Hamburg has a shortage of daycare places: Too few staff
Compared to other western German states, Hamburg is well placed in terms of the number of daycare places available. According to the Bertelsmann Foundation, the proportion of children under the age of three in daycare is 49 percent, which is above the national average of 36 percent. However, 58% of parents actually want their child to be looked after. For children aged three and over, the childcare rate of 95% is also above the national average (92%). However, 98 percent of parents here need childcare.
As a result, Hamburg lacked 6400 daycare places to meet the needs of parents. "Hamburg is currently unable to meet the legal entitlement to a daycare place in line with demand. Children without a place have no access to early childhood education, while parents find it more difficult to reconcile family and career," said Kathrin Bock-Famulla, an expert on early childhood education at the Bertelsmann Stiftung.
According to the foundation, one specialist is responsible for 7.5 children in kindergarten groups in Hamburg. This is slightly more favorable than the western level (1 to 7.7). In the crèche groups, however, one specialist is responsible for 4.1 children. This is less favorable than the western average of 1 to 3.4 and falls short of the Bertelsmann Stiftung's recommended ratio of 1 to 3. Overall, two thirds of daycare children in Hamburg are still cared for in groups with staffing ratios that are not appropriate for the children.
"If one specialist is responsible for more children than scientifically recommended, the quality of educational practice suffers. It can be assumed that daycare centers in Hamburg are currently unable to fulfill their educational mandate for the majority of children," said Bock-Famulla.
According to the Bertelsmann Foundation, however, Hamburg could succeed in meeting the current childcare needs of parents by 2025 and improve the staffing ratios in the crèche groups to the same level as in the West. According to the forecasts, there will be sufficient specialist staff available for this. By 2030, there is even a chance of achieving the staffing ratios in all group types in accordance with scientific recommendations.
Despite the high demand for kindergartens in Hamburg, the labor market for early childhood education professionals is struggling. This shortage of staff contributes to the prevalence of inappropriate staffing ratios in many kindergarten groups, as indicated by Kathrin Bock-Famulla from the Bertelsmann Foundation. The labor market challenges in this sector could hinder Hamburg's goal of improving staffing ratios and providing better childcare services by 2025 and 2030.
Source: www.dpa.com
