Enrolment in pre-primary education

• You will be informed of your child’s assigned pre-primary education placement for year 2026–2027 electronically via the Suomi.fi service or by letter.
• Accept or decline the assigned pre-primary education placement by 26 February 2026 in the City of Kuopio’s electronic services (link Electronic services – Kuopio) or return the signed form to the nearest early childhood education unit.
  • If you decline the placement, you must apply for another pre-primary education placement for your child between 13 and 26 February 2026 via the Early Childhood Education Online Service.
• ​You will receive the decision on your child’s pre-primary education placement by 31 March 2026.
• The pre-primary education unit will provide information on practices related to starting and familiarisation in May 2026.

Pre-primary education begins on 13 August 2026 and ends on 28 May 2027.

• Enrol your child in pre-primary education between 7 and 21 January 2026 via the Early Childhood Education Online Service.
  • In Kuopio, three types of shift care are available:
    • 24-hour care
    • Shift care Monday–Sunday, 5:00–22:00
    • Extended opening hours Monday–Friday, 5:00–22:00
  • The need for shift care must be verified for the director of the early childhood education unit by 21 January 2026 with a certificate of shift work requested from the employer.
• You will be informed of your child’s assigned pre-primary education placement providing shift care electronically via the Suomi.fi service or by letter.
• You will receive the decision on your child’s pre-primary education placement by 31 March 2026.
• The pre-primary education unit will provide information on practices related to starting and familiarisation in May 2026.
• Pre-primary education begins on 13 August 2026 and ends on 28 May 2027.

• Apply for a pre-primary education placement in a private daycare centre via the Early Childhood Education Online Service between 7 and 21 January 2026,
  Or
  enrol your child in municipal pre-primary education via the Early Childhood Education Online Service between 7 and 21 January 2026.

• You will receive the decision on your child’s pre-primary education placement by 31 March 2026.
• The pre-primary education unit will provide information on practices related to starting and familiarisation in May 2026.
• Pre-primary education begins on 13 August 2026 and ends on 28 May 2027.

An order for non-disclosure is an exceptional measure that restricts the disclosure of address information from the Population Information System. A pre-primary education placement cannot be assigned automatically to the child, as the non-disclosure protects the child’s home address details.

• Submit the pre-primary education enrolment form between 7 and 21 January 2026 by secure email to Secure Email – Kuopio at varhaiskasvatus.palveluohjaus@kuopio.fi
  Or
  by post to City of Kuopio, Early Childhood Education Service Guidance, P.O. Box 1097, FI-70111 Kuopio
  • Pre-primary education enrolment form 
    ​
• You will be informed of your child’s assigned pre-primary education placement by secure email on 13 February 2026. By replying to the message, you accept or decline the assigned placement.
• The pre-primary education unit will provide information on practices related to starting and familiarisation in May 2026.
• Pre-primary education begins on 13 August 2026 and ends on 28 May 2027.

If you are not satisfied with the pre-primary education placement assigned to your child, you may decline the placement and apply for a new, secondary placement via the Early Childhood Education Online Service between 13 and 26 February 2026. By doing so, you will forfeit your right to the placement you declined.

• Your child may be offered a pre-primary education placement at the unit you have applied for, provided that places are available. Information on the new pre-primary education placement will be given in the pre-primary education decision by the end of March 2026. This can no longer be separately accepted or declined.
• If there are no available places at the unit you have applied for, a pre-primary education placement will be assigned to your child from among the available places within the admission area corresponding to the child’s home address. In this case, the new pre-primary education placement may be different from the placement originally assigned to the child.
• If you accept the pre-primary education placement assigned to your child but then apply for another pre-primary education placement, the application will be processed according to a different schedule. Applications from children who do not yet have a pre-primary education placement within their own admission area will be processed first. Other applications will be processed thereafter. Your child may be offered a place at the pre-primary education unit you have applied for, provided that places are available. Decisions on applications submitted during the application period will be issued by the end of March 2026.

A secondary application may be submitted for another municipal unit providing pre-primary education, a Kota group, or a pre-primary education group implementing Montessori pedagogy. Pre-primary education placements for the 2026–2027 school year.

Kota groups

• There are four municipal forest pre-primary education groups operating in Kuopio. The Kota groups are affiliated with the Länsi-Puijo, Puijonlaakso, Uppo-Nalle and Von Wright daycare centres. Forest group activities for pre-primary-aged children take place mainly outdoors in natural surroundings near the daycare centre. A kota hut serves as the group’s base.

Montessori pedagogy

• Montessori pedagogy emphasises the child’s opportunity to learn at their own pace and to choose developmentally supportive tasks that suit them. Pre-primary education based on Montessori pedagogy is provided at the Pumpputori daycare centre.

Decisions on pre-primary education will be delivered to families by 31 March 2026, either electronically or in paper form, according to the guardians’ choice. If the guardians have given their consent to electronic service, the decision on pre-primary education will be delivered electronically.

Electronic decisions can be viewed in the Edlevo App and in the Edlevo App browser version.

Install the Edlevo App to report your child’s pre-primary education and early childhood education attendance times and to read notices related to pre-primary education and early childhood education.
Edlevo notice for parents (PDF)

Complementary early childhood education means that the child attends a daycare centre before or after the pre-primary education hours. Complementary early childhood education is subject to a fee. Complementary early childhood education is arranged at the same location where the child attends pre-primary education.

• If the child has been in municipal early childhood education prior to pre-primary education, the child does not need to be separately enrolled in complementary early childhood education.
  ​
  A new Early Childhood Education Time Agreement must be submitted to the director of the early childhood education unit before the start of pre-primary education, by 13 August 2026.
• If the child is not yet in early childhood education organised by the City of Kuopio, apply for complementary early childhood education at the same time as enrolling in pre-primary education.
  Decisions on pre-primary education and complementary early childhood education will be made to the extent selected at the time of enrolment.
  You will receive the decision on complementary early childhood education together with the decision on pre-primary education.
• Submit an income statement electronically via the online service.
  Income statement (electronic income statement)
  If the information is not provided, the highest client fee will be charged to the family.

Further information on early childhood education and pre-primary education client fees.