Variations in the Availability and Quality of Early Childhood Education and Care by Socioeconomic Status of Neighborhoods

Abstract

Research Findings: This article provides Australian evidence of the availability and quality of early childhood education and care (ECEC) services in low–socioeconomic status (SES) neighborhoods. There is less availability of ECEC in low-SES areas in Australia, and these programs provide a lower average quality of care than in more advantaged neighborhoods. Families tend to travel short distances to ECEC programs (Mdn = 2.9 km), and therefore families in low-SES areas are limited in the programs they can choose or are faced with higher transport costs than families in more advantaged neighborhoods. This study uses government licensing data from a population of 6,937 ECEC services together with a sample of 2,494 children enrolled in 421 ECEC classrooms. Practice or Policy: Established measures of the local ECEC market tend to overestimate its size and in turn the availability of ECEC. Measures of ECEC market density should be tested for sensitivity to reductions in size. SES gradients are observed within local ECEC markets, meaning that attempts to lift supply and quality in low-SES areas require specific and targeted policy intervention.