Welcome to the childcare and social education sector

In Denmark, educational activity and care for the very young and slightly older pre-school children is given high priority. The educational principles applied are guided by the wish to inspire children to learn and act from they are toddlers. As a staff member in the childcare area, you have an important role to play, in cooperation with other staff categories, in making all of the work tasks of caring for children and stimulating their curiosity successful.

Also the work with persons with functional impairment or mental disability, which is handled by social care helpers in cooperation with other groups, is centred on supporting the individual’s own capabilities and resources.
Even though recruiting workers from abroad for personal and social care and cleaning is currently the area of primary interest in Denmark, you will also have job possibilities in the childcare and social education sector.

Social educationist, social education helper, childminder or social care helper

Making children learn through play is a central element in work with children. No matter whether you get a job looking after children as a childminder, in a day care centre or in a residential institution, an important objective is to prepare the children for taking part in life in their society.
If you work in the childcare area, the planning of every day with the children will take place in cooperation with other staff groups such as social educationists and cleaners and with the children and their parents.
Supporting people and their potential is also the key objective of the job of a social care helper, who provides care and support to children and adults who need help due to a functional impairment, mental disability, mental illness or misuse. The care, treatment and stimulation they need are planned in collaboration between the individual and social education staff.

The job as a social education helper

Social education helpers work in day nurseries, kindergardens, after-school centres, combined day care centres or after-school recreation schemes.
Duties include caring for the children and inspiring play and activity that will challenge the children’s capabilities. The social education helper will also take part in educational, preventive and supportive measures aimed to help children with special needs.
The staff must draw up a learning programme for each child with the child’s parents. This is a legal requirement intended to support the child’s natural development, and the legislation aims to ensure and inspire the creation of inclusive learning environments in day care centres for pre-school children, ensuring responsiveness to children’s curiosity.

The job as a childminder

Registered childminders are employed by the local authority but work in their own home. A childminder’s responsibility is caring for, supporting and developing a group of three or four children, up to five at a maximum, typically from six months to three years old.
In the children’s daily life, the childminder must take them outdoors in nature, read books aloud and let them take part in domestic activity. Also childminders must prepare learning programmes.

The job as a social care helper

Social care helpers work with children and adults with physical and mental disabilities, for example, and with children and young persons with social behaviour problems placed in residential care.
Social care helpers may work at local or regional authority residential facilities, in council housing and in special-care cooperative dwellings and social care and activity centres.
Work tasks are varied, ranging from around the clock care and support to practical help a couple of hours a week.

The training programme for social education assistants

If you are a childminder, social care helper, social education helper or have a similar social education job, you may enrol on the training programme for social education assistants.

The programme gives you qualifications for:
• Supporting children, young persons and adults in their development
• Working in the childminder service, day care centres or institutions for children, young persons or adults with special needs
• Admission to the social educationist programme

Two entry routes

There are two entry routes to the programme, depending on your age and work experience:
The ordinary social education assistant programme
The training programme is for applicants without any experience in the social education area.
The programme, which runs over 2 years and 9½ months, normally consists of:
• A 20 week foundation course
• A main course comprising 54 weeks of school study
• Two practical training periods of 26 weeks each

The special social education assistant programme (GVU)

The programme, which is an individually tailored school study programme of about 54 weeks, is for applicants with at least two years of job experience in the social education area.
You may obtain leave of absence from your job and you may receive a training salary for the duration of the programme.

Continuing qualification

Childminders, social education helpers and social care helpers may improve their quali-fications by taking one of a broad array of adult vocational training programmes (AMU).
Most programmes are free of charge to participants, and if the employer does not pay any salary in the training period, it is possible to obtain an adult continuing education allowance (the VEU allowance). It is equivalent to the unemployment benefit rate.

If you are looking for a job in Denmark in these areas

• care of the elderly, sick and disabled
• children and young people
• catering and cleaning services
• technical and maintenance services

---