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Culture for children Arts and cultural education fosters creativity, open-mindedness and optimism, which are essential for social progress. It also strengthens children's and young people's ability to see the world from the perspective of others. ...

25.5.2026 | Some 17,000 children and young people shared their views on issues such as safety and security, trust and wellbeing in a pilot project aimed at strengthening the inclusion of children and young people in society and taking into account their perspectives in preparation work at the state level.

22.11.2024 | As part of the legislative reform of basic education in the arts, the Ministry of Education and Culture has charted the experiences of children and young people participating in basic education in the arts when engaging in the arts as a recreational activity. Children and young people must be consulted in all legislative drafting concerning them. The consultation was conducted using an open online survey.

12.3.2025 | 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.

25.4.2023 | In a short time, the Finnish model for leisure activities has assumed its place as a meaningful provision not only for children and young people, but also for their parents and custodians, instructors and municipal decision-makers. The children themselves say that interaction and genuine engagement with the instructor are particularly important when committing to a leisure activity. Other factors t...

13.8.2026 | Minister of Science and Culture Mari-Leena Talvitie has invited EU Member States to an informal meeting of culture ministers in Oulu on 14–15 August 2026. The invitation has also been extended to Ukraine, providing an opportunity for dialogue on all-important cooperation in the cultural sector. The meeting is being held to celebrate Oulu’s year as European Capital of Culture 2026.

Education is one of the cornerstones of the Finnish welfare society. We pride ourselves on an educational system that offers equal opportunities for education for all.

The Finnish model The main objective of the Finnish model is to increase the wellbeing of children and young people. The aim is to enable every child and young person to have a leisure activity in connection with the school day that they enjoy and...

Pre-primary education Pre-primary education refers to planned education and care provided the year preceding the start of compulsory education, which is directly related to early childhood education and care as well as primary education. The Minis...

Morning and afternoon activities Morning and afternoon activities are activities held outside the scope of lessons before and after school, and are intended for year 1 and 2 pupils as well as pupils with special needs. Local authorities in municip...

Education for immigrants Immigrants usually participate in the same early childhood education and care, education and training as the rest of the population. In addition to these, integration training and support for learning as well as preparator...

Promotion of physical activity The Ministry of Education and Culture endeavours to create conditions for a physically active lifestyle for the whole population. The aim is to enable the Finnish population to be physically active to a degree that s...

Programmes for quality and equality in early childhood and comprehensive school education The Right to Learn development programmes aim to secure an equal start for learning by improving quality and equality in early childhood education and care (...

New Literacies Programme The New Literacies Programme aims to strengthen children’s and young people’s media literacy, competence in information and communications technology (ICT), and programming skills in early childhood education and care, pre...

Inclusion and participation of young people The Ministry of Education and Culture works to promote young people’s participation and inclusion, while the Government Programme pledges to assess the impacts of decisions on children and families. One ...

15.11.2024 | Minister of Education Anders Adlercreutz and Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Sandra Bergqvist will visit Oslo on 18 November. The ministers will learn about the arrangements, practices and prices of young people's leisure activities, and age restrictions in sports.

Legislation on early childhood education and care Early childhood education and care is part of the education and training services, and therefore it falls within the mandate of the Ministry of Education and Culture. Act on Early Childhood Educati...

Culture Finland’s cultural policy comprises the different sectors of arts and culture, museums, cultural heritage, libraries, cultural exports and creative work. Arts and culture are supported by both central and local government. The Ministry of ...

Frequently asked questions Here you can find answers to some of the most frequently asked questions. If you couldn’t find the answer to your question on our website, you are also welcome to contact us kas.okm(at)gov.fi How are you developing Finni...

Early childhood education and care services Early childhood education and care is provided or arranged by local authorities or private service providers as centre-based early education activities and family-based daycare activities. Municipalities...

In accordance with Prime Minister Orpo’s Government Programme (2023), the Government will reform the legislation on basic education in the arts. The aim is to make access to teaching smoother, taking into account different fields of art.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its effects in the administrative branch of the Ministry of Education and Culture On this page, we will update information on the impacts of the situation in the administrative branch of the Ministry of Education a...

EU and international cooperation in the youth sector The objective of international and European cooperation is to develop youth policy and support youth work through networking and exchanges of good practices. The Ministry of Education and Cultur...

National Youth Work and Youth Policy Programme The National Youth Work and Youth Policy Programme is a horizontal programme, which the Government adopts every four years with the aim of promoting a good environment for young people to grow up and ...

Ministry of Education and Culture Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Mika Poutala Christian Democrats in Finland Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Poutala is responsible for matters covered by the Department of Youth and S...

Early childhood education and care In Finland local authorities are responsible for ensuring that early childhood education and care is provided in accordance with the needs of children and families. Early childhood education and care (ECEC) is pr...

Legislation: sport This page lists key acts and decrees that govern sport and physical activity. The statutes can be found in the Finlex database in Finnish and Swedish. Act on the Promotion of Sports and Physical Activity (390/2015) The purpose o...

Education policy report The Education Policy Report paves the way for equitable and high-quality education in the 2040s in Finland, where skills requirements are growing and age cohorts are shrinking. The report outlines the target state for educa...

Comprehensive school Comprehensive schools provide general basic education from year 1 to year 9. Some folk high schools, upper secondary schools for adults and other educational institutions also offer general basic education. Under the Basic Edu...

Sport and fitness science The Ministry of Education and Culture annually allocates appropriations and discretionary government grants for sport-related research and communications. Discretionary government grants for sport and fitness science rese...

Developing general upper secondary education In order to develop general upper secondary education, the Ministry of Education and Culture is drawing up proposals for overhauling the financing of general upper secondary education, and for reforming...

Local youth work Youth work and youth policy fall within the remit of municipalities and are implemented in multiprofessional cooperation. The local authorities may also work together and provide youth services regionally. The Ministry of Educatio...

Sports organisations Sport and physical activity organisations in Finland have over 1.1 million members. The Ministry of Education and Culture allocates government grants to national organisations that promote sport and physical activity while mun...

Current issues Latest news RSS (Opens New Window) (Opens New Window) Aalto Works inscribed on UNESCO World Heritage List Type: Press release Publication date: 26.7.2026 10.43 Minister of Economic Affairs Puisto in Dublin at meeting of EU competiti...

Financing and administration of general education The Ministry of Education and Culture drafts legislation and government resolutions related to general education and coordinates the activities under its remit. The policies outlined in the Governm...

Basic education in the arts Basic education in the arts is provided primarily for children and young people on an extracurricular basis. Basic arts education is provided at music institutes and schools, art schools, dance institutes and schools, h...

Literature in Finland The Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for the preparation of legislation related to the promotion of literature and for the allocation of appropriations from the national Budget. The Ministry of Education and C...

Culture, physical activity and youth work facilitate integration Cultural services, public libraries, activities for young people and sports activities make it easier to integrate into the society. Participation in such activities provides an easy...

2.9.2021 | The Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture is organising the Nordic Nord Start Climate Change Competition in autumn 2021. The competition is part of the programme of Finland’s Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2021. Organised in cooperation with the LUMA Centre Finland’s StarT programme, the competition aims to gather children, young people and adults, from early childhood education and care to higher education, to brainstorm concrete means for the fight against climate change.

Ministry of Education and Culture Minister of Education Anders Adlercreutz The Swedish People's party of Finland Minister of Education Anders Adlercreutz heads the Ministry of Education and Culture. In accordance with the division of responsibilit...

Pupil and student welfare Pupils in pre-primary, primary and lower secondary school as well as students in upper secondary school have the right to pupil and student welfare services (also known as student welfare). It consists of student welfare ...

16.9.2019 | The Conference on Sport will discuss how children and young people can stay safe when engaging in sports and physical activity. The conference will bring together some 120 sporting professionals, influencers and decision-makers at Hanaholmen Cultural Centre on 24 September.

2.2.2021 | The Ministry of Education and Culture, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare have drawn up guidelines on principles for organising, restricting and suspending group leisure activities for those under 18 years of age at the different tiers of the epidemic specified in a Government Resolution. The guidelines are part of the measures outlined by the Government to minimise the negative effects of COVID-19 on children and young people.

11.6.2026 | The Government proposes a comprehensive reform of the legislation on basic education in the arts. The aim is to clarify the structure of basic education in the arts and improve access to instruction across different art disciplines and fields. The proposal would also introduce a single syllabus and reform the criteria for central government transfers to municipalities.

7.4.2021 | All 7-17-year-olds should get at least 60 minutes of versatile, brisk and strenuous exercise a day in a way that suits them individually, taking into account their age. The recommended amount of physical activity can be accumulated from different shorter periods of physical activity during the day. Excessive and prolonged immobility should be avoided.

26.4.2019 | Sport has been confronted with many cases of sexual violence against women and children in recent years. Public authorities, sports movement and stakeholder organisations are determined to tackle sexual violence against women and children in sport and to strengthen its prevention with the Expert Conference on “Sexual Violence against Women and Children in Sports”, organised in the framework of the Finnish Presidency of the Committee of Ministers.

28.10.2020 | The Finnish model for leisure activities will bring children’s and young people’s leisure activities to the school day from the beginning of next year. The Ministry of Education and Culture will carry out a pilot and is looking for municipalities interested in taking part in the pilot. The application period closes on 2 December. The amount of funding reserved for the pilot is EUR 9.5 million. Scho...

Key legislation on general education This page lists the key acts and decrees on general education. If an English translation of an act or decree is available, the link takes you directly to the English version of the statute in the Finlex databas...

Questions and answers related to compulsory education This page provides answers to frequently asked questions on the extension of compulsory education. Questions and answers related to compulsory education Free of charge Guidance and supervision ...

In September 2024, the Ministry of Education and Culture began monitoring the measures outlined in the action plan to promote diversity in the field of arts and culture, which was published in 2023. The Ministry has focused particularly on a cultural policy report, the promotion of constructive dialogue and the development of government grant activities from the perspective of cultural diversity. Strengthen...

7.4.2020 | As requested by the Ministry of Education and Culture, six researchers from different fields have looked into the effects of the coronavirus epidemic on children and young people in particular. According to the researchers, society must already take into account the period following the coronavirus crisis when planning different measures. In particular, the researchers raised the issue of additio...

14.1.2026 | The Ministry of Education and Culture carried out a two-year pre-primary education trial in a total of 148 municipalities between 2021 and 2024. Altogether 37,357 children took part. They were placed in the trial group and control group by drawing lots. Parents, carers and teachers were satisfied with the trial and the two-year pre-primary education trial slightly increased the participation rate of five-year-olds.

12.3.2019 | A vision of Finland that is kind to children and families emerged during the preparatory work for the National Strategy for Children. The whole of society will be needed to contribute to achieving it.

Key changes in the Ministry of Education and Culture's administrative branch in the government term Ministry of Education and Culture Publication date 27.1.2023 10.00 | Published in English on 30.1.2023 at 17.04 The term of Prime Minister Sanna Ma...

Tuition fees in upper secondary education Students from third countries will, in future, be required to pay tuition fees in both general upper secondary education and vocational education and training. These fees apply to those who start their stu...

14.9.2018 | The National Literacy Forum, appointed by the Minister of Education Sanni Grahn-Laasonen, published guidelines for developing children’s and young people’s literacy and enthusiasm for reading on the 14th September. Lukuliike - The Need to Read Movement, launched based on the guidelines, challenges everyone to promote reading and literacy.

4.3.2026 | The 2026 Finnish State Award for Foreign Translators has been presented to the distinguished Danish translator Siri Nordborg Møller (b. 1981), whose work has greatly broadened the international visibility of Finnish literature. The EUR 15,000 award has been granted annually since 1975 by the Ministry of Education and Culture based on a proposal from FILI – Finnish Literature Exchange.

2.12.2025 | An OECD survey shows that Finnish early childhood education and care (ECEC) stands out for active cooperation with families. In Finland, staff communicate and organise events for families more often than in most other participating countries. Stress levels among ECEC and pre-primary staff and leaders are lower in Finland than elsewhere, but staff shortages are a major source of stress.

15.1.2026 | The European Capital of Culture year in Oulu begins with a three-day Opening Festival starting on Friday, 16 January. The programme features nearly 200 events, offering a diverse range of experiences – most of them free of charge and open to people of all ages. Throughout the year, Oulu will be alive with cultural events, performances and exhibitions.

28.5.2021 | The Ministry of Education and Culture and the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare have updated the guidelines on camping activities for children and young people.