Today, with the solemn groundbreaking ceremony, the starting signal for the new building of the kindergarten in Falkenstein was given. The Falkenstein market town is building a modern, two -group kindergarten with an additional movement room. The new building should not only offer contemporary framework conditions for early childhood education, but also a place for playing, learning and feeling good for the youngest community members. The start of construction marks an important step for the further development of the educational infrastructure in Falkenstein. State Councilor Christiane Teschl-Hofmeister set the start signal for the construction work.
“The expansion of childcare is an investment in early childhood education and at the same time the parents are actively supported in the compatibility of family and work. We hereby take an important step in order to offer our children the best possible framework for good development and loving care. I am pleased that we can support this project by means of the Lower Austrian school and kindergarten fund,” says family councilor Christiane Tesch-Hofmeister. “With this project we invest in the future of our children and strengthen our community as an attractive habitat for young families,” emphasized Mayor Schüller as part of the groundbreaking ceremony. The kindergarten is to be completed by planned by Easter 2026.
On January 1, 2023, the funding rate for structural investments from municipalities was raised from 27% to almost 50%. This should support the communities responsible for childcare in the performance of their tasks. Since the start of the largest family policy initiative in Lower Austria, the increased funding rate in the course of the “blue-yellow care offensive” has been decided for 489 groups and a project volume of over 290 million euros. Since September 2024, over 371 groups for childcare – 291 new kindergarten groups and 80 day care institution groups – have been in operation all over Lower Austria. In total, 93% of the Lower Austrian communities have already created the possibility that the first two-year places in a kindergarten or in a day care facility have had the possibility, even though the Lower Austrian children’s education and care offensive runs by the end of 2027. There are currently over 75,000 children in Lower Austria in institutional childcare facilities. A total of around 615 new kindergarten groups and 250 new day care facilities will be created by the end of 2027. The state of Lower Austria and the municipalities will jointly take 750 million euros to expand childcare by 2027. In addition, the state of Lower Austria is the only federal state of all managers, all elementary teachers, the inclusive elementary teachers and intercultural employees in Lower Austria Landeskindergarten and it bears the personnel costs of several hundred million euros.
The first successes of the “blue-yellow care offensive” are reflected in the improvement of the vif conformity. If you look at the childcare quotas into age groups in the district-compliant facilities in the district, an increase in the 0 to 2 year olds from 31.3% in 2018 to 62.3% in 2023. In the same period, an increase of 20% to 52.9% results in the same period. “The numbers of the recently released day care center statistics are very gratifying. The intention of the blue-yellow childcare offensive is to advance the real freedom of choice and compatibility of family and profession of parents and legal guardians. Since 2023, the statutory closing days have been reduced from 3 to 1 week, at the same time the free institutional childcare in the morning was also Daily care facilities.
The Lower Austria results in relation to the Austria-wide average are also satisfactory: Lower Austria is 36.3% above the Austria average of 34.9%. If you look at the visiting rates after individual years, Lower Austria leads the federal state comparison in the categories of 2- (78.7%), 3- (97.2%) and 4 year olds (99.0%) with the highest care rates. “These numbers underpin the efforts of the state of Lower Austria and its communities for a good network of childcare offers across the country,” said Family Councilor Teschl-Hofmeister.
Further information: Office LR Teschl-Hofmeister, Mag. (FH) Dieter Kraus, press spokesman, phone 02742/9005-12655, email dieter.kraus@noel.gv.at