Early childhood education and care: documentation of statistics
The documentation of the statistics describes how the statistics were compiled and what methods were used in the compilation. The data help interpret the figures of the statistics and evaluate their reliability and comparability. The quality report is based on the EU's SIMS model. The documentation also contains change releases describing changes in the statistics and possible specifying methodological descriptions.
If you are looking for statistical figures for these statistics, go to the statistics page: Early childhood education and care
Quality report
Data description (SIMS 3.1)
Statistics on early childhood education and care includes data on children participating in early childhood education and care and on operators and place of activities of early childhood education and care. Data are obtained from the Finnish National Agency for Education’s Varda database and Åland’s data from Statistics and Research Åland (ÅSUB). The data are published once a year.
Sector coverage (SIMS 3.3)
The statistics on early childhood education and care contain information on children participating in early childhood education and care. The data represent total data, and they include the details of all children taking part in early childhood education and care.
Statistical unit (SIMS 3.5)
A child participating in early childhood education and care is the statistical unit used in the statistics.
Statistical population (SIMS 3.6)
In the statistics on early childhood education and care and the database on early childhood education and care (Varda) of the Finnish National Agency for Education, children participating in early childhood education and care mean the children who took part in early childhood education and care in the statistical reference year, and in whose case the decision on the provision of early childhood education and care and the early childhood education and care relationship were in effect on the last day of the year (cross-sectional data on the situation on 31 December). Each child is only included in the total number of children once. If the child has more than one early childhood education and care relationship, the full-time relationship is selected. If the child does not have any full-time early childhood education and care relationship, the early childhood education and care relationship with the highest number of weekly hours is selected. The statistics comprise children in early education centres and family day care premises.
The data contained in the statistics on early childhood education and care are based on the Varda database and the individual-based data retrieved from it. The Varda database contains nationwide data on early childhood education and care. Early childhood education and care actors (municipalities, joint municipal authorities and private providers of early childhood education and care) enter into Varda the data on early childhood education and care actors and establishments, children participating in early childhood education and care and their guardians as well as the details of the early childhood education and care personnel. Varda was introduced in stages between 2019 and 2020. It is maintained by the Finnish National Agency for Education, and the steering of the database is the responsibility of the Ministry of Education and Culture. Provisions on the database are contained in the Act on Early Childhood Education and Care.
The statistics also include the sum-based data on Åland, which are obtained from Statistics and Research Åland (ÅSUB). The data describe the children in early education centres and family day care premises in the cross-sectional situation on 31 December.
Regional data are compiled according to the municipality of the primary establishment of early childhood education and care.
The data represent total data.
Reference area (SIMS 3.7)
The reference area is the whole of Finland. The data are available for all regional data at the disposal of Statistics Finland.
Time coverage (SIMS 3.8)
Statistics are available starting from 2021. The time series for the years before 2021 are based on the data collected by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL).
Unit of measure (SIMS 4)
The number of children taking part in early childhood education and care is used as the unit of measure in the statistics.
Reference period (SIMS 5)
Statistical data on early childhood education and care are published each year for one calendar year. The cross-sectional point (31 December) is used as the reference point.
Concepts and definitions (SIMS 3.4)
Centre-based early education
An early education centre is an early childhood education and care site where early childhood education and care is provided by employees meeting statutory qualification requirements. Centre-based early education is early childhood education and care provided in an early education centre
Early childhood education and care
Systematic and goal-oriented activity consisting of upbringing, education and care for children, with special emphasis on pedagogy. Early childhood education and care is provided as centre-based early education, family-based day care and open early childhood education and care. Family-based day care can be provided as family-based day care or group family day care.
Early childhood education and care actor
An organisation or person that organises or provides early childhood education and care under the Act on Early Childhood Education and Care. An early childhood education and care actor may be a municipality, a joint municipal authority, a private actor providing a municipality with early childhood education and care on a contractual basis, an early childhood education and care provider accepting service vouchers, a family day care childminder or some other registered early childhood education and care actor operating on a private basis. Using private day care allowance or child home care allowance to hire a childminder in an employment relationship to look after a child at home is not early childhood education and care under the Act on Early Childhood Education and Care and such childminders are not early childhood education and care actors
Early childhood education and care site
A set of premises where a provider of early childhood education and care operates under the Act on Early Childhood Education and Care. An early childhood education and care site may be an early education centre, a set of family day care premises, or a set of group family day care premises located in one address. For example, each of the branches of an early education centre is considered an early education centre.
Family-based day care
Family day care premises are an early childhood education and care site where early childhood education and care is provided by a person meeting statutory qualification requirements and where the number of children present at any one time does not exceed the maximum permitted under the law. In family day care premises, early childhood education and care is the responsibility of one family day care childminder. Family-based day care is early childhood education and care provided in family day care premises
Full-time early childhood education and care
Early childhood education and care where a child is agreed to spend more than five hours a day
Group family day care
Group family day care premises are an early childhood education and care site where early childhood education and care is provided by personnel meeting statutory qualification requirements in premises approved for the purpose where the number of children present at any one time does not exceed the maximum permitted under the law. In group family day care premises, early childhood education and care is the responsibility of at least two family day care childminders or other persons with early childhood education and care qualifications. Group family day care is family-based day care where the children are jointly looked after by two or three family day care childminders
Mode of organising early childhood education and care
Early childhood education and care can be organised by a municipality or a joint municipal authority, purchased by a municipality or a joint municipal authority, based on a service voucher supplied by a municipality or a joint municipal authority, based on private day care allowance, or provided as private early childhood education and care without private day care allowance.
Open early childhood education and care
Early childhood education and care provided as a club activity for children or for children together with an adult. Open early childhood education and care is primarily intended for children that do not take part in part-time or full-time early childhood education and care. Open early childhood education and care includes playgrounds, club and play schemes for children and open early education. There are no statutory qualification requirements for persons working in open early childhood education and care or for the number of employees required for each site.
Origin and background country
During 2012, Statistics Finland has adopted a new origin classification. A similar classification is already used in the other Nordic countries. The origin and background country are determined based on the country of birth data of the person's parents. Using the origin classification it is easy to distinguish between persons born abroad and born in Finland with a foreign background. Data on persons that died before 1964 have not been entered into the Population Information System of the Population Register Centre. There are nearly 900,000 persons among the Finnish population who have been born in Finland and both parent's country of birth is unknown because the parents of these persons have died before the Population Information System was established. People born in Finland before 1970, whose parents' background is not known, have been concluded to be persons with Finnish background if their native language is a national language (Finnish, Swedish, Sami). All such persons who have at least one parent who was born in Finland are also considered to be persons with Finnish background. The background country for all persons with Finnish background is Finland. Persons whose both parents or the only known parent have been born abroad are considered to be persons with foreign background. Persons who have been born abroad and whose parents' data are not included in the Population Information System are also considered to be persons with foreign background. Persons born in Finland before 1970, whose native language is a foreign language have been considered to be persons with foreign background, as have persons born in Finland in 1970 or after this, whose parents' data are not included in the Population Information System. If both parents of a person have been born abroad, the background country is primarily the country of birth of the biological mother. If a person only has knowledge of a father that was born abroad, the background country is the country of birth of the father. If either parent's country of birth is unknown, the background country for persons born abroad is their own country of birth. For persons born in Finland, whose parents' data are unknown and who have been deducted to be with foreign background, the background country is unknown. For children adopted from abroad, the adoptive parents are regarded as the biological parents. Thus a child adopted from abroad by persons born in Finland is a person with Finnish background and their background country is Finland.
Part-time early childhood education and care
Early childhood education and care where a child is agreed to spend a maximum of five hours a day
Round the clock daycare
Early childhood education and care which is organised also outside the normal opening hours. The normal opening hours are defined as weekdays (Mon-Fri) between 06.00-18.00.
Type of early childhood education and care
Early childhood education and care is provided as centre-based early education, family-based day care, group family day care or open early childhood education and care
Institutional mandate (SIMS 6)
The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. The Statistics Act contains provisions on collection of data, processing of data and the obligation to provide data. Besides the Statistics Act, the General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act and the Act on the Openness of Government Activities are applied to processing of data when producing statistics.
Statistics Finland compiles statistics in line with the EU’s regulations applicable to statistics, which steer the statistical agencies of all EU Member States.
Further information: Statistical legislation
Legal acts and other agreements (SIMS 6.1)
The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. The Statistics Act contains provisions on collection of data, processing of data and the obligation to provide data. Besides the Statistics Act, the Data Protection Act and the Act on the Openness of Government Activities are applied to processing of data when producing statistics.
Statistics Finland compiles statistics in line with the EU’s regulations applicable to statistics, which steer the statistical agencies of all EU Member States.
Further information: Statistical legislation
Data sharing (SIMS 6.2)
The data are used for such purposes as the planning, research and assessment of early childhood education and care as well as for international educational statistics. Data contained in the statistics are reported to UNESCO, the OECD and Eurostat in the UOE education statistics survey and in related separate surveys.
Source data (SIMS 18.1)
The data contained in the statistics on early childhood education and care are total data based on administrative registers. The statistics on early childhood education and care are based on the Varda database of the Finnish National Agency for Education and the individual-based data retrieved from it. The Varda database contains nationwide data on early childhood education and care. Early childhood education and care actors (municipalities, joint municipal authorities and private providers of early childhood education and care) enter into Varda the data on early childhood education and care actors and establishments, children participating in early childhood education and care and their guardians as well as the details of the early childhood education and care personnel. Varda was introduced in stages between 2019 and 2020. It is maintained by the Finnish National Agency for Education, and the steering of the database is the responsibility of the Ministry of Education and Culture. Provisions on the database are contained in the Act on Early Childhood Education and Care. The data are supplemented with the figures for Åland obtained from Statistics and Research Åland (ÅSUB). The data on Åland are sum-based. The data represent total data.
Frequency of data collection (SIMS 18.2)
Statistical data on early childhood education and care are collected annually.
Data collection (SIMS 18.3)
Under the agreement between Statistics Finland and the Finnish National Agency for Education, Statistics Finland receives the data on children in early childhood education and care as well as the details of early childhood education and care actors, establishments and personnel, from the Varda database through an interface. The data are supplemented with the figures for Åland obtained from Statistics and Research Åland (ÅSUB).
Data validation (SIMS 18.4)
The data contained in the statistics on early childhood education and care are validated in many stages of the statistical process. During the processing of the data, the high quality of the statistics is ensured by means of several different statistical verification programs as well as by comparing the data with previous comparable statistics and other data sources.
Data compilation (SIMS 18.5)
Such matters as missing data, logical errors and data appearing twice are checked from the early education and care data. The data are also compared with the corresponding data for the previous year. All inaccuracies are reported to the Finnish National Agency for Education. It may also be necessary to make corrections in the data included in the statistics. The data are supplemented with classifications and registers.
The data are final after the statistics have been published.
Overall accuracy (SIMS 13.1)
Inadequacies in the data provided by early childhood education and care actors and errors in the source material affect the quality of the statistics. Errors may arise when actors enter the data in the Varda database, or when the data are collected by Statistics Finland from the database interface.
Quality assurance (SIMS 11.1)
Quality management requires comprehensive guidance of activities. The European Statistics Code of Practice forms the basis for the common quality system of the European Statistical System.
The Code of Practice is based on 16 principles that concern statistical authorities' independence, accountability and the quality of the processes and data to be published.
The principles are in line with the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics approved by the United Nations Statistics Commission and are supplementary to them. The quality criteria of Official Statistics of Finland are compatible with the European Statistics Code of Practice.
Further information: European Statistics Code of Practice | Statistics Finland and Recommendations of the Advisory Board of Official Statistics of Finland | Statistics Finland
Quality assessment (SIMS 11.2)
The quality of the statistics on early childhood education and care is assessed at several stages of the statistical process. During the processing of the data, the high quality of the statistics is ensured by means of several different verification programs as well as by comparing the data with previous comparable statistics and other data sources.
Timeliness (SIMS 14.1)
Statistics on early childhood education and care are published about 11 months after the statistics compilation date (31 December).
Punctuality (SIMS 14.2)
There are no delays between the release date given in the release calendar and the actual date of release.
Comparability - geographical (SIMS 15.1)
Applicable parts of the National Classification of Education 2016, which is based on the UNESCO International Standard Classification of Education 2011 (ISCED 2011), are used in the statistics. The statistics are internationally comparable and cover the whole of Finland. The data contained in the statistics are available with all municipality-based grouping information covering the whole of Finland.
Comparability - over time (SIMS 15.2)
The statistics on early childhood education and care have been based on the data obtained from the Varda database since the 2021 statistical reference year. The data are supplemented with the figures for Åland obtained from Statistics and Research Åland (ÅSUB). Until the statistical data for 2020, the statistics on early childhood education and care were published by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL). Comparability between individual years is affected by changes in the system of early childhood education and care, classifications and the compiling of statistics.
Coherence – cross domain (SIMS 15.3)
The statistics on early childhood education and care are based on the Varda database of the Finnish National Agency for Education. They are prepared in accordance with the same principles as all other educational statistics of Statistics Finland.
Coherence - internal (SIMS 15.4)
There are no internal conflicts in the data for each individual statistical year contained in the statistics on early childhood education and care. However, the comparability between individual years is affected by changes in the system of early childhood education and care, classifications and the compiling of statistics.
Release calendar (SIMS 8.1)
Statistics Finland publishes new statistical data at 8 am on weekdays in its web service. The release times of statistics are given in advance in the release calendar available in the web service. The data become public after they have been updated in the web service.
Further information: Publication principles for statistics at Statistics Finland
Release calendar access (SIMS 8.2)
User access (SIMS 8.3)
The data are released to all users at the same time. Statistical data may be processed at Statistics Finland and information on them may be given before release only by persons involved in the production of the statistics concerned or who need the data of the statistics concerned in their own work before the data are published.
Further information: Publication principles for statistics
Unless otherwise specifically stated in connection with the product, data or service concerned, Statistics Finland is the producer and copyright owner of the data. The terms of use for statistical data.
Frequency of dissemination (SIMS 9)
Statistical data on early childhood education and care are published each year for one calendar year. The cross-sectional point (31 December) is used as the reference point.
News release (SIMS 10.1)
The release is published monthly/annually/quarterly on the home page of the statistics.
Online database (SIMS 10.3)
The database tables of the statistics can be found in the StatFin database.
Confidentiality - policy (SIMS 7.1)
The data protection of data collected for statistical purposes is guaranteed. The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. Alongside the Statistics Act, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation and the Finnish Data Protection Act are applied to the processing of personal data. Provisions on the confidentiality of data collected for statistical purposes are laid down in the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.
The data are processed only by persons who need the data in their work. The use of data is restricted by usage rights. All persons employed by Statistics Finland have signed a pledge of secrecy, where they have obliged to keep secret the data prescribed as confidential by virtue of the Statistics Act or the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.
Further information: Data protection | Statistics Finland (stat.fi)
Confidentiality - data treatment (SIMS 7.2)
The basic publications follow Statistics Finland’s official guidelines on the protection of tabulated personal data based on the principles of statistical ethics and legislation. Avoiding the publication of statistical data in formats from which individual persons can be identified is the key principle guiding the data protection activities. In other respects, the data on the number of children supplied by early childhood education and care actors are publicly accessible because the activities they organise are financed or supervised by the public authorities (Section 12 of the Statistics Act (280/2004)).
The database tables are more standardised and more specific than the tables used in the statistical releases. Background variables are typically more detailed than those used in the tables contained in the statistical releases. To ensure data protection, the classification was already changed to less detailed at the table design stage; the database tables are not published using the most detailed possible classification variables for data protection reasons. When information service assignments are prepared, the case-specific nature of the assignments and, in particular, the impact of small numbers of observations and (possibly) more precise background variables on data protection must be taken into account. If the data service table contains sensitive variables, rougher classifications are used for other variables (such as for regional data). If it is inconvenient to make the variables less detailed, a threshold rule can be applied.