Here, you will find information on child care institutions for children who are not yet og school age.
Day nursery, family day care, and kindergarten
The vast majority of children under the age of six are in family day care, day nursery, or kindergarten every day. Municipalities must offer child care options, and the number and type of options vary from municipality to municipality. The most common options are:
- Family day care. That is, the child is looked after along with other children by a municipally approved child minder. This option is particularly relevant for children aged zero to three.
- Day nursery. For children aged six months up to and including two years.
- Kindergarten. For children from three years of age and up until they reach school age.
- Outlying kindergarten. A kindergarten with an urban pickup point, but where children spend the entire day in rural surroundings.
- Combined day-care institution. For children aged six months and up until they reach school age.
- Private option. Some municipalities subsidize parents who opt for private child care.
You have to apply for a place
You have to contact your municipality's child care place allocation office and apply for a child care place for your child. If a place is not immediately available, your child will be signed up on a waiting list. The earlier you have your child signed up, the greater the chance that he/she will have a place in the child care institution of your choice. If you would like a day nursery place for your child, you should sign them up at birth.
If you move to another municipality
If you move to another municipality before your child has entered a child care institution, you must contact your new municipality and have your child signed up on the waiting list there. Be sure to inform your new municipality of how long your child has been on the waiting list in your old municipality so that you will not be sent to the back of the line.
If you move to another municipality once your child has already entered a child care institution, you should contact your new municipality and sign up your child for a child care place. You have the choice to keep your child in a child care institution in your old municipality.
Call and schedule a visit
You are always welcome to visit several different child care institutions before deciding on where to send your child. Call ahead and schedule a visit - that way, you can be sure that staff will have the time to talk to you and give you a tour.
Payment
You have to pay for a place in a child care institution. But part of the cost is covered by public funding. If you have more than one child in the institution, you will get a "sibling reduction", and you can apply to your municipality for a completely or partially free place. Ask your municipality how.
Obligation to have your child minded
If you are unemployed and receive cash benefit, unemployment benefit, or introductory benefit, you must be available for work. This means that you have to be able to start a new job as soon as one becomes available. The same goes for unemployment activation. This means that you will have to have someone look after your child.
If you have not already found a way for your child to be minded, your municipality will offer your child a place in a child care institution or in family day care. You must accept this offer if you do not wish to be deprived of your financial benefits.
Subsidized private child care
Municipalities will subsidize parents who wish to hire private child care, for instance by employing a nurse. In some municipalities, it is possible to receive financial subsidies for taking care of your own children. It is up to the municipalities whether they will grant the subsidies.
Help with language development
If needed, your child will receive special assistance with learning Danish - so-called language stimulation - from the age of three. Your municipality must offer you language stimulation if needed, and linguists will assess your child's language skills and determine if there is a need for language stimulation. If your child is in a kindergarten, the language stimulation will take place there. If you look after your child at home, language stimulation is 15 hours per week. If offered, participation in language stimulation is mandatory. Ask your municipality for details on how the language stimulation will take place.
"My son achieved a large vocabulary by playing with Danish children"
Gülay Ciftci came to Denmark from Turkey in 1977. She works as an integration and cash benefit consultant in a Danish municipality and is currently training to become a social worker.
"When our son entered the school system, the teachers all said that he had a large vocabulary. That was because he played with a lot of Danish children. Because even though we speak Danish together, there are words that I don't know, but he picks those up from the other children. Adults can learn from each other in the same way. We have always invited Danish children and their parents to our house. We have discussed many things with them, and this has been a learning experience both for them and for us. Many prejudices evaporated - on both sides."
Contact between staff and parents
Good contact between you as parents and child care staff is important for the welfare of your child. Staff will inform you of what goes on in the institution on a day-to-day basis. They want to hear your experiences with your child, and know about any changes in the family that may affect your child.
If you need more time to discuss things with staff, you may ask for a parent consultation. Many child care institutions have bilingual staff who participate in the consultations. Otherwise, an interpreter will be provided for you.
Parent-staff conferences and parents' committees
It is important that you are interested and involved in your child's day-to-day life, when someone else is looking after him/her as well. At twice-yearly parent-staff conferences, you can get information about what is going on in the child care institution, and put forward your own proposals for changes. At one of these two yearly conferences, parents will elect representatives for the parents' committee. The representatives will have a say on the finances of the institution, its activities, and the educational theory and practices that influence the day-to-day life of the children.
