Study: Bavaria lacks more than 70,000 daycare places
Even ten years after the introduction of a legal entitlement, there are still not enough daycare places in Bavaria. According to a recent study by the Bertelsmann Foundation, there will be a shortfall of 70,100 childcare places in Bavaria in 2022. "Bavaria is still unable to fulfill the legal entitlement to a daycare place in line with demand. Children are not getting access to early childhood education, while parents are finding it more difficult to reconcile family and career," says Kathrin Bock-Famulla from the Bertelsmann Stiftung für frühkindliche Bildung.
However, the Free State must close the gap by 2030, according to the "State Monitoring of Early Childhood Education Systems", which was presented in Gütersloh on Tuesday.
Around 30 percent of under-threes in Bavaria were looked after in a daycare center last year - slightly less than the national average. Overall, however, 42 percent of parents wanted childcare for a child in this age group.
There was also a few percentage points difference between aspiration and reality for older children. 98% of parents stated that they wanted a place in a daycare center. However, the childcare rate in 2022 was only 92%.
Kathrin Bock-Famulla said that the gap could be closed by 2030 with the appropriate efforts to recruit new staff. In the meantime, however, a transitional solution must also be considered. The foundation is also proposing shorter opening hours in the daycare centers. A reduction to six hours a day could mean that all parents would have a place if needed by 2025. Some parents would like the option of being able to book shorter childcare times anyway. However, parents' working hours would then also have to be adapted to the opening hours of the daycare centers.
The authors also call for the continued recruitment of career changers to work in daycare centers. However, they would then also have to qualify through in-service training. The foundation also suggests that additional employees in administration and housekeeping could relieve the burden on nursery teachers.
According to the foundation's estimates, 61% of existing daycare places are not suitable for children due to a lack of staff. "It can be assumed that daycare centers in Bavaria are currently unable to fulfill their educational mandate for the majority of children," said Bock-Famulla.
The experts' recommendation for the childcare ratio in the crèche group is 1 to 3. In kindergarten, one specialist should then look after an average of 7.5 children. In Bavaria, however, the childcare ratios are 1 to 3.6 in the crèche group and 1 to 8 in the kindergarten, according to the evaluation. The situation is even worse if vacation and sick days or team meetings are deducted, said Bock-Famulla. This means that only two thirds of working hours are then available for childcare.
The lack of daycare places in Bavaria is also impacting the labor market, as parents struggle to balance their careers with childcare responsibilities. With a shortfall of over 70,000 childcare places expected in 2022, Kindergartens in Bavaria are understaffed, affecting their ability to fulfill their educational mandate for children.
Source: www.dpa.com
