Copenhagen Municipality cannot approve the employment of around 250 teachers and pedagogues after Rigspolitiet found a deletion error in the criminal register, halting the issuance of child certificates.
Jakob Næsager, children and youth mayor in Copenhagen for the Conservatives, describes the situation as very, very critical. As DR reported on September 4, the municipality has 250 teachers and pedagogues waiting for their employment to be approved. The missing document in each case is the børneattest, the certificate required for staff working with children.
The cause is an error at Rigspolitiet. According to a statement published on September 3 by Rigspolitiet, a deletion error in Det Centrale Kriminalregister meant certain convictions were removed earlier than the rules allow. The police are investigating the scope and the consequences of the error.
As a result, Rigspolitiet has temporarily suspended the issuance of both børneattester and weapons permits while the situation is clarified. Because of the error, the national police commissioner could not rule out that clean child certificates had been issued to people convicted of pedophilia, per DR’s reporting on September 3.
Staffing pressure in schools and daycare
In Copenhagen, the halted certificates mean the municipality’s schools, after school programs and daycare institutions are short of staff. Næsager says existing employees and the already approved temp corps have had to take on extra work. So far they have been able to cover the gaps.
That solution is under strain, according to the mayor. Many of the temporary workers are students who started or resumed their studies from September 1. Næsager calls the situation untenable in the longer run.
He points to the volume of hiring in the municipality. On average, around 200 new employees are added each month, he says. Each of those hires also requires an approved child certificate before work can begin.
Berlingske also reports that 250 people in Copenhagen Municipality are waiting for their employment to be approved because the required certificates cannot be obtained. The municipality has no alternative route to approval while the suspension is in place.
No timeline from the police
The error was discovered, and the issuance of certificates suspended, around the turn of the month. That timing adds to the problem in Copenhagen, since new hires typically start at the beginning of a month.
Rigspolitiet has not been able to say when the errors will be located and corrected, or when child certificates can be issued again. Næsager says it could become really critical if the problem is not fixed before the month is over.
Rigspolitiet’s statement notes that the extent of the deletion error is still being examined. Until that work is finished, the suspension of børneattester and weapons permits remains in force.
