About other educational activities

ENG

Other educational activities are intended to complement preschool, preschool class and school, and to enable parents to combine parenthood with work or study. Other educational activities are voluntary.

What are other educational activities?

The term “other educational activities” refers to flexible childcare for children between the ages of 1 and 12. There are four different types of other educational activities.

• Educare
• Care when the preschool or school-age educare centre is closed
• Open preschool
• Open school-age educare

Other educational activities are intended to complement preschool, preschool class and school. Such activities may include childcare in the evenings, at night or at weekends, when preschools and school-age educare centres are closed. They may also be open activities that children can participate in without having to be registered.

Other educational activities are meant to stimulate children's development and learning and are designed to prepare them for further learning. Unlike preschool and school-age educare, there are no requirements for children to receive instruction or for staff to have a university education. There is also no curriculum.

Much of what is stated in the Education Act does not apply to other educational activities. However, some things that do apply are the following

• the activities must always be based on the best interests of the child
• individuals working in educare must present a criminal register extract before they can be hired
• individuals who provide other educational activities must strive to prevent and take action against degrading treatment and bullying.

How do I apply for a place in other educational activities?

Contact your municipality to find out what types of other educational activities are available in the municipality and how to apply for a place.

Educare

Educare can take a number of different forms. One form is family daycare, where childminders look after children in their own homes or in special premises. It can also be someone who looks after children in the children's own homes.

Several people can provide educare together in a shared space. This could be a cooperative where guardians take turns working with the children. It could also be several families looking after each other's children, with the children alternating between the different families' homes.

Educare can also be run as a business with an employed staff who provide care and activities. Educare can be provided in someone's home or be fully or partly provided in special premises.

How large is the child group allowed to be?

The Education Act states that child groups in educare must be of an appropriate composition and size, but it does not specify a limit for how large a child group may be. The premises must be suitable for the activities.

Core values and staff

Educare must be rooted in fundamental democratic values and human rights, such as the sanctity of human life, individual freedom and integrity, the equal value of all people, equality, and solidarity between people.

Staff must have training or experience that enables them to care for children and offer quality educational activities. The activities shall be based on each child's needs and designed so that the children have a wide variety of contacts and social interaction.

Who can provide educare?

Educare can be provided by the municipality or privately. Private provision means that someone other than the municipality provides the service, such as a business or a private individual.

The municipality is not required to offer educare beyond preschool and school-age educare. However, the municipality shall endeavour to offer other types of educare if there are guardians who request this for their children.

How much does a place in educare cost?

A place in other educare is subject to the same rules regarding fees as those that apply to a place in preschool or school-age educare. The educare provider is allowed to charge a fee, but this fee must be fair, i.e. reasonable. This also applies to childcare provided in the evenings, at night or at weekends, when preschools and school-age educare centres are closed.

If a municipality provides educare, it may charge a reasonable fee for your child to attend. Today, all municipalities use a system that sets a financial cap for childcare. With the cap, there is a limit to how high the fee can be for different families based on their income. This also applies to educare, whether the provider is municipal or private.

Is my child entitled to special support in educare?

Yes, if your child needs special support for physical, psychological or other reasons, they are entitled to receive the support they need. It is the organiser's responsibility to ensure that your child receives this support. The organiser is the municipality or the educare service provider, in the case of a private organiser.

Care when the preschool or school-age educare centre is closed

Your municipality should endeavour to make childcare available when preschools and school-age educare centres are closed, for example in the evenings, at night and at the weekend. The municipality should take into account what kind of work schedules parents may have and the family's situation in general.

Open preschool

Open preschool is for children who are not enrolled in preschool, such as children under one year of age. A parent or other adult must accompany the child to the open preschool. Open preschool offers children educational activities in groups together with the adults who accompany them. It also gives the adults an opportunity for social interaction. The children are not enrolled. It is instead up to the parents to decide whether and how much their child will participate.

Open school-age educare

Open school-age educare is for children aged 10–12 who do not need the care and supervision they can receive through regular school-age educare or in another form of educare. Each child's family decides when and how often their child should participate. Open school-age educare is often coordinated with the school, school-age educare and other recreational activities that the municipality organises for children and young people.