Culture Kids is an operating model coordinated by the City of Helsinki under which all children born in Helsinki from 2020 onwards are invited to become Culture Kids. Culture Kids are invited to two events each year until they start school. The events are free of charge for families.
Culture Kids events are organised by arts and cultural operators receiving grants and operators receiving institutional grants for culture as part of the appropriation for institutional grants. In addition to them, Culture Kids events are organised by some of the City of Helsinki’s own services, primarily culture and leisure services. The Culture Kids activities of these services are funded from their own budgets. The special grant is not used to fund the City's own service provision. Culture Kids activities are coordinated by the Annantalo Children and Youth Art Centre, which is part of the City of Helsinki’s cultural services.
The special grant for Culture Kids activities is awarded for organising low-threshold arts and cultural activities for children aged 0–6 and their close ones in Helsinki and for the development of new operating models related to them. The grant is awarded for activities taking place in Helsinki.
The aim is to create three themed paths for families based on the content of the events: a music path, a performing and literary arts path and a cultural heritage and visual arts path. Individual children can stay on the same artistic path as they grow up, if they so choose. Because of this, we are hoping to receive applications for a wide range of content from different art forms for different ages. However, a single applicant does not need to offer content in several different art forms or for several different age groups, as the composition of the paths will be taken into account in the overall assessment of Culture Kids activities.
The special grant for Culture Kids activities will primarily be awarded for three years, from 2027 to 2029. However, the grant must be applied for each year, and the continuation of funded projects is confirmed on the basis of follow-up applications, provided that there are no significant changes to the appropriation or operating environment and the criteria for the level of activity continue to be met. The usage period of each year’s grant is one calendar year. This is a discritionary and imputed grant, meaning that the grant amount awarded depends on the volume of the activities is organised, the target group and the content of the activity.
The application period for the grant is 1–22 April 2026. The application process includes two assessment phases, the first in spring 2026 and the second in autumn 2026. The grant recipients are decided in the first phase, while the grant amounts are decided in the second phase.
Grant information sessions
The City of Helsinki organised two information sessions, each with the same content, on Teams on Wednesday 1 April and Friday 10 April.
Read the info materials from the Teams-event (pdf, in Finnish).(Link leads to external service)
For whom?
The special grant for Culture Kids activities is a discretionary grant that can be awarded to associations, NGOs and other registered organisations that have been operating for at least one financial year. The grant cannot be awarded for an activity that would be funded solely by the grant. The grant also cannot be awarded for activities organised by the City of Helsinki or its subsidiaries that have been awarded institutional grants for culture.
For what?
The purpose of the special grant is to establish Culture Kids activities so that as many children in Helsinki as possible who are part of the target group can participate in cultural events for children together with their close ones.
The special grant for Culture Kids activities is intended for the planning and implementation of events under the Culture Kids model. Culture Kids activities supports both the developmental stages of children and the wellbeing of families. They promote the reach, accessibility, equality and diversity of cultural services. By giving different families and communities the opportunity to become part of Helsinki and experience what it means to be a Helsinki resident, they also prevent the residential segregation of children and families.
Applications for the special grant for Culture Kids activities are assessed based on the following assessment criteria:
- The operator’s concrete measures for and competences in taking into account equality, accessibility and diversity in the planning, communication and implementation of the activity.
- The applicant's competence and experience in child-centred events and the concrete ways in which the age, developmental stage and participation of children are taken into account in the planning and implementation.
- Understanding of the operating environment of children's culture and experience in event production.
- The overall assessment takes into account the diversity of content and target groups between different arts and the volume of activities.
In addition to the above, applications are subject to the assessment criteria for cultural grants.
Assessment criteria as of 1 June 2022
Artistic basis and content, in the case of which the assessment considers the following:
- The artistic goals and the strength of the idea, and how these are reflected in the planned activities.
- How clearly the application expresses the activity’s artistic starting points (e.g. the uniqueness of the activity).
- How professional, ambitious and interesting the activity is, and how significant it is within its field.
- How the activity will increase the versatility and diversity of the content on offer in the field of arts and culture in the city.
- The activity’s potential to create something new and to allow artistic development to take place.
Operational basis and implementation, in the case of which the assessment considers the following:
- How professional and credible the activity is.
- The activity’s impact, partnerships and scope.
- How feasible and realistic the activity described in the application is, and how uniform a whole the goals, the plan and its implementation form.
- How diverse the resources are, and what financial risks are involved in the activity.
- How necessary the grant is for the realisation of the activity.
- The development of the activity and how the development will be achieved.
- The organisation’s ability to evaluate its own activities.
- How equality and equity will be taken into account when arranging the activity.
- How ecological aspects will be taken into account when arranging the activity.
Diversity, accessibility and participation, in the case of which the assessment considers the following:
- How the activity will add to the diversity reflected by the artistic and cultural operators and offering in Helsinki.
- How the activity will be made socially, district-wise, culturally, language-wise, financially, age-group-wise, physically or otherwise more accessible to the audience and participants.
- How the target groups have been defined and what measures will be used to reach different groups.
- How the activity will expand the spectator and participant base in experiencing and creating art and culture, and how it will encourage people to engage in a more extensive dialogue about art.
- How the activity will build community spirit in the city and improve the opportunities of residents to participate in and realise activities themselves.
- How the activity will utilise and strengthen operating methods that are based on networks and communities.
All cultural grants are subject to the strategic guidelines and the general grant terms of the City of Helsinki, as well as the grant allocation principles of the Culture and Leisure Division.
The proposed activity is to be planned and budgeted based on the number children that potentially can participate in the activity. The grant is awarded according to the number of participants for which resources are allocated. If seats at the organised events are not filled due to reasons beyond the control of the operator, this will not affect the grant amount.
The proposed activity can be organised from early February to mid-June in the spring season, and from mid-August to mid-December in the autumn season.
The organised events can be performances, which may include participatory elements, or workshops. The grant recipient must organise the same event as a series, meaning several times a year.
The events must be planned according to the number of participants and the age and developmental stage of the target group. Event sessions for younger children can be planned for smaller numbers of participants, whereas event sessions for older children can be planned for larger numbers of participants. However, the number of participants per event session can also depend on the content of the event, the support needs of the target group and the venue in which the event is held. The reasoning behind the planned number of participants must be stated in the application.
The grant may also be awarded to projects that do not have their own premises. If this is the case, it must be made clear in the project plan. Update 10th April 2026: The city has reserved certain premises for free use for events within the Culture Kids activities, for example in its cultural centres. The use of the premises can be negotiated after the first evaluation phase. Instructions for venue negotiations will be provided to the selected operators in June 2026.
Please indicate in your project plan how many events you plan to organise, the total capacity of the events, meaning the maximum number of children who can participate, and the age group for which the activity is targeted. Please also indicate in the plan how many accompanying adults per participant/child belonging to the age group the events can accommodate and whether siblings can also participate. We are also hoping to receive applications for events that are tailored to the support needs of children or families, with special attention being paid to issues such as mobility impairments, sensory sensitivities or the specific needs of neurodivergent children.
In the first phase of the application process, the project plan and budget may be preliminary plans that can be refined in the second phase of the process.
The special grant for Culture Kids activities is awarded on the basis of the number of participants for which resources are allocated, meaning the number of children for whom the operator is committed to organising the activity. The grant amount is discretionary, maximum €25 per child in the target group. The age of the target group, the group size of the event and/or special support needs will be taken into account in the grant amount.
When drawing up your budget, please keep in mind that the project must also have other sources of funding besides the grant from the City of Helsinki. Please note that each participating child will always be accompanied by at least one adult, so this must be taken into account in the resource allocation of the events.
Application period and how to apply for the grant in e-services
The application period starts on Wednesday 1 April 2026 and ends on Wednesday 22 April 2026 at 4 p.m. You can apply for the grant via the City of Helsinki’s e-services by filling in the application form for development grants and a Webropol supplementary information form. You can fill in your application by logging in to your e-services account and navigating to ‘Apply for grant’ on the left side of this page. You can find the login link in the upper right corner of the page. First, fill in the official application form in the grant application service and select development grant as the type of grant. In the section asking whether the applications concerns a festival/event, select the option ‘no’. Next, fill in the supplementary Webropol form.
Proceed to fill in the Webropol form.(Link leads to external service)
| Applicants for the special grant for Culture Kids activities do not fill in page 5 of the general application form for development grants. The details of the project are provided on a separate Webropol supplementary information form. |
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Please read the application instructions carefully and obtain the necessary background information and attachments required to submit your application. Submit your grant application in the City of Helsinki's e-services and provide additional information about your project using the Webropol form.
In the City's e-service, you can save your application as a draft in order to complete it at a later date. Your application will be saved in your personal profile in the City of Helsinki's grant application service. Submit your application by 4 p.m. on the last day of the application period. Applications arriving after the deadline will be rejected. We recommend that you submit your application before the last application day, because on the last day the service may be slow due to the high number of applications being submitted. The grant applicant must be authorised to act on behalf of the applying entity before signing up for the grant service.
Attachments required for Culture Kids applications:
- Project plan (Preliminary. Please indicate in your project plan how many events you plan to organise, the total capacity of the events, meaning the maximum number of children who can participate, and the age group for which the activity is targeted.)
- Budget (preliminary, must be consistent with the project plan).
- Financial statements for the previous year. The financial statements must include at least the applicant organisation’s financial result and balance sheet and a signed copy of the financial or operational audit report.
- Annual report for the previous year.
- Rules of the association (if the applicant is new or if the rules have changed since the applicant’s previous application).
- Bank statement or other document verifying the name and account number of the account holder (new applicants and applicants whose bank details have changed).
Submit the necessary attachments to your application via the e-service. Registered associations/communities, contact persons and working group account holders are required to submit a bank statement or other bank notification of the account holder (new applicants and applicants whose bank details have changed) indicating both the account holder and the account number. If the applicant submits a bank statement as part of their application, they may block out the information concerning transactions if they wish. The grant cannot be paid if this document is missing.
Applications are processed by the Partnerships Unit of the City of Helsinki Culture and Leisure Division's Cultural Services and Support, and the grants are decided by the Culture and Library Sub-committee of the Culture and Leisure Committee. The Culture and Library Sub-committee will decide the recipients of the special grant for Culture Kids activities at its meeting on 11 June 2026 and the grant amounts at its meeting in November 2026.
Applicants will be informed of the Sub-committee's decision. The applicants will be sent information about the decision by post.
The special grant for Culture Kids activities is paid in one instalment.
The grants will be paid out to the bank account in the recipient's name. If the grant recipient does not have a bank account, they must open one. To verify bank details, a bank statement or other document verifying the name and account number of the account holder must be submitted as an attachment to the application (new applicants and applicants whose bank details have changed). The grant will not be paid if this attachment is not submitted.
For further information on payments, please contact Administrative Secretary Minna Leino, tel. +358 9 3108 9044, minna.leino@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program).
The grant usage period is one calendar year. The use of the grant is monitored through a dedicated cost centre, which must show the income and expenditure of the activity. In 2027 the use of the grant will be reported by submitting a report form in August 2027 when applying the continuation grant for the following year. The report must state the number of participants for which resources have been allocated during the year and an estimate of the number of participants for which resources will be allocated for the rest of the year. At the same time, the cost centre monitoring for the project must be submitted to the city.
Conditions for the use of the grant
All cultural grants are subject to the general grant terms of the City of Helsinki, as well as the grant allocation principles of the Culture and Leisure Division.
The person or entity to whom the grant is paid is responsible for the use and reporting of the use of the grant.
The grant can only be used for the purpose stated in the grant decision. If the grant decision does not specify the purpose, the grant must be used for the purpose stated in the grant application, in accordance with the guidelines and criteria of the specific grant type. The city has the right to reclaim the grant in part or in full in accordance with the terms and conditions.
The recipient is not allowed to use the grant for fundraising or for business and investment expenditure, or to increase its financial assets or any other long-term investments. Grants may generally not be used for the purchase of fixed assets. Fixed assets are defined as items such as machinery, equipment, buildings, and investments that can be resold.
The recipient of a grant must arrange its accounting in the manner required by law and so that the use of the grant can be monitored based on the accounts. The grant recipient must arrange an audit in accordance with the requirements of the Auditing Act.
The recipient must provide the City of Helsinki with the information the city deems necessary for processing the grant application, awarding the grant and monitoring its use, free of charge. The party awarding the grant has the right to audit the accounts and administration of the applicant/recipient and perform other audits regarding its activities as necessary.
The grant recipient must promptly notify the city of Helsinki of any significant changes that affect the use of the grant and must consult with the grant administrators to agree on the continued use of the grant or its repayment. Go to the contact page for cultural grants.
The recipient undertakes to investigate the background of all suppliers used in the activities and to purchase services only from responsible operators who meet their social obligations.
Grants are not awarded for the purpose of redistribution to other entities, and the grant recipient is not permitted to distribute the grant further in the form of money or gifts.
Using the Helsinki logo
Whenever possible, grant recipients must include the City of Helsinki logo in their information and marketing materials. There is a Finnish and Swedish version, as well as a bilingual version of the logo. In any case, the recipient must mention the City of Helsinki as a sponsor of the event.
Download the logo of the City of Helsinki.(Link leads to external service)
If you're planning to apply the special grant for Culture Kids activities or want to know more, please contact special planner Nina Gran, tel. +358 9 310 37006, nina.gran@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program) or Acting Team Leader (Promotion of children's culture) of Annantalo Laura Arala, tel. + 358 40 1626387, laura.arala@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program). Note! Nina Gran is out of office between 22nd and 24th April. In the meantime you can contact Anna Dantchev, tel. +358 9 310 50469, anna.dantchev@hel.fi.(Link opens default mail program)