a separate application step, which was required under the previous set-up.

What the vouchers cover and the maximum amounts

Each child receives two vouchers per pass year for sports and culture activities, plus one voucher for necessary club clothing or an instrument. The maximum reimbursements listed are:

• Sports activities: €350
• Culture activities (group): €350
• Culture activities (small groups up to 3 participants): €600
• Club clothing: €80
• Instrument hire or purchase: €100

Providers are expected to create a suitable activity package for the vouchers. Once a voucher is used, Rotterdam pays the amount directly to the provider.

The municipality’s aim

Alderman Abigail Norville (poverty reduction, debt assistance, language and benefits) frames the scheme as a way to remove barriers for families, and to help children explore and develop through sport and culture.

“We want to make it much easier for children and their parents to take part in sport and culture. In that way, we hope all Rotterdam children can make use of the great offer in our city. Because every child deserves to develop and discover new things. Sport and culture also create connection, and you build skills you can use for the rest of your life.” – Abigail Norville, Rotterdam alderman

Ambassadors will still help families find the way

Rotterdam says intermediaries will remain important under the name “ambassadors”. They work closely with families and are positioned as key in reaching parents and children for whom participation does not come automatically.

What happens to the Jeugdfonds support

The new credit replaces the current route via the Youth Sports and Culture Fund (Jeugdfonds Sport & Cultuur). Children who are already participating through the fund can continue as they are used to.

The municipality says the Sport and Culture Credit will become relevant for those children when they change club, or when a new season starts and fees need to be paid again.

Where to find more information

More information is available here: www.sportencultuurtegoed.nl

ROTTERDAM, 19 February 2026 – Voting day in Rotterdam on 18 March comes with two standout extras: night voting at The Capital and a full early-morning programme at the Laurenskerk. If you like the idea of combining your vote with culture, music, or a sunrise climb, this is the city leaning into the moment.

Rotterdam is voting in two elections on 18 March 2026: the municipal council elections (gemeenteraadsverkiezingen) and the neighbourhood and village council elections (wijk- en dorpsraden). This announcement highlights two locations where voting is paired with public programming.

Night voting at The Capital

Rotterdam will again offer night voting (nachtstemmen) at polling station The Capital (stembureau), giving you a chance to cast your vote just after midnight. The polling station is open from 00.00 to 02.00 at Van Oestendestraat 39D. The Capital is a venue run by Productiehuis FLOW, and the night voting is paired with an evening programme next door at Pleinweg 226D starting on 17 March from 22.00. Your voting pass (stempas) doubles as your entry ticket.

Music, spoken word and a live programme

The evening programme next to The Capital is described as a mixed line-up: live music, a silent disco, spoken word, comedy, and a livestream. The idea is simple: show up, enjoy the programme, and vote during the night opening. On election day itself, the polling station at The Capital opens again at 07.30, and Productiehuis FLOW is also planning cultural programming around voting during the day.

Rock deVote at the Laurenskerk

The Laurenskerk is also turning voting into an experience, with doors opening at 06.30 so you can vote an hour earlier than most polling stations. At the same time, the church launches a programme called Rock deVote. The programme is built around early morning energy: a tower climb at sunrise, a silent disco, and a lunch concert. There are also children’s activities, including a stained-glass mini craft (glas-in-lood-ministeck) and a breakdance workshop.

Voting times and what to bring

Standard voting hours in Rotterdam on 18 March are 07.30 to 21.00 at more than 350 polling stations. Two exceptions open earlier: Rotterdam Centraal station and the Laurenskerk, both from 06.30. Always bring your voting pass (stempas) and a valid ID. Rotterdam says you should receive your voting pass by 27 February, and the candidate lists are expected later, in the week of 9 March.

Where you can vote for which election

For the municipal council elections (gemeenteraadsverkiezingen), you can vote at any polling station in Rotterdam. For neighbourhood and village councils (wijk- en dorpsraden), you can only vote within your own neighbourhood. Your voting pass (stempas) will show the polling station linked to your address. For other polling station details, Rotterdam points you to: www.stembureausinrotterdam.nl

A small timing note for mid-afternoon

There is a planned staff change at all polling stations at 15.30, expected to take about 15 minutes. If you arrive around that time, you may have a short wait. After the polling stations close, vote counting takes place over the following days, as usual in Ahoy. The municipal council votes are counted and reported first, followed by the votes for candidates and for the neighbourhood and village councils.

Accessibility support at polling stations

Rotterdam says every polling station has a disabled parking space nearby for people with a valid disability parking permit. Polling stations are described as well-accessible, with ramps and threshold aids where needed, and each location has at least one voting booth (stemhokje) with a lower writing surface for wheelchair users. Each polling station also has a reading magnifier available at the table where polling staff sit.

Extra support for blind, partially sighted and deaf voters

Rotterdam lists three polling stations with extra tools for blind or partially sighted voters, including guidance lines, a voting template (stemmal), and a sound box (soundbox):

• Huis van de Wijk De Kip, Kipstraat 37
• Huis van de Wijk ’t Klooster, Afrikaanderplein 7
• Publiekslocatie Delfshaven, Looiershof 1

At polling station SWeDoRo, Michelangelostraat 46, you can vote in sign language. Rotterdam also says you can scan a QR code at polling stations to connect with a Dutch Sign Language interpreter (Tolk Nederlandse Gebarentaal) via a digital link. For the full accessibility overview, Rotterdam points to: www.stembureausinrotterdam.nl/toegankelijkheid

How to get there

The Capital is in Rotterdam-Zuid near the Pleinweg area. If you are coming by public transport, you will likely combine metro and tram or bus connections into Zuid, then walk the last stretch. If you are cycling, this part of Zuid is straightforward to reach, and late-night arrivals tend to be easiest by bike or taxi depending on where you are coming from.

The Laurenskerk is right in the city centre by the Markthal and Blaak area, so it is an easy walk from Rotterdam Blaak station and a simple cycle from most central neighbourhoods. If you are aiming for the 06.30 opening, public transport is still workable, but cycling is usually the most reliable for early starts in the centre.

ROTTERDAM, 25 February 2026 – Rotterdam has approved an eight-year implementation strategy and investment agenda that turns its Environmental Vision (Omgevingsvisie) into a concrete sequence of choices, phases, and spending. The city says the approach links housing, green space, facilities, mobility, energy, and water into one joined-up plan per area, matched to available budgets and timelines.

_{Image: Waterfront at Stadionpark: a distinctive new district on the Maas with 3,740 homes, a tidal park, an urban sports and street culture campus, a school and an outdoor pool, listed as a priority in Rotterdam’s new implementation agenda. Credit: OMA, Lola, Effekt}

Instead of treating housing growth as a standalone target, Rotterdam is explicitly tying new homes to the capacity of everyday services and essential systems, from schools and GPs to public transport, power supply, and wastewater treatment.

From plan to delivery across the city

Many cities have an Environmental Vision (Omgevingsvisie). Rotterdam is now pinning down what happens first, what follows later, and what needs funding, via an implementation agenda (uitvoeringsagenda) for the next eight years.

Per area, the city says it will map required investments upfront, so growth can be balanced with liveability and system capacity. That means housing is always planned alongside social facilities, access, green space, and room for energy and water infrastructure.

What this changes for housing and facilities

In practical terms, Rotterdam says new homes should trigger the full checklist at the same time: GPs, schools, sports facilities, public transport, wastewater capacity, and electricity capacity.

Alderman Chantal Zeegers (climate, construction and housing) describes the logic as simple sequencing and honesty about limits: “Growth is not the sum of separate projects. If you add homes, you must also invest in green space, facilities and infrastructure. With this implementation strategy, we show what growth really requires and in what order we do it. Not everything can happen at once, and resources are scarce. That is exactly why we are choosing transparency and cohesion.”

Three places Rotterdam points to as examples

The city highlights Stadionpark as a bundled programme bringing together housing, a new railway station, the Feijenoord tidal park (Getijdenpark), Varkenoordsepark, business space, and community facilities such as a health centre and a school.

It also points to Alexanderknoop, where denser development around high-quality public transport is being prepared alongside greening and employment. In the city centre, including the continued development of Rijnhaven, housing is linked to traffic measures (the traffic circulation plan, verkeerscirculatieplan), public space projects such as the floating park at Katendrecht (drijvend park), and urban facilities.

How “systems” are being built into the plan

Rotterdam also says it is treating system investments as a first-order requirement, not an afterthought. Examples named include space for 150 kV substations and expansion of wastewater treatment, so growth does not stall due to power or water limits.

The city frames this as a way to prevent housing construction from running ahead of what streets, pipes, cables, and services can actually support.

A fixed core, and room for politics

The agenda includes what Rotterdam calls a “robust core” (robuuste kern): projects and area developments that get priority because they add value for the city and often already have administrative and financial commitments. The city says this core uses around two-thirds of the available investment capacity for growth and modernisation over the coming eight years.

The remaining space is deliberately left for the next municipal council and executive to set their own accents. The agenda will be updated every two years, so Rotterdam can adjust to progress, budgets, and new realities such as grid congestion (netcongestie) or changes in national rules.

What this means for you in Rotterdam

For residents, the city is promising more predictability and clearer trade-offs. If a neighbourhood changes, Rotterdam says it will be clearer in advance which facilities and investments are meant to arrive with that change, so housing, access and quality of life can grow together.

The city also says residents should be able to weigh in earlier on what matters locally, and points to Stadionpark as an area programme shaped with input from surrounding neighbourhoods.

ROTTERDAM, 12 February 2026 – D66 Rotterdam has published a survey aimed at international students ahead of the Rotterdam municipal elections (gemeenteraadsverkiezingen) on 18 March 2026. The party says it wants international student input for its local programme, focusing on topics like housing, work, and nightlife.

Personal note: we do not usually share content from political parties, but this is a questionnaire, and it could be useful to take part. If you are an international student in Rotterdam and you want your day-to-day experience reflected in local politics, you might want to fill it in. Do note: this is a political party survey, and it is landing during election season, so the timing is also convenient for the campaign.

What the survey is about

D66 Rotterdam says the survey is meant to capture the experiences and needs of international students in the city, especially in areas where navigating Rotterdam can be confusing or frustrating. The topics listed by the party include contact with the municipality and other public services, the availability and quality of housing, opportunities to find work, and nightlife in Rotterdam.

Why the party is doing this now

D66 points to the scale of Rotterdam’s international student community and says it believes this group is not always effectively reached by local politics and policy. The party frames the survey as a way to bring international student experiences into political decisions that affect daily life in the city.

The survey link

If you want to take part, you can find the survey here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1iAiUZU00c80POcz0HBSIiVqVI9fqpMV9B4mQu3QjT9o/viewform?edit_requested=true