Non-standard hours ECEC is Early Childhood Education and Care provided in the evenings, at night and on weekends. In Vaasa, non-standard hours ECEC is provided by Punahilkan Daycare. Non-standard hours ECEC is intended only for children who have a real and regular need for non-standard hours ECEC due to their guardians’ work or studies.
Non-standard hours ECEC is not a subjective right. Service Coordination and the daycare director of the non-standard hours unit determine the need for non-standard hours ECEC together with the family.
Non-standard hours ECEC can be granted when the guardians have:
- regular and continuous shift work or comparable work and/or
- studies comparable to shift work
The child’s care hours are based on the guardians’ work shifts. A child may be in care when both guardians are working and after a night shift during the guardian’s sleeping time. Sleeping time is counted as up to 8 hours.
Care hours and practices
- The child must be brought to night care no later than 19:30.
- The child must be picked up the following day after the rest period no later than 15:00.
- The guardian’s days off and holiday days are, in principle, also the child’s days off.
- During the guardian’s sick leave non-standard hours ECEC is not arranged. In that case care hours on weekdays are 9:00–15:00.
For the child’s wellbeing, a child in non-standard hours ECEC must have on average 8 days off per month.
If the need for non-standard hours ECEC decreases significantly or ends, the guardians must apply for a transfer to a daytime group or a local Early Childhood Education and Care place within two months of the change.
If the need for non-standard hours ECEC is small
A child may come to substitute care in the non-standard hours unit on individual days from their own Early Childhood Education and Care unit. Even then, a sufficient number of days off must be arranged for the child’s wellbeing. The guardian agrees on single-day non-standard hours ECEC needs with the daycare director of the non-standard hours unit and also informs the child’s own ECEC group.
Non-standard hours ECEC for schoolchildren
Non-standard hours ECEC can be offered to young schoolchildren on a discretionary basis if placements for pre-school children allow it.
In Vaasa, non-standard hours ECEC may be granted to a single-parent’s child in the 1st grade of basic education. The right ends on 31 July after the first grade.
A temporary care fee of €25 / day is charged for shift care of a school-age child, regardless of the guardian’s income.
Pre-primary education in non-standard hours ECEC
The pre-primary education place for a child who needs non-standard hours ECEC is Punahilkan Daycare.
Pre-primary education is implemented in accordance with the pre-primary education curriculum:
- mainly in fixed peer groups
- partly in combined groups and as individual instruction
Pre-primary education is provided on weekdays. There is no pre-primary education on weekends.
The Early Childhood Education and Care management system automatically deducts the four-hour daily portion of pre-primary education from the ECEC fee.