Suomen Icehearts ry

What Suomen Icehearts ry does

Suomen Icehearts ry is a Finnish non-profit association (rekisteröity yhdistys) founded in 1996 in Vantaa by Ilkka and Ville Turkka that operates a preventive child welfare model. The core product is a 12-year intervention in which a dedicated educator (kasvattaja) walks alongside a child from preschool to adulthood, delivering an integrated bundle of hobby and sports activities, school support, individual mentoring, family support, camps, and multi-agency network work. The model is delivered through ~70 teams across 13 Finnish cities and currently serves approximately 1,000 children and families, with 25 teams having completed the full 12-year journey since 1996.

The organization is not a technology platform; its method IS the product. The closest thing to proprietary infrastructure is a 12-year longitudinal tracking research partnership with THL (Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare) running since 2015, which provides scientifically validated outcome data (average participation indicator 80.25 vs ~75 population baseline). The broader service portfolio includes a STEA-funded parenting group program called Ihmeelliset vuodet (Wonderful Years), a Swedish-language division renamed under the Icehearts master brand in 2024, and an EU-funded international pilot in five European countries.

The revenue model blends three streams: municipal cooperation agreements (municipalities contracting for teams), STEA grants for social and health organization activities, and foundation/corporate donations (notably Relex-säätiö, Murata Electronics Oy, Satakunnan Osuuskauppa). Services are provided free to children and families. The organization has been recognized as a Good Practice by the European Commission (2021), an OECD Mental Health Promotion Best Practice (2025), a HYTE 5/5-rated model by THL (2023), and a featured case study in Springer's Handbook of Professional Youth Mentoring (2026). Cost-effectiveness analysis by Dr. Petri Hilli (2017) estimated ~70 million EUR in unrealized societal costs prevented.

Name

Suomen Icehearts ry

Legal name

Suomen Icehearts ry

Website

https://icehearts.fi

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Suomen Icehearts ry is a Finnish non-profit association founded in 1996 that delivers a 12-year preventive child welfare program through ~70 dedicated educator-led teams operating in 13 Finnish cities and serving ~1,000 children and families free of charge.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Preventive Child Welfare Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Individual and Family Services (6241), Other Individual and Family Services (624190)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Family & Parenting Support Services (BPAGAEAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Family & Parent Support Services (Parent Coaching, Advocacy) (EDAJALAK), Special Needs Early Intervention & Preschool Programs (EDAKAAAE), Wraparound Student Support & Case Management Services (At-Risk K–12) (EDAJAEAJ)

Keywords

• Preventive child welfare
• Youth mentoring programs
• Community-based youth services
• Early intervention programs
• Long-term child support

Headquarters

HQ city

Vantaa

HQ country

Finland

HQ region

Europe

Offices13 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Municipal Partnerships: Cities pay for Icehearts services through cooperation agreements. Municipal funding is a core revenue stream but faces challenges due to fragmented local government situations.
2. STEA Funding: STEA (Sosiaali- ja terveysjärjestöjen avustuskeskus) provides grants for social and health organizations in Finland. Icehearts receives STEA funding for operations.
3. Foundation and Corporate Donations: Relex-säätiö and other foundations provide project funding. Corporate partners like Murata Electronics Oy make charitable donations. The funding environment is described as being in major transition.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Suomen Icehearts ry delivers a 12-year early intervention child welfare program (Icehearts-toimintamalli) in which a dedicated educator (kasvattaja) commits to a child from preschool to adulthood, using team sports, group activities, school support, family support, and network coordination to prevent social exclusion. The program is delivered through municipal cooperation agreements in 13 Finnish cities, reaching approximately 1,000 children and families through nearly 70 teams. Services are free to end users and funded through municipal contracts, STEA grants, foundations, and corporate donations.

Product overview

Icehearts is a non-profit preventive child welfare organization operating the Icehearts-toimintamalli (Icehearts Operating Model), a comprehensive 12-year early intervention program where dedicated educators (kasvattajat) provide continuous support to children from preschool through adulthood. The core model is delivered through Icehearts-joukkueet (Icehearts Teams) and encompasses multiple integrated service modules including hobby activities (harrastustoiminta), school support (koulutyön tuki), individual support (yksilöllinen tuki), family support (perheiden tuki), camps and trips (leirit ja retket), and network work (verkostotyö). The organization also operates a Swedish-language division (svenskspråkig verksamhet) and runs an additional parenting support program called Ihmeelliset vuodet (Wonderful Years). The model uses team sports and group activities as primary tools for building social skills, preventing exclusion, and promoting child wellbeing across 13 locations in Finland with approximately 70 teams serving around 1000 children and families.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Icehearts-toimintamalli (Icehearts Operating Model) The core 12-year early intervention child welfare program in which a dedicated educator (kasvattaja) provides continuous support to a child from preschool to adulthood, using team sports, group activities, school support, and family assistance as primary tools. Delivered under municipal cooperation agreements; services are free for children and families.
• Icehearts-joukkueet (Icehearts Teams) The fundamental operational unit of Icehearts: dedicated 12-year teams of children led by a committed educator, providing continuous support, sports activities, and group experiences from preschool to adulthood.
• Ihmeelliset vuodet (Wonderful Years) parenting group program STEA-funded structured parenting group activities supporting families whose children show behavioral challenges. Delivered nationally across Finland as a separate, add-on program to the core 12-year model.
• Icehearts svenskspråkig verksamhet (Swedish-language operations) Dedicated Swedish-language version of the Icehearts preventive child welfare program, providing the same comprehensive 12-year support to Swedish-speaking children and families in Finland.

Quantifiable outcome

• Children and youth in Icehearts show stronger participation indicators (average 80.25) compared to population average (~75)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Icehearts Europe ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023EU-funded project to pilot Icehearts operations in five European countries and disseminate information about the model across Europe. Funded with 4 million euros from the European Commission.
• Terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin laitos (THL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTHL conducts longitudinal research on Icehearts (since 2015, following five teams for 13 years). Research led by Kaija Appelqvist-Schmidlechner and Marjatta Kekkonen. Provides scientific validation of program effectiveness.
• Lahti BasketballminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBasketball club that has supported Lahti's Icehearts teams since 2017, providing sports expertise and support.
• Noren (consulting firm)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerConducted customer survey for Icehearts showing organizational analysis of current funding situation was accurate.
• Eerikkilän urheiluopistominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSports institute that hosts Icehearts educator days (Kasvattajapäivät). Donated 30th anniversary celebration shirt to Icehearts.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Barnardo's: UK-based child welfare charity providing long-term support, mentoring, and family services to vulnerable children. Comparable on long-term relationship-based child welfare methodology, but primarily UK-focused rather than Nordic.
• Folkhälsan: Finnish-Swedish social and health non-profit providing family and child support services with a focus on the Swedish-speaking minority. Comparable as a Finnish non-profit social services provider with bilingual capability, overlapping Icehearts' svenskspråkig verksamhet (Swedish-language operations).

Broad incumbents

• SOS Children's Villages International: Global non-profit providing long-term, stable care and mentoring for vulnerable children. Comparable on the dimension of multi-year, relationship-based child welfare support, but operates at much larger scale and with residential care components.
• Save the Children: Global child welfare and rights non-profit active in Finland and internationally. Operates preventive and protective child welfare programs and is a relevant peer on scale, advocacy, and funder relationships, though with a much broader geographic and programmatic remit.
• Mannerheim League for Child Welfare: Finland's largest child welfare non-profit, providing family support, parenting programs, and child advocacy services. Comparable as a Finnish non-profit social services organization serving children and families, but with a much broader portfolio than Icehearts' specialized model.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of America: Large US youth development non-profit using sports, mentoring, and after-school programming to support at-risk youth. Comparable in using team-based activities and adult mentorship as preventive youth interventions, though at vastly larger scale and primarily in the US.

Direct peers

• Big Brothers Big Sisters: Global youth mentoring non-profit pairing adults with at-risk youth for long-term relationships, the closest international analogue to Icehearts' kasvattaja (educator) model. Both organizations rely on sustained one-to-one adult commitment as the core intervention mechanism.
• Aseman Lapset ry: Finnish non-profit focused on children and young people at risk, operating community-based support models in Finland. Directly comparable Finnish-context peer in preventive child welfare and youth support.

Others

• Junior Achievement (JA Worldwide): Global youth development non-profit delivering structured programs in schools to build life and work readiness. Comparable as a school-embedded youth development non-profit with government and corporate partnerships, but focused on education/economic outcomes rather than preventive welfare.

Emerging players

• Mentor Finland: Finnish mentoring-focused non-profit connecting adult mentors with youth. Closely comparable on the core mentoring thesis, though typically operating a shorter-term, less intensive model than Icehearts' 12-year commitment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/iceheartsry
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC4tr_6f_j2K7uzZsEIhEp9w
• Facebookfacebook.com/iceheartsry
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/suomen-icehearts-ry
• Instagraminstagram.com/iceheartsry

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Suomen Icehearts ry