Afternoon activities for schoolchildren

• Afternoon activities take place on school days only.
• Sessions last 4 hours per day, usually from 12:00 to 16:00.
• Activities are organized at schools or nearby facilities.
• There is no afternoon program during school holidays or on Saturday school days.

The aim of afternoon activities offer children safe and planned leisure activities. Activities include playing, exercising, going outside and eating a snack.  hand skills, music, expressive arts, physical education, yard and traditional games and ball games. Children also have the opportunity to rest and do homework. Activities support the child’s overall well-being and the educational work of home and school.

Electronic application

Apply for the afternoon activity with an electronic application.

Electronic application for the academic year 2026–2027 (Suomi.fi authentication is a common strong authentication service for public administration services. It allows you to log in to Finnish public administration electronic services.) In connection with strong authentication, we collect the name of the applicant.

Paper application

Use a paper application only if you do not have the opportunity to use Suomi.fi authentication.

Paper application for the academic year 2026–2027

Submit a paper application to Lahti-Piste, Lahden Palvelutori, Kauppakeskus Trio 2nd floor, Aleksanterink. 18.

Applications can be submitted throughout the school year

The main application period for afternoon activities was from 20 March to 7 April 2026. However, applications can be submitted throughout the school year.
After the application period, applications are considered in the order they are received, and children can join the activities if there is space in the group.

First-year students who apply for the activity after the application period will be placed first in the queue in the order of arrival until the end of the activity period. First-year students who apply during the application period will also have priority in the queue.

The decision to accept afternoon activities by the official in charge of basic education is the basis for charging the monthly fee for afternoon activities.

The afternoon activity place granted to a child is specific to the activity location and does not move with the child from one activity location to another, for example if the family moves.

More information about afternoon activities (in Finnish) can be found on the City of Lahti’s website Iltapäivätoiminta.

The official decision on the place in the afternoon activities is the basis for charging the monthly fee for afternoon activities. A fee is charged for each month in which the child participates in the activities (one or more attendance days). According to the decision of the Lahti City Education Committee (May 21, 2024/61 §), the monthly fee for afternoon activities in accordance with the Basic Education Act is 120 euros/month from August 1, 2024. The monthly fee includes, among other things, supervised activities, a snack, materials, and accident insurance.

The service provider charges fees for the activities they provide. Guardians are billed a fixed monthly fee per
child according to the decision on the place in the afternoon activities, with the following exceptions:

• 120 €/month, except for the half-month fee in August. No fee is charged for activity days in June. School holidays do not affect the monthly fee.
• 60 €/month when the child is absent for the entire month (0 attendance days). Absence must be
  reported to the group leader. However, the place cannot be reserved without an acceptable reason.
• 60 €/month when the child is absent due to illness* for 11 or more activity days in a month.
• 0 €/month when the child is absent due to illness* for the entire month (0 attendance days).

* Absences due to illness must be supported by a doctor’s or nurse’s certificate upon request.

If the fee for afternoon activities is not paid by the due date, the service provider is entitled to charge annual interest on arrears from the due date as stipulated in the Interest Act (633/1982). The fee is directly enforceable. The fee may be collected without a judgment or decision as provided in the Act on the Enforcement of Taxes and Charges (706/2007).

For questions related to billing, please contact the billing party directly, i.e., the service provider. The contact
details of the service provider for the afternoon activities can be found (in Finnish) on the city’s website Iltapäivätoiminta, under
the section “Iltapäivätoiminnan palveluntuottajat 2025–2026.”

• Fee exemption for the school year 2025–2026 can be applied for from August 1, 2025, in writing using the electronic and paper fee exemption applications available on the City of Lahti’s website.
• The application must be submitted during the month from which the fee exemption is sought.
• A separate fee exemption must be applied for each child in the afternoon activities.
• The recipient of the income support decision and the child must live at the same address. The income support decision must concern the child for whom the fee exemption is sought.
• The decisions attached to the fee exemption application must be positive and up-to-date:
  • A copy of the basic income support decision from Kela
  • A copy of the preventive or supplementary income support decision granted by the wellbeing
    services counties
  • A copy of the reception allowance decision
• The income support/reception allowance decisions attached to the application must be submitted in full (all pages).
• If the application lacks up-to-date attachments, the processing of the application may be delayed.
• The fee exemption decision is made for a fixed period, for a maximum of one operational year at a time. The fee exemption can be granted for a maximum period for which the positive income support decision is valid.
• Fee exemption is not granted retroactively.
• The paper application with attachments should be sent to: Lahti-Piste, Service Square, Shopping Center Trio, 2nd floor, Vesku Square, Aleksanterink. 18, 15140 Lahti.

Termination must always be done in writing. It can be done either electronically through the City of Lahti’s
website or as a paper termination notice, which must be submitted to the service provider.

• If the place applied for and granted during the application period is not accepted, the termination period is one week from the receipt of the notification of acceptance.
• Otherwise, the termination notice must be submitted to the service provider or sent electronically by the 15th of the month and will take effect on the first day of the following month. The termination notice can be found (in Finnish) on the City of Lahti’s website Iltapäivätoiminta.