Statistical presentation

Data description

These statistics contain information about incidents, events, and the status of placements in out-of-home care. The status is as of December 31st of a given reference year. The statistics are calculated at the municipal level and by province, depending on discretion needs.

The statistics are based on individuals aged 0-22 years old who are registered in Statistics Denmark’s accumulated register of placements for children and young people in out-of-home care. They are compiled according to the reporting municipality (administrative municipality), type of measure (legal basis of the measure, including consent criteria), place of accommodation, cause of placement in out-of-home care, sex, and age. Age is calculated at year-end.

Municipalities are obligated to report each time a decision is made that a child or young person is to be placed in out-of-home care. This also applies in the case of reinstatement in out-of-home care after repatriation/termination. Municipalities often cite several reasons for placing a child in out-of-home care.

The statistics are published annually as 12 separate statistical tables, 3 registers, and a NYT article. Statistical tables contain information on the number of initiations and placements in out-of-home care classified by province/municipality, type of measure, place of accommodation, age, and sex. The registers contain the above-mentioned information on an individual level. Furthermore, the registers contain information on changes in placements in out-of-home care, the cause of change in placements in out-of-home care, the cause of termination of out-of-home care, and the location of a child/young person after the termination of foster care.

Between July 1st, 2019, and December 31st, 2020, there has been a change in the categorization of foster families. These have been changed to common, reinforced, and specialized foster families. This information has been retrieved from the Danish Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing.

From 2024 the statistics contain extended information about the place of accommodation (the variables p-number and afdelings-uuid administrated by the Danish Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing). Since 1st of January 2023 these informations have had to be reported for initiations and changes of placement of out-of-home care. Therefore, these informations might be missing for out-of-home care with no changes in placement since 2022.

Until 2023, the statistics covered placements pursuant to:

• Sections 52, 58, 65, 75, and 76 of the Consolidation Act on Social Services (Social Services Act)
• Section 74a of the Danish Penal Code
• Section 78 of the Act on Enforcement of Sentences, etc.
• Section 765 of the Administration of Justice Act (Judicial Procedure Act)
• Section 36 of the Aliens Act
• Section 14 of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency

With the introduction of the Child’s Act (Barnets lov), from 2024 the statistics cover placements pursuant to:

• Sections 46, 47, 49, 62, 143, and 151 of the Child’s Act
• Section 14 of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency

Upon the entry into force of the Child’s Act, ongoing placements and residential stays continue under the legal basis of the original decision and are only transferred to the Child’s Act when a new decision is made pursuant to the legal basis of the Child’s Act, cf. Section 213 of the Child’s Act.

Classification system

These statistics are grouped geographically by municipalities and provinces. In addition, children and young people placed outside the home are grouped by sex and age, as well as by the following categories::

Type of Measure - Decision with consent made by the municipal council (Section 52 of the Social Services Act / Section 46 of the Child’s Act) - Decision without requirement of consent made by the Children and Youth Committee (Section 58 of the Social Services Act / Section 47 of the Child’s Act) - Provisional decision made by the chair of the Children and Youth Committee (Section 75(1), cf. Section 58 of the Social Services Act / Section 143(1), cf. Section 47 of the Child’s Act) - Decision on placement in a secure residential institution as part of a court-ordered measure (Section 74a of the Penal Code / Section 62(2)(3) of the Child’s Act) - Decision on placement in a secure residential institution as part of sentence enforcement (Section 78(2) of the Act on Enforcement of Sentences / Section 62(2)(2) of the Child’s Act) - Decision on placement in a secure residential institution as a substitute for pre-trial detention (surrogate detention) (Section 765 of the Administration of Justice Act / Section 62(2)(1) of the Child’s Act) - Decision concerning a child or young person under 15 years deprived of liberty under Sections 36 or 37 of the Aliens Act, or Section 16 of the Return Act (cf. Section 62(2)(4) of the Child’s Act) - Decision or provisional decision made by the Danish Social Appeals Board, which has taken up the case on its own initiative (Section 65 of the Social Services Act / Section 151(1–4) of the Child’s Act) - Decision made by the Juvenile Crime Board with consent (Section 14(1) of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency) - Decision made by the Juvenile Crime Board without requirement of consent (Section 14(2–4) of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency) - Provisional decision concerning juvenile delinquency made by the Children and Youth Committee (Section 14(2–4) of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency / Section 143(2) of the Child’s Act) - Decision without requirement of consent regarding an unaccompanied minor foreign national for placement in a secure institution, made by the Children and Youth Committee (Section 62.1(1) of the Aliens Act / Section 9b of the Aliens Act, cf. Section 62(2)(5) of the Child’s Act) - Provisional decision regarding an unaccompanied minor foreign national for placement in a secure institution, made by the Children and Youth Committee (Section 62.1(3) of the Aliens Act / Section 9b of the Aliens Act, cf. Section 62(2)(5) of the Child’s Act) - Decision concerning an unborn child with consent (Section 46(4) of the Child’s Act) (from 2024) - Decision concerning an unborn child without requirement of consent (Section 49 of the Child’s Act) (from 2024)

Type of placement

• Network foster family
• Ordinary foster family
• Municipal foster family
• General foster family
• Reinforced foster family
• Specialized foster family
• Foster family under Section 76a (for young people with disabilities)
• Open residential institution or open ward at a residential institution
• Semi-secure residential institution or semi-secure ward at an open residential institution
• Secure residential institution or specially secure ward at a residential institution
• Residential care home for children and young people
• Continuation school, free vocational school, or free primary school with boarding facilities
• Own room, student dormitory, or dormitory-like home for children and young people

Reason for Placement

• Substance abuse by the child/young person
• Criminal behavior by the child/young person
• School or educational problems, e.g. truancy
• Other concerning behavior by the child/young person, e.g. aggressive behavior
• Significant or lasting physical or mental disability in the child/young person
• Health conditions of the child/young person
• Abuse of the child/young person, e.g. sexual or physical abuse (discontinued mid-2022)
• Abuse of the child/young person committed by others than the parents (sexual, physical, or psychological violence) (from mid-2022)
• Other forms of neglect of the child/young person (discontinued mid-2022)
• Parental substance abuse
• Parental criminal behavior
• Other concerning parental behavior
• Significant or lasting physical or mental disability in one or both parents
• High conflict level or domestic violence between adults in the home
• Inadequate parental care
• Bailiff proceedings, homelessness, or eviction
• Health conditions of one or both parents (from mid-2022)
• Abuse of the child/young person committed by the parents (sexual, physical, or psychological violence) (from mid-2022)
• Other (discontinued in 2022)-

Sector coverage

Not relevant for these statistics.

Statistical concepts and definitions

Placement measure: Placement of a child or a young person outside the home, with or without the consent of the parent/s.

Administrative municipality: The municipality, which is obligated to provide assistance or support according to regulations on special support for children and youth pursuant to the Consolidation Act on Social Services.

Statistical unit

• Occurrences • stock of people per 31.12 • sequences.

Statistical population

Children and young people under the age of 23 who are placed or in residential care Until 2023, the statistics cover placements and residential care pursuant to:

• Sections 52, 58, 65, 75, and 76 of the Social Services Act (SEL)
• Section 74a of the Penal Code
• Section 78 of the Act on Enforcement of Sentences
• Section 765 of the Administration of Justice Act
• Section 36 of the Aliens Act
• Section 14 of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency

With the introduction of the Child’s Act, from 2024 the statistics include placements and residential care pursuant to:

-Sections 46, 47, 49, 62, 143, and 151 of the Child’s Act (BL) -Section 14 of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency

In addition to children and young people registered in the Danish population register, the statistics also include foreign children and young people residing in Denmark who have a personal ID issued by the Danish Immigration Service.

Reference area

Denmark.

Time coverage

The statistics cover the time period from 2011 and onwards.

Base period

Not relevant for these statistics.

Unit of measure

Number.

Reference period

Calendar year.

Frequency of dissemination

Yearly.

Legal acts and other agreements

Data on placements pursuant to Sections 52, 58, 75, and 76 of the Social Services Act; Sections 46, 47, 49, 62, 143, and 151 of the Child’s Act; Section 74 of the Penal Code; Section 78 of the Act on Enforcement of Sentences; Section 765 of the Administration of Justice Act; Section 36 of the Aliens Act; and Section 14 of the Act on the Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency are collected pursuant to the Executive Order on Data Transmission in the Social Policy Area.The executive order and its reporting requirements are based on Sections 82 and 84 of the Act on Legal Rights and Administration in the Social Sector, as well as Section 6 of the Act on Statistics Denmark.

The statistics are not subject to any EU regulation..

Cost and burden

These statistics are primarily based on administrative data which stem from the administrative IT-systems of the municipalities. There is thus no direct response burden in relation to the compilation of the statistics. Different digital administrative systems, used by the municipalities to administer and report the data, are subjected to regulations stated in the Executive Order on Data Transmission in the Social Policy Area. This is the case for approx.. 90 of the municipalities. Those municipalities, that supplement with manual reporting, do have a non-specific report burden. The statistic does include a process of municipal approval of the reported data. The reporting burden of the municipalities in connection to this is not estimated.

Comment

Further information can be found at the webpage of the statistics, Disadvantaged children and young people, and the information webpage, or by contacting Statistics Denmark directly.