Kindergarten, first grade or secondary school? Every important step is now in one place

Children grow. Parental uncertainty simply moves to the next question

Before the first day of kindergarten, parents worry about applications, available places, fees and settling in. A few years later, the questions concern catchment areas, first-grade enrolment, school-entry deferment, meals and transport. By the end of primary school, families need to understand programmes, information days, application deadlines, restricted entry, points, scholarships and possibly student accommodation.

Each milestone matters. Yet the answers are often scattered across government portals, municipalities, schools, kindergartens, calls and forms. Parents therefore do not merely search for the right decision. They first have to discover where to begin.

Three major milestones. One connected free tool

The Institute for Demographic Future has created a new public tool, From kindergarten to secondary school. It combines three connected parts: preparing for kindergarten, primary school and secondary school.

Each part addresses a specific stage of childhood. Instead of offering only general explanations, it helps parents find an institution, understand the procedure, check important deadlines and identify the next step.

Select a municipality or town first. Then see the information you actually need

The finders include 1,187 kindergarten units, 458 primary-school institutions and 184 secondary-school institutions and units from official registers. For a clearer page, results appear only after the user selects a municipality or town.

The list can then be narrowed further by institution name or address. Parents no longer need to scan a long national directory; they see the options relevant to them.

Personal deadlines instead of wondering whether something was missed

Each part includes a personal calendar aid. Based on the information entered, it prepares the steps that apply to the individual child and highlights the next three tasks.

The tool distinguishes between deadlines set nationally, those determined by a municipality or institution, and dates that the family must confirm in the current local call. Steps can be marked as completed, and the calendar can be printed or exported.

Less searching. More time for the decision that truly matters

The tool does not make decisions for parents. It removes avoidable uncertainty before a decision. When deadlines, procedures and official links are gathered in one place, families can focus on the important questions: which kindergarten suits the child, how to make the first school day easier, and which secondary-school programme matches the young person's interests and abilities.

Well-prepared parents do not need to memorise every answer. They need a reliable place where they can check the right answer at the right time.

Verified sources and publicly recorded changes

The tool uses official sources, states verification dates and clearly distinguishes informative guidance from decisions made by competent institutions. Every content or functionality update is recorded in a public change log.

A child's major milestones happen only once. Parents should not have to restart their search from the beginning every time.