Guldborgsund Municipality has announced it will shut down all municipally-run home daycare services in the town of Nørre Alslev by early 2026, citing a continuous decline in enrolled children. The move is part of a larger national trend where Danish daycare offerings have steeply declined in recent years.
All Daycare Providers to Be Let Go in Nørre Alslev
The town of Nørre Alslev, the fourth-largest town in Guldborgsund Municipality in Eastern Denmark, will soon lose all of its municipally-run home daycare providers. All four childcare professionals currently operating in the town under the municipal Danish daycare service will be laid off as part of reorganization efforts driven by declining enrollment and shifting demographics. Families will need to find other solutions.
According to the municipality, only nine children are currently registered for daycare out of a possible 16 in the town. Moreover, no children are on the waiting list, and nearly half of those currently enrolled will move on to kindergarten before the end of this year. Citing this underutilization, the head of Danish daycare services in Guldborgsund stated that it is no longer feasible to maintain open slots that remain consistently unfilled. Guldborgsund will need to adjust and help families with children.
Funds to Be Reallocated
Municipal officials explained that the funds currently allocated to maintaining half-empty daycare services would be redirected toward other improvements in the early childhood education system. Among the plans are investments in new furniture, educational toys, and more training for remaining staff in institutional daycare and kindergartens.
In this way, Guldborgsund Municipality hopes to enhance the overall quality of early childhood offerings while also addressing budgetary constraints. The revised strategy will shift focus away from home-based caregiving models and concentrate resources in larger Danish daycare centers, where group sizes and staffing models allow for higher occupancy and, according to officials, more efficient use of public funding.
Part of a National Trend
What’s happening in Nørre Alslev is part of a broader transformation taking place across Denmark. According to data from Danish IT provider KMD, there were approximately 22,000 home daycare offerings nationwide in 2008. By 2025, that number is projected to fall dramatically to just 7,500—a decline of more than 65% over 17 years.
This nationwide drop is especially pronounced in Eastern Denmark, where several municipalities are reporting similar challenges: dwindling child populations, under-enrolled home daycare providers, and increasing difficulties in attracting new caregivers to the model. Recruitment of home daycare professionals has become particularly problematic in rural areas, where younger families—who typically rely more on childcare services—are moving away.
Concerns Over Parent Choice and Accessibility
Labor unions and family advocates are expressing deep concerns about what this trend means for Danish families, particularly those living in smaller towns. While government officials point to operational efficiencies, critics argue that closing Danish daycare options limits parental choice.
A 2022 survey conducted by the Danish Trade Union FOA found that about 30% of parents prefer home daycare as their first choice for early childhood care. Yet once such services are shut down, they are notoriously difficult to re-establish, as municipal infrastructure often shifts focus permanently to center-based care.
Some fear that such decisions will influence young families in deciding where to live, potentially accelerating depopulation in smaller towns like Nørre Alslev. With no municipal home daycare options left, working parents in the town will now have to rely entirely on larger Danish daycare centers, which may not always align with their preferences or logistical needs.
Closing Timeline and Future Outlook
The municipal home daycare program in Nørre Alslev is set to cease operations at the beginning of 2026. While affected staff have been informed well in advance, and currently enrolled children are expected to transition smoothly to other local options, questions remain about the long-term impact on the town’s attractiveness to young families.
Guldborgsund officials maintain that continuing to support under-enrolled services is not financially responsible given the current demographics, but union leaders stress that once lost, the flexibility and intimacy of home-based child care may never return. For now, Nørre Alslev stands as yet another sign of Denmark’s changing landscape in early childhood education.
