Family Facts and Figures - Child Care
Statistical information provided in charts and data tables on Child Care:
Utilisation
- Children aged 0-4 years: Proportion using formal or informal care, 1987-2005
- Children aged 5-11 years: Proportion using formal or informal care, 1987-2005
- Children aged 0-11 years who used formal care only: Weekly hours of care, 1987-2005
- Children aged 0-11 years who used informal care only: Weekly hours of care, 1987-2005
- Children aged 0-11 years who used formal or informal care: Weekly hours of care, 1987-2005
- Children aged 0-12 years: Proportions using formal or informal care by family type, 2005
- Types of non-parental care used by school-aged children when parents were working during school holidays, 2001
- Children aged 0-11 years: proportion using formal or informal care by family type, 2002
- Proportion of children in different types of child care services who have additional needs, 2002
Cost of child care and selected characteristics of staff (or caregivers)
- Average fees of different types of child care services, 2002
- Average fees of different types of child care services, 2006
- Staff (or caregivers) in different types of child care services: Employment status, qualifications and in-service training undertaken, 2002
Unmet needs
- Unmet formal care need of children aged 0-4 years who were using or not using formal care, 1993-2002
- Unmet formal care need of children aged 5-11 years who were using or not using formal care, 1993-2002
- Families with pre-school children who used or considered using child care to undertake paid work: proportion indicating some difficulty in the following child care areas in the last 12 months, 2001
- Use of childare and main reason for not using childcare by children's age, 2004 & 2006
Definitions
Formal care
Informal care
Glossary
Utilisation
Children aged 0-4 years: Proportion used formal or informal care, 1987-2005
Children aged 0-4 years: Proportion used formal or informal care, 1987-2005
| Formal only* | Informal only | Formal* and informal | Neither | Total number of children ('000) | |
| June 1987 | 16.5% | 31.2% | 12.1% | 40.2% | 1214.3 |
| November 1990 | 14.2% | 32.7% | 13.6% | 39.6% | 1251.1 |
| June 1993 | 19.0% | 26.4% | 14.9% | 39.6% | 1293.5 |
| March 1996 | 21.4% | 24.9% | 15.2% | 38.5% | 1292.4 |
| June 1999 | 22.6% | 17.3% | 17.3% | 42.8% | 1274.2 |
| June 2002 | 27.6% | 16.9% | 16.9% | 38.6% | 1242.2 |
| June 2005 | 21.5% | 24.7% | 13.7% | 40.1% | 1249.2 |
| * In 2005, ABS excluded preschool from the definition of formal childcare. | |||||
| Sources: ABS (various years), Childcare Australia, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | |||||
Children aged 5-11 years: Proportion used formal or informal care, 1987-2005
Children aged 5-11 years: Proportion used formal or informal care, 1987-2005
| Formal only | Informal only | Formal and informal | Neither | Total number of children ('000) | |
| June 1987 | 3.8% | 32.0% | 2.6% | 61.6% | 1673.6 |
| November 1990 | 5.8% | 34.8% | 4.7% | 54.8% | 1752.6 |
| June 1993 | 5.2% | 31.6% | 3.6% | 59.6% | 1792.4 |
| March 1996 | 5.3% | 30.7% | 3.0% | 60.9% | 1810.5 |
| June 1999 | 8.0% | 29.1% | 4.1% | 58.8% | 1848.7 |
| June 2002 | 8.0% | 25.6% | 4.7% | 61.7% | 1858.8 |
| June 2005 | 8.4% | 24.9% | 4.3% | 62.4% | 2141.0 |
| * In 2005, ABS excluded preschool from the definition of formal childcare. In 2005, children aged 12 years were included. | |||||
| Sources: ABS (various years), Childcare Australia, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | |||||
Children aged 0-11 years who used formal care only: Weekly hours, 1987-2005
Children aged 0-11 years who used formal care only: Weekly hours, 1987-2005
| <5 hrs | 5-9 hrs | 10-19 hrs | 20-29 hrs | 30-39 hrs | 40+ hrs | Total | |
| June 1987 | 22.9% | 32.6% | 30.2% | 5.5% | 4.4% | 4.5% | 100.1% |
| June 1993 | 18.3% | 22.5% | 32.3% | 11.6% | 7.2% | 8.0% | 99.9% |
| March 1996 | 18.5% | 23.2% | 33.4% | 8.8% | 8.6% | 7.5% | 100.0% |
| June 2002 | 17.4% | 25.0% | 34.8% | 12.0% | 6.1% | 4.8% | 100.1% |
| June 2005 | 20.5% | 25.0% | 30.0% | 11.4% | 6.1% | 7.0% | 100.0% |
| Note: In 2005, ABS included children aged 12 years and excluded preschool from the definition of formal childcare. | |||||||
| Sources: ABS (various years), Childcare Australia, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | |||||||
Children aged 0-11 years who used informal care only: Weekly hours, 1987-2005
Children aged 0-11 years who used informal care only: Weekly hours, 1987-2005
| <5 hrs | 5-9 hrs | 10-19 hrs | 20-29 hrs | 30-39 hrs | 40+ hrs | Total | |
| June 1987 | 46.6% | 22.4% | 15.3% | 5.7% | 3.2% | 6.8% | 100.0% |
| June 1993 | 43.2% | 21.2% | 16.5% | 7.6% | 3.9% | 7.6% | 100.0% |
| March 1996 | 43.1% | 21.5% | 16.7% | 8.4% | 3.5% | 6.8% | 100.0% |
| June 2002 | 36.4% | 23.6% | 19.6% | 7.6% | 4.1% | 8.7% | 100.0% |
| June 2005 | 35.7% | 21.4% | 18.4% | 9.6% | 4.4% | 10.6% | 100.1% |
| Note: In 2005, ABS included children aged 12 years. | |||||||
| Sources: ABS (various years), Childcare Australia, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | |||||||
Children aged 0-11 years who used formal or informal care: Weekly hours, 1987-2005
Children aged 0-11 years who used formal or informal care: Weekly hours, 1987-2005
| <5 hrs | 5-9 hrs | 10-19 hrs | 20-29 hrs | 30-39 hrs | 40+ hrs | Total | |
| June 1987 | 35.9% | 23.7% | 20.9% | 7.4% | 4.6% | 7.6% | 100.1% |
| June 1993 | 30.8% | 20.5% | 23.5% | 10.5% | 5.8% | 9.0% | 100.1% |
| March 1996 | 30.5% | 20.9% | 23.4% | 10.5% | 6.4% | 8.3% | 100.0% |
| June 2002 | 23.7% | 21.7% | 27.0% | 11.7% | 6.9% | 9.0% | 100.0% |
| June 2005 | 25.8% | 21.1% | 23.3% | 12.4% | 6.3% | 11.1% | 100.0% |
| Note: In 2005, ABS included children aged 12 years and excluded preschool from the definition of formal childcare. | |||||||
| Sources: ABS (various years), Childcare Australia, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | |||||||
Children aged 0-12 years: Proportions using formal or informal care by family type, 2005
Children aged 0-12 years: Proportions using formal or informal care by family type, 2005
| Couple family (%) | One parent family (%) | |
| Formal care only | 13.2% | 13.4% |
| Informal care only | 23.7% | 30.2% |
| Both formal and informal care | 6.9% | 11.9% |
| Neither | 56.2% | 44.4% |
| Total | 100.0% | 99.9% |
| Number of children ('000) | 2805.8 | 584.5 |
| Note: preschool is excluded from the definition of formal care. | ||
| Source: ABS (2006), Child care Australian June 2005, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | ||
Cost of child care and selected characteristics of staff (or caregivers)
Averge fees of different types of child care services, 2002
| Service type | Average weekly fees |
|---|---|
| Private long day care | $184 |
| Community based long day care | $188 |
| Family day care | $163 |
| In-home care | $10.80 per hour |
| Outside school hours care | $5.91 per session (before school) $9.34 per session (after school) |
| Vacation care | $126 |
| Occasional care | $4.53 per hour |
| Multifunctional services Centre-based Home-based | $177 $170 |
| Multifunctional Aboriginal children's services | - |
| Source: Department of Family and Community Services (2003), 2002 Census of Child Care Services Summary Booklet, Canberra. | |
Averge fees of different types of child care services, 2006
| Service type | Average weekly fees |
|---|---|
| Long day care | $233 |
| Family day care | $215 |
| Outside school hours care | |
| Before school | $7.83 per session |
| After school | $11.83 per session |
| Vacation care | $157 |
| In-home care | $11.48 per hour |
| Occasional care | $6.36 per hour |
| Note: Data is unweighted | |
| Source: Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (2008), 2006 Australian Government Census of Child Care Services, Summary Booklet. | |
Unmet needs
Unmet formal care need of children aged 0-4 years, 1993-2005
Unmet formal care need of children aged 0-4 years, 1993-2005
| Using-need more | Not using-need some | Using-not need more | Not using-not need | Total | Number of children ('000) | |
| June 1993 | 7.7% | 13.9% | 26.3% | 52.1% | 100.0% | 1293.5 |
| March 1996 | 4.5% | 6.6% | 32.2% | 56.8% | 100.1% | 1294.2 |
| June 1999 | 4.2% | 4.8% | 35.8% | 55.2% | 100.0% | 1274.2 |
| June 2002 | 4.0% | 4.6% | 40.4% | 51.0% | 100.0% | 1242.2 |
| June 2005 | 3.6% | 4.9% | 31.6% | 59.9% | 100.0% | 1294.2 |
| Note: In 2005, ABS excluded preschool from the definition of formal childcare. | ||||||
| Sources: ABS (various years), Childcare Australia, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | ||||||
Unmet formal care need of children aged 5-11 years, 1993-2005
Unmet formal care need of children aged 5-11 years, 1993-2005
| Using-need more | Not using-need some | Using-not need more | Not using-not need | Total | Number of children ('000) | |
| June 1993 | 1.4% | 10.2% | 7.3% | 81.0% | 99.9% | 1792.4 |
| March 1996 | 0.7% | 5.9% | 7.7% | 85.7% | 100.0% | 1810.5 |
| June 1999 | 0.9% | 3.8% | 11.2% | 84.1% | 100.0% | 1848.7 |
| June 2002 | 0.8% | 2.9% | 11.9% | 84.5% | 100.1% | 1857.8 |
| June 2005 | 0.5% | 3.3% | 12.1% | 84.0% | 99.9% | 2140.9 |
| Note: In 2005, children aged 12 years were included and ABS excluded preschool from the defintion of childcare. | ||||||
| Sources: ABS (various years), Childcare Australia, Catalogue no. 4402.0 | ||||||
Use of childare and main reason for not using childcare by children's age, 2004 & 2006
| Age of children | |||
| 0/1 | 2/3 | 4/5 | |
| (Wave 1, 2004) | (Wave 2, 2006) | (Wave 1, 2004) | |
| Use of childcare (whether child looked after by someone else) | |||
| Yes | 35.2% | 68.8% | 40.0% |
| No | 64.8% | 31.2% | 60.0% |
| Total | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| If not using childcare, main reason for not using child care | |||
| (sums to 64.8%) | (sums to 31.2%) | (sums to 60%) | |
| Child does not need it | 21.4% | 7.8% | 25.5% |
| Problem getting place | 0.9% | 0.6% | 0.5% |
| Not available locally | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Transport problem | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Can't afford it | 1.3% | 1.4% | 1.9% |
| Concerned with quality | 0.6% | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Parent is available | 35.1% | 18.3% | 29.3% |
| Child has special needs | 0.2% | 0.3% | 0.2% |
| Child would be unsettled | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.3% |
| Does not suit culture | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| Does not want care by strangers | 1.3% | 1.0% | 0.6% |
| Child is too young | 2.7% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Other-asscessibility or affordability | 0.3% | 0.0% | 0.5% |
| Other - quality/progrm issues | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.1% |
| Other - not good for child | 0.3% | 0.0% | 0.4% |
| Other reasons | 0.0% | 1.2% | 0.0% |
| Number of children | 5104 | 4606 | 4928 |
| Note: Use of childcare and need for childcare include informal care. | |||
| Source: Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) Survey (2004 & 2006). | |||