Supporting Attendance in Early Childhood Education

Summary

The practice is an early, preventive, and collaborative approach for children who have difficulty attending early childhood education, recognising that absence is rarely simply a matter of motivation or behaviour but reflects interactions among the child, the environment, and the adults around them. It combines systematic identification and understanding of the child’s difficulties with coordinated action between early childhood settings, parents, and relevant professionals such as educational-psychological and family services. The aim is to create sustainable, child-centred solutions that strengthen wellbeing, participation and attendance before difficulties develop into more persistent patterns of absence.

Organisation(s)

Regional Government of Central Denmark – Region Midtjylland (RM), Department of Communication and Disability (IKH) - Denmark

Context/ Social issues addressed

The practice addresses the growing concern that some young children struggle to attend early childhood education because of difficulties related to wellbeing, relationships, participation, or their environment. When these difficulties go unaddressed early, absence can become a persistent pattern that may further affect the child’s development, learning, and sense of belonging. The practice therefore shifts the focus from the child’s absence as an individual problem to understanding and changing the conditions that make participation difficult.

Objectives

1. Identify and understand early signs of difficulties with attendance and participation from a child-centred and contextual perspective.
2. Strengthen coordinated collaboration between the child, parents, early childhood professionals, and relevant support services to develop appropriate responses.
3. Promote wellbeing, belonging, and sustainable participation in early childhood education by addressing barriers before absence becomes persistent.

Activities

The practice is organised around a structured process for understanding and responding to young children’s difficulties with attending early childhood education. The activities are designed to ensure early identification, a shared understanding of the child’s situation, and coordinated action across the child’s everyday environments.

• Early identification and assessment: Staff observe and document patterns in the child’s attendance, participation, and wellbeing and identify situations in which participation becomes difficult. Rather than focusing solely on the child’s behaviour or absence, the process explores possible contributing factors in the child’s relationships, daily routines, learning environment, and broader context.
• Collaborative exploration of the child’s situation: Early childhood professionals engage in dialogue with the child and parents to understand the child’s experiences, needs, strengths, and perspectives. Relevant professionals are involved when needed, enabling a broader understanding of the factors affecting the child’s participation.
• Joint planning supported by an overall coordinator of supportive measures: Based on the shared understanding, the adults identify concrete changes and supports that can make attendance and participation more manageable for the child. This may include adjustments to routines, transitions, relationships, activities, the physical environment, or the way adults respond to the child.
• Implementation and follow-up: Agreed measures are implemented in the child’s everyday setting and followed up systematically. The child’s wellbeing, participation, and attendance are revisited to assess whether the measures are helping and to adjust the approach when necessary.
• Strengthening professional collaboration: The practice promotes a shared responsibility for the child’s wellbeing rather than placing responsibility for attendance on the child or family alone. Collaboration across early childhood education, parents, and relevant support services creates coherent and sustainable support around the child.

Outcomes

The practice is currently supported by practice-based experience rather than formal outcome research. In the case examples described in the guide, the approach has contributed to improved collaboration, a shared understanding of the child’s needs, clearer coordination, and concrete changes in the child’s everyday environment; in one case, the child’s wellbeing improved noticeably, and attendance increased to three days per week after the interventions were implemented. Progress is evaluated continuously through shared goals, weekly follow-up on short-term objectives, and regular interdisciplinary meetings, while the guide acknowledges that systematic research-based evaluation of the practice is still needed.

Principles of the European Pillar of Social Rights

1. Education, training, life-long learning	2. Gender equality
3. Equal opportunities	4. Active support to employment
5. Secure and adaptable employment	6. Fair Wages
7. Transparent employment conditions	8. Social dialogue
9. Work-life balance	10. Healthy, safe work environment
11. Childcare and child support	12. Social protection
13. Unemployment benefits	14. Minimum income
15. Old age income and pensions	16. Health care
17. Inclusion of people with disabilities	18. Long-term care
19. Housing and assistance to homeless	20. Access to essential services

Funding Source

Other: The practice is situated within the Danish publicly funded welfare system and is developed and delivered by the Department of Communication and Disability (IKH) of the Regional Government of Central Denmark.

Links to supporting documents

guide_when-young-children-have-difficulty-attending-early-childhood-education_english_ikh_2026.pdf 

Comments and tips

Successful implementation requires more than introducing a new tool or procedure; it requires a shared mindset and clear organisational support. We recommend starting early, establishing a clear coordinator and an interdisciplinary team, and ensuring that parents’ and the child’s perspectives are involved from the outset. Adapt the model to the local context, roles, and support structures while maintaining its core principles: a holistic understanding of the child, curiosity about different perspectives, early preventive action, and shared responsibility. Leadership commitment, time for collaboration, and clear agreements about roles and follow-up are essential for sustainable implementation.