Access of Children with Specific Needs to Preschool Care
The aim of the project implemented by RILSA in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and with the financial support of UNICEF is to map the access of children with specific needs, with special attention to Ukrainian children, to preschool care and other services for families with children. In the Czech Republic, despite the generally high employment rate, the representation of mothers with children under 3 years old on the labor market is low, and the attendance of children under 3 years old in non-family care facilities (6.3 %) is below the EU average (33 %). Despite the significant increase in the capacity of children’s groups created with the support of the ESF and the amendment of the legislation (legal entitlement of children from the age of 3 to a place in kindergarten), the offer of non-family care still lags behind the demand. This also significantly affects children of refugees arriving in the Czech Republic as a result of the war conflict in Ukraine and children with specific needs (disadvantaged in terms of health, from socially excluded locations, etc.).
The project will map the current offer of childcare services in children’s groups and other services for families, especially maternity and family centers, and will contribute to setting up a monitoring tool for these services. The analysis of the legislative framework and the established practice will result in recommendations on how to improve the access of children with specific needs to these services.
Outputs
PALONCYOVÁ, Jana & Sylva HÖHNE, 2023. Access to pre-school care for children with special needs.
