Guarantee of childcare scheme (pasningsgaranti)

A guaranteed daycare place is an offer of childcare within the municipality of Aarhus according to your child's age. 

If your child has reached 26 weeks of age (eligible age for a guaranteed daycare place) at the point in which childcare is needed and is signed up in a timely manner, you will receive an offer of a daycare place for the 1st or 16th of a given month.

There may be areas where it is sometimes difficult to fulfil the guarantee of childcare within the individual local areas. However, we always try to find a place that accommodates your wishes as much as possible or a place on your way to and from work.

As a starting point we always sign up all eligible children for a guaranteed daycare place. It happens automatically and you cannot opt out. 

The guarantee means that you have the right to receive childcare in the municipality of Aarhus from the 1^st or 16^th of the month after your child turns 26 weeks and until August 1^st of the year your child starts the 4th grade.

An example: If your child is born on December 24th, you are eligible for childcare from July or 1st or 16^th.

We do our best to accommodate your wishes for childcare. It may be difficult to accommodate your wishes depending on where you live. However, we always try to find a place that accommodates your wishes as much as possible or a place on your way to and from work.

Aarhus is divided into 3 large guarantee of childcare districts (garantidistrikter). Each district consists of several school districts. 

View a map over all guarantee of childcare districts and school districts.

Age-appropriate childcare is childcare that match the age of your child.

You will be guaranteed an offer of a day nursery place from when your child is 26 weeks and up to and including the month in which your child reaches the age of 3; a child-minding place from when your child is 26 weeks and up to and including the month in which your child reaches the age of 4; a kindergarten place from the month after your child has reached the age of 3 and until your child begins school.

In other words, you will not be guaranteed a kindergarten place until your child has reached the age of 3 – not even if you have selected a requirement date for kindergarten before your child has reached the age of 3.

When you sign up for childcare, you can select a day nursery/ child-minding place as well as kindergarten. If your child has not yet reached the age of 3, we recommend that you do both. If you select one age group alone, you shall only be guaranteed the offer of a place in the selected age group.

Examples

1.  Aron was born on 4 April 2020, and thus Aron will be a kindergarten child on 1 May 2023. Aron's parents have signed up for a kindergarten place for Aron with requirement date as of 1 April 2023. Aron will not be guaranteed a kindergarten offer until 1 May 2023 and, thus, Aron will not feature on the waiting lists for a kindergarten place as of 1 April 2023.
2. Bertha was born on 18 July 2021 and signed up for day nursery place with a requirement date as of 1 August 2025. As, on 1 August 2025, Bertha will be a kindergarten child, she will neither be guaranteed an offer of a day nursery, child-minding or kindergarten, as her parents have not signed her up for an age-appropriate place.
3. Cengiz was born on 27 February 2019 and signed up for day nursery with a requirement date as of 1 March 2020. Cengiz has only been signed up for a combined institution as day nursery desires. Cengiz is offered and accepts a place at a pure day nursery with commencement as of 1 March 2020. Cengiz is not signed up for kindergarten but retains his priority – a desire for day nursery at a combined institution. Cengiz continues at the offered institution up to and including 28 February 2022. Cengiz is not guaranteed an offer of a kindergarten place with commencement 1 March 2022, as Cengiz has not been signed up for a kindergarten place.
   
   
4. Dagmar was born on 11 October 2022 and signed up for a day nursery/ child-minding place with commencement on 1 September 2023 and for a kindergarten place with commencement on 1 November 2025. Dagmar is offered and accepts a day nursery place at a combined institution. Dagmar will have an age-appropriate place up to the point in time when she starts school, and she will no longer be guaranteed a new offer of kindergarten for 1 November 2025, as she will automatically continue at the combined institution.

Will the placement rules be changed?

The placement rules will not be changed. Only the guarantee of childcare will be subject to change. Places will be allocated in the same order as always. However, the "allocation district" concept is replaced by "school district," so you now have priority, but not a guarantee, for a place in your school district. 

What does a changed guarantee of childcare entail?

When the guarantee of childcare changes from 8 guarantee districts to 3 guarantee districts, you can be offered a place in a larger area than before. The Placement Service, however, constantly strives to find a place that is as local as possible.

Does this change apply to the entire municipality?

The changed childcare guarantee applies to the entire municipality, cf. the equality of treatment principle. However, the majority will still experience place offers that are within their guarantee of childcare districts.

Will there be less chance of obtaining a desired place?

The chance of obtaining a preferred place will not decrease. You have the same chance of getting one of your five preferences as before, but if it is not possible to fulfil a wish, you may be offered a place further away. You are not guaranteed an offer of a desired place.

Could the parents now risk having to drive long distances for childcare?

The Placement Service will always strive to find the nearest local place or, in a dialogue with the parents, to find a place near the parents' work.
As always, the Placement Service will always try to meet the parents' desires in the best possible way. A placement will, however—before as now—depend on the number of vacant places as well as the placement rules.

Will the parents' means of transport or working hours be taken into consideration?

In connection with the placement, it is not legally possible – cf. s.27(1)(c) of the Danish Public Day-Care Facilities Act (dagtilbudsloven) – to consider working hours, means of transport or the similar in connection with the allocation of a place. The guarantee of the childcare scheme being changed to a municipal level will not influence this.

If you phone the Placement Service, will your chances of getting a desired place or a place within the guarantee of childcare district improve?

The Placement Service always has a nuanced dialogue with the parents regarding the allocation of a place. However, the Placement Service can neither neglect the legislation in force nor applicable placement rules. Thus, a phone call will not change the opportunity to meet your priorities, as you cannot jump the queue this way.

Why do the guarantee districts change?

Unfortunately, Aarhus Municipality, like any other municipality, is currently facing significant recruitment challenges. This means that in some places, we cannot accept more children in the daycare centres, even though the physical framework is there, as we lack staff to receive the children. We do not want to compromise with the educational norms in the institutions, and therefore, we may have to designate a place across the previous eight guarantee districts. Put another way; the recruitment challenges mean that we have to reduce the number of guaranteed districts from eight to three to continue to guarantee a place within a more closely defined geographical area rather than simply guaranteeing a place within the entire municipality.

We will always try to meet your wishes as much as possible, but a direction will also always - both before and now - depend on where there are available places and the direction rules.