Groups based on Finnish model for leisure activities prevent inequalities and increase wellbeing of children
A survey by We Foundation shows that groups for extracurricular activity organised by municipalities free of charge as part of the school day provide the majority of the participants with a safe space that is free of bullying, discrimination and racism. The results confirm that groups based on the Finnish model for leisure activities increase student wellbeing and are the only opportunity for many children and young people to have a hobby. The survey covers 20 municipalities of different sizes.
We Foundation is studying the impact of free-of-charge extracurricular activities based on the Finnish model for leisure activities during the 2024/2025 school year. The pilot project collects data directly from parents and guardians of students. Published in December 2024, the first results focused on the family backgrounds of participants in 11 municipalities. The survey is now extended to wellbeing impacts in 20 municipalities. An estimate of 143,000 primary school pupils take part in these leisure groups.
Free-of-charge activities reach vulnerable groups and prevent marginalisation
Socio-economic risk factors, such as long-term unemployment, low income or parents’ low level of education (at most comprehensive school education), affect children and young people's access to organised leisure activities. Data collected from parents and guardians of students taking part in activities based on the Finnish model shows the importance of the model in particular to vulnerable groups.
Data on the family backgrounds of a total of 5,259 participants reveals the following:
- 16% of the respondents would not have the opportunity to participate in other organised leisure activities. At the national level, this would mean these activity groups being attended by around 22,800 students who would otherwise not be able to take part in organised activities.
- For low-income families, the key reason for participation is the fact that the activity is free of charge (31%), while non-low-income families find it important that the activity takes place as part of the school day (29%).
- 12.5% of the respondents had a family background with accumulated disadvantage. In the municipalities included in the survey, the rate of accumulated disadvantage at the population level is estimated to be 5–8%.
Over the past six months, the leisure activity groups were spaces free of bullying, discrimination and racism for many children who experience these elsewhere.
- 2.3% of the respondents experienced bullying in the activity groups, while 23% experienced bullying elsewhere (including at school).
- A total of 0.6% of the respondents experienced discrimination and/or racism in the group and 7.0% elsewhere (including at school).
The children and young people experiencing discrimination and/or racism at school were often in a vulnerable group – 9.4% of them had a family background involving accumulated disadvantage. By contrast, only 3.3% of the children with no socio-economic risk factors reported experiences of discrimination and/or racism at school. Socio-economic risk factors did not, however, affect experiences of discrimination and/or racism in the leisure activity groups.
Bullying was also more common among children and young people of families belonging to a vulnerable group – 28.6% of these experienced bullying at school, while the corresponding figure for children with no socio-economic risk factors was 16.7%.
“The survey shows that the Finnish model for leisure activities has succeeded in reaching the majority of children and young people. It provides many children with their first hobby and the opportunity to try out different sports and other activities, which enriches their hobby experiences,” says Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Sandra Bergqvist.
“The core idea of the model is to provide students with access to meaningful hobbies based on their own interests as part of the school day. At the same time, the groups bring together students from different years and classes, which strengthens communality. The results show that well-organised activity groups instructed by safe adults create environments that increase wellbeing and provide opportunities for having a nice time together,” Bergqvist adds.
According to Bergqvist, the Finnish model for leisure activities is genuinely child-oriented and supports the wellbeing of children and young people in a variety of ways. Wellbeing is strengthened in particular by the joy brought by the hobby, experiences of success, the sense of belonging to a group, and making new friends. The instructors play a key role in enabling these positive impacts.
Activity groups available free of charge mainly have positive impacts
According to the survey conducted by We Foundation, activity groups based on the Finnish model for leisure activities increase the wellbeing and sense of togetherness of most participants. However, children belonging to vulnerable groups reported fewer friendships in the activity groups than those whose family background did not have any socio-economic risk factors.
- 94% the respondents derived joy and experiences of success in the activity groups.
- 80% – and as many as 86.5% of those born abroad – felt they were an important part of the group.
- 75% felt that the group encouraged them to express their opinions, with the rate being even higher among vulnerable groups (78%).
- 73% found that there was a safe adult in the group you can talk to, even about difficult things.
- 72% had made friends in the group, but the rate among more disadvantaged children was only 61.3%, while the figure for others was 77.4%.
“We already know based on research that leisure activities have many kinds of positive impacts on the lives of children and young people. Our aim at We Foundation has been to investigate in particular whether activities like the Finnish model for leisure activities can also create positive impacts for children and young people facing an intergenerational risk of being marginalised,” says We Foundation CEO Tiina-Maija Toivola.
The survey also asked schoolchildren about their willingness to continue in the hobby group in the spring of 2025. Willingness to continue was higher among those whose family background did not include socioeconomic risk factors (85%) than among vulnerable groups (79%).
“The model has already made a big difference but, to increase its impact, particular attention should be paid in the groups to strengthening social relationships of children and young people belonging to vulnerable groups. Social relationships and the experience of belonging are the most important factors when the aim is for the children to remain included in the activities in the long term. Otherwise there is a risk of participants who are already vulnerable dropping out of the activities,” Toivola adds.
Background
During spring 2025, the pilot project of We Foundation, the Ministry of Education and Culture, the Contact Point of the Finnish model for leisure activities (Finnish National Agency for Education) and the Regional State Administrative Agency is collecting data directly from group participants and their parents and guardians on whether the students are planning to continue in the activity groups based on the Finnish model for leisure activities and on the factors affecting their willingness to continue.
The findings for the entire school year will be published in autumn 2025. The impacts of guided leisure activities provided free of charge have not been previously studied this extensively in Finland.
The municipalities that took part in the pilot’s first phase were Akaa, Hämeenlinna, Joensuu, Liminka, Lohja, Nurmijärvi, Oulu, Porvoo, Rovaniemi, Sastamala and Somero. The municipalities also included in the second phase of data collection were Jyväskylä, Järvenpää, Kauhajoki, Kronoby, Lahti, Naantali, Pori, Seinäjoki and Vantaa.
The Ministry of Education and Culture awards around EUR 14 million annually in discretionary government grants to municipalities for organising extracurricular provision. The 258 municipalities receiving government grants have 511,000 students attending primary and lower secondary schools. The municipalities estimate that 143,000 students have taken up an organised activity provided by the Finnish model. When all participating children and young people are added up, the Finnish model for leisure activities becomes Finland's largest club.
To read more about the surveys, visit: www.mesaatio.fi/data (in Finnish).
Inquiries:
- Tiina Kivisaari, Director, Division of Sport, Ministry of Education and Culture, tel. +358 295 3 30178, [email protected]
- Henni Axelin, Director, Division for Youth Work and Youth Policy, Ministry of Education and Culture, tel. +358 295 330 205, [email protected]
- Iina Berden, Ministerial Adviser, Ministry of Education and Culture, tel. +358 295 330 069, [email protected]
- Tiina-Maija Toivola, CEO, We Foundation, +358 50 571 0457, [email protected]