Japanese municipalities plan to move school clubs to local organizations

The Japanese government plans to transition school club activities to local community clubs to reduce the workload of teachers and provide students with more diverse activities.

A national survey reveals that 76.6% of municipalities, or 1,333 locations, plan to move club activities to community organizations on weekends by the 2027 fiscal year. This initiative has grown nearly three times since it began in the 2023 fiscal year.

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology aims to implement this transition in all public junior high schools by the 2031 fiscal year. The government allocated approximately 5.7 billion yen in the 2026 fiscal year to support this reform. While weekend transitions are progressing steadily, 46.6% of municipalities also plan to move activities on weekdays, though officials note that securing personnel and transportation remains a challenge for weekday transitions.