Daycares, known is Swedish as dagis or förskola, are run or overseen by each municipality, are available once your child has turned one and your municipality is obliged to offer you a place within 3-4 months of you notifying them that you want a position (although not always the case in reality). They are also obliged to offer you a place in a daycare as close to your home as possible.

You may find the Swedish childcare system quite different to what you are used to. The foundation was laid in the early 70s aiming to make it possible for parents to continue working (or studying) and to encourage the child’s development and learning. By providing affordable childcare the government are assuring that women do not fall in to the “woman’s trap” (kvinnofällan). Typically the woman’s trap is being at home due to the high cost of childcare and their low income relative to the father’s, and thus not fulfilling their right to be an individual outside the home, to work and earn money, and to have a career and earn a pension.

Day-cares do have a curriculum but the emphasis is more a guide and general reference for the day-care themselves than a rigid outline of education they must follow. Play is viewed as very important at this age and is encouraged for much of the day in those following the national curriculum. Learning is not considered so much in the academic sense, but more in terms of socialising and the establishment of routines.