Notifications of concern for children and young people

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Personal Finances and Welfare, Social Statistics
Marko Malic
+45 51 70 56 95

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Notifications of concern for children and young people 2024

The purpose of the statistics is to shed light on notifications concerning children and young people received by municipalities in Denmark. The data are used for purposes such as policy development and legislation, public debate and research in the field.

The statistics were first compiled by the Danish Social Appeals Board (Ankestyrelsen) in 2015 and have been part of Statistics Denmark’s publications since 2016.

Statistical presentation

The statistics provide an annual overview of notifications concerning children and young people under the age of 18.

The data include information on the number, age, and gender, date of the notification, the notifier’s relation to the child, reason for the notification, and the administrative municipality.

The statistics are published in the StatBank and in the Nyt from Statistics Denmark series.

Statistical processing

Municipalities report information on child welfare notifications to Statistics Denmark. This is done either automatically through system-to-system solutions or manually via a web-based reporting tool.

Once a reporting year has ended, each municipality receives a summary of the data submitted. In cooperation with Statistics Denmark, any errors or missing information are corrected. The municipality then confirms that the data accurately reflect the number of notifications for the year. This process is called data validation.

Relevance

The statistics are relevant to researchers, journalists, public authorities – including ministries and municipalities – and others who seek knowledge about the conditions of vulnerable children and young people.

Accuracy and reliability

Non-response and measurement errors introduce only minimal bias.

The figures are approved by the municipalities, and the overall level of uncertainty is considered low.

Data in the StatBank Denmark are republished with updates going back up to two years. These updates mainly consist of minor corrections due to non-response and measurement errors, and do not affect the overall picture.

Timeliness and punctuality

The final statistics are published no later than nine months after the end of the reference period. The statistics are generally published on schedule, without delays. For the reporting years 2021–2024, publication followed the planned timeline. A delay occurred for the 2020 reporting year due to data delivery issues, but these were resolved before the subsequent release.

Comparability

The statistics have been compiled since 2015 and are comparable over time, taking into account the revision in 2017 and the addition of new categories in 2022 and 2024. The annual count makes the data directly comparable, unlike other statistics from Statistics Denmark on vulnerable children and young people (such as placements and support measures), which are status-based. There is some potential for international comparison, particularly with statistics from Sweden and Norway.

The statistics are partially internationally comparable, for example with equivalent statistics from Sweden, Norway, and – to some extent – Finland.

Accessibility and clarity

The statistics are published in Nyt fra Danmarks Statistik. Data is available in the StatBank under the topic Disadvantaged children and youth. For more information, visit the topic page of the statistics.

Contact DST Consulting for access to micro-data.