The ideas of Grundtvig and Kold had such an impact on the political think-ing of their time that they were written into the democratic Constitution adopted by Denmark in 1849. It stipulates general compulsory education - not compulsory school attendance. In 1998, approx. 73,000 children attended 429 private schools, while 541,000 pupils attended the municipal school of which there are approx. The bottom line is that private schools will be recognized and receive government financing regardless of the ideological, religious, political or ethnic motivation behind their establishment.
Some private schools are very old, some are quite new, and new ones are still being added.
It is characteristic of the private schools that they are smaller than the municipal schools. All parties in the Danish Parliament want legislation ensuring financial support for private schools, partly based on the notion that also the municipal schools will benefit from the experience and competition offered by the private schools. The legislation contains detailed rules about government financial support but only the most general rules about the educational content. However, the schools may always come to the Ministry for advice if and when they need it, and the Ministry can take special action, if needed. Educational content All that is demanded of private education is that it measures up to that of the municipal schools.