MEMBERS

Having one’s child at a daycare run as a parent cooperative requires somewhat more commitment from parents than is the case at other daycares. Filius & Filia is a so called economic association (ekonomisk förening) and the daycare is run as a not-for-profit parent cooperative. All the families of the children that attend the daycare automatically become members of the economic association and thereby have an obligation to carry out or be responsible for certain tasks at the daycare. The tasks can include, for example, being on the board of directors, which meets once a month, being responsible for the daycare’s computers and other IT infrastructure, or organising parties or other events for the children and/or families. It is also important that at least one parent from each family attends the annual general meeting and the annual members’ meeting (which are held on the same evening in the autumn). The running of the daycare is discussed at these meeting and decisions are made, for example regarding the composition of the board of directors or approving the proposed annual budget.

All families (i.e. at least one member of each family) should also participate in the daycare fixing/cleaning (“städ- och fixardagar”), which are held twice a year (one in the spring and one in the autumn). In addition, each family should work at the daycare on 2-3 Friday afternoons per year – taking care of a group of children under the supervision of a member of staff. This is an alternative to the so called joursystem that many other parent cooperatives operate (the jour system involves a parent being called and having to work at the daycare at short notice if a member of staff is absent due to illness).

The involvement of parents since the daycare was established in 2003 is a key reason for Filius & Filia being one of Huddinge’s best daycares, in our humble opinion – and we also always get very positive results and feedback in surveys. We have enthusiastic parents who know all the children (and many of their siblings) and fantastic staff who give every single child great respect and who treat all the children as individuals with individual needs, while giving them a stimulating and safe time at the daycare, as well as the opportunity to develop.

The fact that the daycare has shorten opening hours than many other daycares is also part of our philosophy that the daycare should be able to offer a good parent/child ratio throughout the day, thereby offering higher quality daycare services than would be the case if the hours worked by the staff were spread out over a long day in which there may only be a few children around at the beginning and end of the day.

Being a member of a parent cooperative isn’t something that appeals to every family, as it demands that parents have the time and inclination to get involved a bit extra in the daycare. It is therefore very important that one gives this some thought before accepting a place at Filius&Filia.