Welcome to preschool

How preschool works and what to expect.

When do you have the right to preschool and educational care?

Childcare with a fee

All children who have turned one have the right to attend preschool if their parents are working or studying. There may also be other reasons, such as the parent’s sick leave or the child's own needs. If you, as a parent, are unemployed or on parental leave with a sibling, your child can attend preschool for 15 hours a week.
Children in need of special support according to the Education Act can attend for free for 15 hours a week. For any additional time, parents pay the regular fee.

The fee for childcare is calculated according to a system called the maximum fee. This means that your fee is calculated based on your family's income and the number of children in the family. Read more about the maximum fee in the Fees section.

Public preschool, free of charge

Starting from the autumn term of the year your child turns three, the child has the right to attend public preschool. Public preschool is intended to provide all children between the ages of three and five with access to the educational stimulation and group interaction that preschool offers. The child is entitled to public preschool regardless of the parents’ occupation.

Public preschool follows the school's term dates. When there are school holidays and study days, children attending public preschool are also on break.

If your child already has a placement in a preschool, you must apply for free public preschool. You can do this through e-services on the municipality's website at savsjo.se.

Educational care

In some places, there is educational care available as an alternative to preschool. You apply for a place in educational care in the same way as for preschool, through e-services on the website savsjo.se.

What are the hours during which my child can be at preschool?

Your child can be at preschool while you are working or studying. You need to provide a schedule for the times when your child will be at preschool. You can do this through an app that we use in our daily operations. In the app, you can put in the scheduled times, report absences, and receive information from the preschool. It is important to follow your schedule and report any changes in the app or to the educators at the preschool. When reporting your schedule, please include time for drop-off and pick-up. If you need to change a time with short notice, always contact your preschool to ensure they have confirmed the change.

How do I terminate a preschool placement?

You terminate your preschool placement in the same way you apply for it, through e-services on savsjo.se. You need to terminate your placement two months before your child is supposed to leave. This means that you will pay for two months from the termination date, regardless of whether your child attends the preschool during that period or not.

Fees

In Sävsjö municipality, we apply the maximum fee. (You can read more about the maximum fee on the Swedish National Agency for Education's website, skolverket.se.) This means that you pay a fee based on the family's total income. The fee also depends on the number of children you have placed in the preschool. The fee is paid year-round, so you continue to pay during the summer even if your child is not attending preschool at that time.

Provide accurate information

As a parent, you are obligated to provide accurate information about your income to ensure that the fee is calculated correctly. Income includes all taxable compensation received. In addition to salary, this can include benefits from the Swedish Social Insurance Agency (Försäkringskassan), such as parental allowance or sickness benefit, unemployment benefits from an unemployment fund (A-kassa), or any other taxable compensation. A tip is to consider your current annual income and divide it by 12 to get 5 an accurate monthly income. The income you provide should be your gross income, i.e., before tax deductions.

Update your information

Changes in income or other family circumstances that can affect the fee should be reported immediately. You can update your income information yourself on the childcare service's website, accessible through savsjo.se. Additionally, every year, you will receive an email prompting you to update your income information. If you do not do so, you will automatically be placed under the maximum fee (the highest fee). If you do not wish to enter your income, you can choose to opt for the maximum fee instead. In that case, you don't need to update your information and will be charged the highest fee.

Income comparison

Every year, the municipality conducts an income comparison. During this process, we compare the income information provided by the parents with the Swedish Tax Agency's (Skatteverket) data on the assessed income. The income check is conducted retrospectively for two years. If you have paid too little, you will receive an invoice for the difference. If you have overpaid, you will receive a refund

Deductions

Starting from the autumn term when your child is three years old and is entitled to public preschool, if your child attends preschool for more than 15 hours, you will receive a deduction on the fee. This is to compensate for the free 15 hours that all children are entitled to. The deduction is 22.5 percent and is applied throughout the year starting from the autumn term.

Calculation of the fee

The fees vary depending on how many of your children attend preschool. Below, you can see how the fee is calculated. The youngest child is always considered child number one.

• For child 1, the fee is 3 percent of the family's combined income until the income ceiling is reached.
• For child 2, the fee is 2 percent of the family's combined income until the income ceiling is reached.
• For child 3, the fee is 1 percent of the family's combined income until the income ceiling is reached.
• For child 4, there is no fee.

Split invoice

If the child lives alternately with each parent, and both have a need for childcare, you can receive a split invoice. If only one parent needs childcare, that parent pays the full fee. The application for a split invoice is made to the preschool unit at Sävsjö Municipality.

Closed at the preschool

Planning days

All preschools are closed for two days per term (four days per year) to allow staff to engage in professional development and planning. You can find the specific dates on our website at savsjo.se.

Summer and Christmas preschool

During certain periods, such as summer vacation and Christmas break, not all preschools are open because there are fewer children in attendance. You will always be informed well in advance about which preschool is open and can accommodate your child if you are working during any of these periods. During times when many children are on break (school holidays), we may combine groups and not have the entire preschool open. Your preschool will provide information on the specific arrangements.

At the preschool

Introduction/Transition period

When your child has been assigned a placement, you begin with the transition period. During this time, the child learns to settle at the preschool. During the transition period, one of the parents stays with the child at the preschool. You can divide the transition period between both parents.

The transition period varies between one and two weeks. You pay the fee from the first day of the transition period.

During the transition period, you will receive all the information you need about the specific procedures and rules at your preschool.

Illness

Sick children should always stay at home. The child should be well enough to participate in regular activities before returning to preschool. Parents should always notify the preschool and inform them if the child won't be coming. This can be done through the app or by contacting the preschool directly.