Can you stay calm when meeting with children and young people who are having a hard time, and do you understand behavior as an expression of something that calls for care and understanding?

Can you stay calm in meetings with children and young people who are having a hard time, and do you understand behavior as an expression of something that calls for care and understanding?

At the Center for Support and Wellbeing we experience a high demand for our offering Frejahøjen, and therefore we are expanding the staff group.

We offer a permanent position of 37 hours per week with start on January 1, 2027 and a maternity cover of 37 hours per week for the period January 1, 2027 – August 31, 2027, with the possibility of extension. If you have the possibility to start earlier, we would also like to hear from you.

As a newly opened children and youth home, we have a special focus on building a stable and consistent staff group that wants to help shape and develop Frejahøjen and be part of the long term. We want a workplace where employees thrive, develop and want to stay, while we collectively take on the task of acute placements and planned support stays.

Therefore we invest in shared professional development, employee well-being, sparring, visible leadership and a culture where we take responsibility together for both the task and each other.

Frejahøjen opened on April 1, 2026 and, as a project, is well on track. We have set the direction for the effort, and the professional foundation is described. Now the next important step is to bring it into daily life - it is a job that naturally takes time, and which must be solved and lifted in the community.

Therefore we are looking for colleagues who can see themselves as part of the team, and who find it exciting to help anchor Frejahøjen’s professional approach, culture and collaboration forms in practice together with us.

Frejahøjen has the framework, colleagues and professionalism to make it an exciting job for you, who have experience with placed and socially vulnerable children and young people in fragile positions. With us you become part of a workplace with good colleagues, close sparring, visible leadership with focus on competence development, team spirit and a good working environment.

Does that sound like something for you? Then we look forward to telling you more.

About Frejahøjen

Frejahøjen is a children and youth home with room for up to 17 children and young people aged 0-17 years. We offer acute and time-limited placements as well as planned support stays for children who live at home or are placed in foster families.

We work with clear frameworks, structure and predictability, because this can create security in a daily life where much else feels uncertain and unpredictable. At the same time we know that professionalism also involves being able to adapt expectations and requirements to the individual child and the situation the child is in. Therefore we seek colleagues who can balance clarity with flexibility and who understand that the relationship is sometimes more important than routine.

In the placements we receive children in planned or acute placements, who often have experiences of distress, neglect or unstable upbringing. The aim is to create a stable, structured and predictable everyday life for the child, while working with the child’s and family’s further support needs in close collaboration with networks and partners.

In the support stay places we receive children who live at home or in foster care, where the stay is part of a preventive or supportive intervention for the child or the foster family.

About the effort

At Frejahøjen we work from a shared recognizing, mentalizing and trauma-informed approach. This means that we meet the children with an understanding of the experiences they carry and create a home-like, safe and predictable environment where everyday life is adapted to the individual child’s needs, development and interests. It is not just a method, but something that should be felt in our educational practice – every day.

Everyday life at Frejahøjen ranges from the planned and relationship-building to situations where quick action is needed. During a week you can be involved in receiving a child in an acute situation and participate in everything from leisure activities and cozy moments around the fire or the kitchen table, which constitute the educational and practical tasks that create structure, stability and well-being.

We believe that children develop best when the most important adults around them work together. Therefore we prioritize close cooperation with parents, authorities, school, day care and the child’s other networks to create coherence and the best development opportunities for the child.

We work systematically with pedagogical interventions, professional observations and daily documentation, which among other things forms the basis for cooperation with authorities, parents and other partners.

Who are we looking for?

There are several entry paths to the position, but we would like you to be a trained pedagogue – but we also welcome you if you have another social or educational background.

At Frejahøjen we meet children and young people who find themselves in some of life’s most vulnerable situations. When the pressure becomes too great, it can express itself through strong emotional reactions, conflicts or outwardly challenging behavior, which often must be understood in light of the child’s life situation and experiences.

Therefore we seek employees who meet the child with professional curiosity rather than assumptions, and who understand that behavior is not the problem, but an expression of something the child does not yet have words or resources to handle.

Most importantly, you are driven by making a difference for children and young people in a vulnerable period of their lives and motivated to create stable and safe frames when the need is greatest.

It’s a plus if you

• Have experience with socially disadvantaged children and young people
• Have experience with cross-professional collaboration – e.g., authorities and school and day care
• Have experience with or a desire to work systematically and purposefully with pedagogical interventions and documentation

At Frejahøjen we work at the intersection of planned and acute. Therefore you can maintain calm, overview and professional judgment when a child needs a place with short notice. You know that the first hours and days after a placement can be decisive, and you can create structure, predictability and a safe reception for both the child and the family.

You meet children with curiosity, patience and understanding. You have the ability to understand the child’s behavior as an expression of distress rather than resistance, and you know that trust and relationships take time to build. At the same time you understand the importance of a home-like everyday life with presence, care and good experiences.

The task requires you to be able to accommodate both the child and the parents in difficult situations, take responsibility and stand by professional decisions. You thrive in close collaboration with colleagues and partners because you know that the best solutions are created in a collective effort.

Finally you work in a structured way with pedagogical interventions and documentation and actively contribute to a strong professional community.

You have a driver's license, as some of the children need transport to school, activities and socializing.

You should see yourself in

• Working with both planned and acute placements as well as planned support stays, where a child can arrive on short notice.
• Working at a 24-hour facility with a fixed work plan and working every other weekend.

In addition to weekend work there may be opportunities to influence the work schedule, as we prioritize supporting the balance between work and private life.

Your tasks

• Receive children in acute temporary placements and children in planned support stays
• Create a safe, stable and predictable daily life for the children
• Work relationship-building and support the child’s well-being and development
• Plan, carry out and document pedagogical interventions
• Collaborate with parents, school, networks and authorities
• Participate in staff meetings, professional sparring and collaboration meetings
• Handle pedagogical and practical tasks in everyday life that together contribute to creating a safe, home-like and developing environment for the children and young people staying with us.

We offer you

At Frejahøjen, the culture is our most important foundation. You are never alone with the difficult situations. We work closely together, help each other and prioritize professional sparring because we know that the best solutions are created in collaboration.

We believe that children experience stability when the staff do the same. Therefore you will find a workplace with present and accessible leadership, high professionalism and a focus on well-being and psychological safety.

You will become part of a workplace where there is room for both reflection, humor and professional discussions. Through daily overlaps, ongoing sparring and time for documentation we ensure that you are well prepared for the task.

It takes something to make a difference for others. Therefore you will participate first in our onboarding program, where you are introduced to the methods, approaches and frameworks that form the basis of our practice.

At the same time you get a workplace in scenic surroundings close to woods, beach and town with good opportunities for presence, activities and experiences together with the children – and the opportunity to shape an offering in ongoing development.

If you can see yourself in a varied workday and are willing to stand firm when the work challenges you, we believe you will thrive with us.

Would you like to hear more?

If you have questions about the position or Frejahøjen, you are welcome to contact us. You can reach the department head Mette Vidkjær at telephone number 2440 9946 or coordinator Julie Seidelin Andersen at telephone number 2173 2528

Salary and terms of employment

The positions are 37 hours per week with day and evening shifts as well as every other weekend and on holidays.

At Frejahøjen there are awake night shifts, which means that evening shifts typically end no later than 22:30.

Salary and terms of employment are determined in accordance with the applicable collective agreement between the Local Government Denmark and the negotiating organization based on qualifications.

In accordance with Aarhus Municipality’s current rules, criminal and child welfare checks are obtained for all employees.

Application

Positions in Aarhus Municipality are applied for electronically. Click on 'Search the position' to fill in and submit your application. All fields marked with * must be filled out. Only after you have received a confirmation email have we received your application.

The application deadline is Sunday 15.11.2026 (midnight)