Even though the term youth work is not widely used in Denmark, the tradition of youth work in Denmark is more than 170 years old. Youth work is being carried out by an active third sector as well as public sector bodies.

In the third sector youth work, two types of organisation are important:

1. Youth associations based on/driven by ideas, convictions, and interests (e.g. political associations, scout associations, environmental associations, disability associations). The Danish Youth Council (DUF), which was established in 1940, gathers 75 such children and youth organisations.
2. Local sports associations that organise a large range of sports activities (e.g. gymnastics, football, handball). A number of national federations organise these local clubs.

In the public sector, youth work takes place in municipal youth clubs, municipal youth schools, and municipal music schools.

In Denmark, youth worker is not a recognised profession, and the term is not widely used. Therefore, the term youth worker applies to everyone working with young people and not only to professionals. There are no minimum training/qualification standards for third sector youth workers.

One single criterion applies to everyone in contact with children and young people under the age of 15. According to the Act on Children’s Certificate (Børneattestloven), people working with children under the age of 15 cannot have any previous record of sexual offences involving children. Therefore, before employing people in contact with children and young people under the age of 15, the candidate must show a children’s certificate.

There are no recognition and validation arrangements specific to participation in youth work. Skills acquired through voluntary activities in youth organisations or sports clubs are recognised as non-formal and informal learning. Informal and non-formal learning are recognised in prior learning assessment (realkompetencevurdering). 

(From the Youth Wiki)