Admission requirements and choice of settings

The Act on Day Care Facilities stipulates guaranteed ECEC availability, which entails that municipalities are obliged to offer a place in an age-appropriate ECEC institution to all children older than 26 weeks and until they start school around the age of five/six years.

The individual municipality determines the guidelines for admission to ECEC based on local needs in the municipality and distributes the places in ECEC institutions. If the parents are dissatisfied with the municipality’s decision, they can appeal the decision to the municipality within four weeks.

By determining the guidelines, the individual municipality can take into consideration criteria such as the composition of children, siblings, the geographical location of the ECEC setting, and children with special needs.

Children can attend different types of ECEC settings depending on their age:

• Nurseries are for children aged 26 weeks to three years;

• Kindergartens are for children aged three to five/six years;

• Age-integrated institutions are for children aged 26 weeks to five/six years;

• Home-based provision is primarily for children aged 26 weeks to three years.

Parents can choose between all types of ECEC settings without any restrictions. Parents can express their wishes for a particular day care institution, but they are not guaranteed a place in that particular institution. When distributing the places in day care institutions, the municipality must, if possible, take the parents’ wishes into consideration.

In 2022, the number of children that attended ECEC in municipal and self-governing day care institutions and home-based provision was distributed as follows:

• Home-based provision: 25,732 children (9.85 per cent);

• Day care institutions (0-2 years): 75,297 children (28.84 per cent);

• Day care institutions (3-5 years): 160,080 children (61.31 per cent).

Private day care institutions

If parents wish for their child to attend a private day care institution, they must contact the institution directly. The municipality cannot distribute places to private day care institutions. 

The private day care institutions determine the admission guidelines themselves. Often, the private day care institutions use waiting lists. Private day care institutions can only turn down applications for admission if there are no available places.

In 2022, about 25,000 children were enrolled in private day care institutions.

Group size and child-staff ratios

According to the Act on Day Care Facilities, the municipalities must ensure that there is as a minimum: 

• One pedagogical employee per three children in municipal and self-governing day care institutions for children aged 0-2 years;

• One pedagogical employee per six children in municipal and self-governing day care institutions for children aged 3-5/6 years.

The above minimum child-staff ratios are expected to enter into force for private day care institutions from January 2025.

In home-based provision, the childminder may not care for more than five children. If there is more than one childminder, the municipality may decide to increase the number of children in the home-based provision to ten. 

Staff qualification requirements

There is no legal requirement for a specific educational level for the ECEC staff, but the municipalities are responsible for ensuring adequate qualifications among the ECEC staff to meet the legislative requirements. 

In 2022, approximately half of the pedagogical staff (49.07 per cent) were core practitioners with a bachelor in social education (pedagogues). 

For more information about the education programme for pedagogues working in ECEC, please visit chapter 9.1. 

Annual, weekly and daily organisation

The ECEC settings are open Monday to Friday all year round except for public holidays and other closing days. If the ECEC setting is closed on an otherwise normal weekday, the municipality must offer the parents a place for their child in an alternative day care institution.

There are no specific legislative demands regarding opening hours. However, the opening hours must take the purposes of the ECEC into consideration and the opening hours must cover local needs for flexible childcare. Opening hours are typically from 6.30 to 17.00 on weekdays. Some special ECEC settings have extended opening hours to accommodate local needs, including parents’ shifting working hours.

The ECEC system is decentralised and there are no national common regulations regarding the weekly or daily organisation. How to organise the day/week is a local decision. However, the day care institution must prepare an education curriculum, which makes up the overall framework for the planning of activities. Normally, the day in an ECEC setting consists of both organised play, project work, and free play. 

References

Bibliography

LifeinDenmark.dk, 2024a: Childcare facilities for young children. [Accessed 20 August 2024]

LifeinDenmark.dk, 2024b: Rules for day-care facilities. [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Ministry of Children and Education, 2022: Introduction to the Early Childhood Education and Care system (Dagtilbud). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Ministry of Children and Education (Børne- og Undervisningsministeriet), 2023a: Admission to ECEC (Optagelse i dagtilbud). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Ministry of Children and Education (Børne- og Undervisningsministeriet), 2023b: Closing days and opening hours (Lukkedage og åbningstider). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Ministry of Children and Education (Børne- og Undervisningsministeriet), 2023c: Day care institutions (Daginstitutioner). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Ministry of Children and Education (Børne- og Undervisningsministeriet), 2024a: Learning environment (Læringsmiljø). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Ministry of Children and Education (Børne- og Undervisningsministeriet), 2024b: Minimum child-staff ratios in day care institutions (Minimumsnormeringer i daginstitutioner). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Statistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik), 2024a: Childcare (Børnepasning). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Statistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik), 2024b: Citizens (Borgere). [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Legislation and official policy documents

Legal information (Retsinformation), 2015: Guidelines on Day Care etc. (Vejledning om dagtilbud m.v.), VEJ no. 9109 of 27/02/2015. [Accessed 20 August 2024]

Legal Information (Retsinformation), 2024: Act on Day Care Facilities (Bekendtgørelse af lov om dag-, fritids- og klubtilbud m.v. til børn og unge (dagtilbudsloven)), LBK no. 988 of 27/08/2024. [Accessed 20 September 2024]