Childcare centres

The average childcare centre is closed for 31 (operating) days per year; most days of closure are during the summer holidays (average: 19.7 days). On average, institutional day nurseries throughout Austria are closed for five (operating) days in the Christmas holidays, just under four days in the Easter holidays and two days during the semester break. Toddlers’ crèches are closed for the fewest days per year (16.3). Kindergartens are closed for an average of 36.7 days, after-school care clubs for 29.0 days and mixed-age establishments for 20.8 days. Vienna childcare centres are closed for less than ten days per year, in the west of Austria, on the other hand, for more than 47 days (Tyrol 47.9, Vorarlberg 50.8 and Styria 54.5 days).

With respect to opening hours it can be seen that on average eight in ten toddlers’ crèches and kindergartens provide institution based child care before 7.30 am. In Vienna seven in ten of these facilities even open before 7 am. Over half of all toddlers’ crèches and eight in ten after-school care clubs are opened until at least 5 pm. Almost a third of kindergartens close before 2 pm, while a quarter remain open until at least 5 pm. Over a third of childcare centres provide ten or more hours of institutional based child care. Only one childcare centre in eight is open for an average of less than six hours per day. Vienna offers the longest opening hours for all types of institutional based childcare; more than two thirds of nurseries in Vienna are opened for ten hours or more, while only 8% are opened for less than six hours.

Toddlers’ crèches and after-school care clubs are primarily attended by children of working parents. The proportion of children in after-school care clubs with working mothers is 78.3%, while the corresponding figure for children in toddlers’ crèches is 74.1% and almost 60.0% for kindergarten children. Compared with the resident population of the same age, it can be seen that 87.8% of 3 to 5 year olds who have a working mother are looked after in kindergartens. For 0 to 2 year olds the ratio is 34.5%.

In terms of the development of institutional based childcare ratios for 3, 4 and 5 year old children (the number of children looked after in childcare centres as a proportion of the total resident population of the same age) over the last ten years, significant increases can be observed in all three age categories. The institutional based childcare ratio for 3 year olds rose from 50.3% in 1998 to actually 73.4%. An increase from 83.7% to 92.2% over the last ten years was recorded for 4 year olds, while the corresponding figure for 5 year olds increased from 89.0% to 93.8%.

Please consult our German website for tables and charts containing further information.