Roughly 6,000 children will start school in Helsinki in the autumn
Helsinki-based children born in 2018 will start their compulsory education on Thursday 7 August 2025. You can enrol your child in school either online between 7–26 January 2025 or by visiting the school on Wednesday 22 January 2025. The future first-graders were sent a Tervetuloa kouluun guide (‘Welcome to school’), a comprehensive information package on starting school, towards the end of 2023. Information on starting school is also available at hel.fi/welcometoschool.
See your local school in the compulsory education note and online at asti.hel.fi
Your child’s local school will be listed in the compulsory education note sent to your child’s home address and online at asti.hel.fi on 7–26 January 2025 after you log in. Compulsory education notes will be sent to children’s home addresses starting on 2 January 2025.
School enrolment primarily online
Guardians can enrol their child in school online at asti.hel.fi on 7–26 January 2025. The service is available in Finnish, Swedish and English. At asti.hel.fi, you can enrol your child in their Finnish- or Swedish-language local school as well as to weighted-curriculum or bilingual education, and other than the child’s local school. In addition, children attending pre-primary education in a Swedish-language immersion group can enrol in a Swedish-language immersion school according to their language immersion path. If you want to enrol your child in a school that is not your child’s Finnish-language or Swedish-language local school, all guardians of the child must give written consent on Asti by 26 January 2025.
Guardians can also enrol their child by visiting the school on Wednesday 22 January 2025 at 8.00–10.00. If the school operates in several units, enrol at the main school. Enrolment will be primarily done online at asti.hel.fi also at the school. In order to enrol, guardians must bring the child’s compulsory education note and necessary identification (e.g. Finnish online banking credentials).
In some cases, you can only enrol at the school. If your child is starting school a year later or has been granted extended compulsory education, or if your child is applying to a school other than the child’s own local school, enrol at the school in question.
Morning and after-school activities for pupils
The city organises after-school activities for 1st and 2nd-graders and pupils in need of special support after the school day. The activities are supervised and guided children’s leisure activities. The children have the opportunity play, exercise, play games, spend time outdoors, meet friends, relax, and take part in guided activities both indoors and out. The application period for after-school activities is 17 March−16 April 2025. The decisions will be sent to homes by the beginning of July 2025. Additional information is available at.. hel.fi/afterschoolactivities.
The schools provide basic education morning activities before the lessons for 1st and 2nd-graders and 3rd and 4th grade special support pupils. You can enrol your child in morning activities through the Wilma system in August 2025 when school starts. No separate decision will be made on morning activities, Wilma enrolment is enough. Schools will provide more information on morning activities in August. Additional information is available at hel.fi/morningactivities.
Advisory services provide more information
The Education Division advisory services will help you in all matters related to school enrolment, tel. +358 9 310 44986, Mon–Fri at 10.00–12.00 and 13.00–15.00. Help is also available for online enrolment, tel. +358 9 310 88800, Mon–Fri at 8.00–18.00.
