To guardians at BISM and Bladins Grundskola, April 16th 2020

Dear Guardians, 

Welcome back after the spring break.

We are pleased to note that we have a slightly higher student attendance at school since we returned after the break, but the student absence rate remains high. There are, of course, natural reasons that there are more students absent now than usually due to the strict guidelines for people with cold and flu symptoms. However, we would still like to remind you of the compulsory education law in Sweden and each child’s legal right to education.

The compulsory education law is detailed in chapter 7 of the Swedish School Act and stipulates which children the law applies to, and what responsibility the Principal, the responsible authority (Bladins Foundation) as well as the legal guardians have in order to uphold this law. The compulsory education law applies to all children who are residents in Sweden from August of the calendar year they turn 6 up until they have completed their 10th school year, Grade 9 (MYP 4). During this time they have to attend compulsory school and it is the guardian’s responsibility to ensure that they do. The Principal of a school is legally bound to monitor students’ attendance rates, and, in the event of concern about high or repeated absences, the Principal must begin an investigation. This applies to both authorised and unauthorised absence. The Principal should also report such a concern to the responsible authority. The investigation is done in consolidation with the student and the student’s guardians and may lead to further actions being taken.

The law on compulsory education is important as it guarantees that all children in Sweden receive the education which they are entitled to. As government agencies in Sweden have chosen to keep compulsory schools open the law of compulsory education still applies. Therefore it is very important that you as a guardian send your healthy child to school as long as they are without symptoms.

Bladins has chosen to offer distance education for those students who are advised not to go to school by their Doctor. It is also available for students who are at home sick but considered well enough to follow the education by their guardians. This is done to ensure that the education of as few students as possible is affected by the prevailing situation. However, this is not offered to provide guardians with an opportunity to keep their healthy child at home.

In order for the school to best follow a student’s development, ensure that their needs are being met and that they reach their goals, the student should be at school. Distance education has proven to be an excellent complement to our teaching, but when the school is open, the education should take place in the classroom. We also know from experience that it is important for children’s physical and mental health to maintain normal daily routines at times like these. Therefore we would like to remind you that all healthy students without cold / flu symptoms should come to school and participate in classroom learning.

Furthermore, the current situation is also a work environment issue for our teachers who work very hard to ensure that all students have access to the best possible education. They are currently teaching on two fronts and this is not sustainable long term to the extent that is done today.

Bladins understands that this is a time of worry. Therefore, we want to assure you that we are closely following the guidelines of the government and the responsible authorities in order to prevent the spread of infection in our schools. No students or staff are allowed to come to school if they are experiencing any symptoms. You can read up-to-date information about covid -19 on this page on the Bladins website: With regards to the coronavirus. 

With kind regards,

Magnus Wahlberg

School Director