Average care value

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The care averaging served in Germany by 2011 as a statistical auxiliary quantity for calculating staffing in child care centers . There were a total of four care mean values. They served as a workaround because the actual care times were not recorded statistically. The data was only recorded according to size classes , which did not provide precise values ​​for these care times. Because of the inaccuracies and distortions associated with this, mean values ​​for supervision have not been used since March 1, 2012.

Regulation until 2011

For the children cared for in the day-care center, the contractually agreed care times per day were not recorded directly, but in size classes. In order to estimate the weekly care time, care mean values ​​were then formed.

Care mean values ​​of the daily care times
Size categories of the
daily care time		 Average care value
per day		 Average care value
per week
up to 5 hours 4.5 hours 22.5 hours
more than 5 up to 7 hours 6.0 hours 30.0 hours
more than 7 up to 10 hours 8.5 hours 42.5 hours
more than 10 hours 10.5 hours 52.5 hours

However, the mean supervision value may differ from the actual supervision time. For example, a daily care time of five to seven hours can be statistically recorded; in fact, the child is picked up on different days after just under five hours. Or a child is present for the entire seven hours a day, but only the average care value of six hours is included in the personnel key calculation. This can be one of the possible reasons why the actual personnel key differs from the arithmetical value.

Regulation from 2012

Since March 1, 2012, the contractually agreed care times for children have been recorded directly as a decimal number . For this reason, care mean values ​​are no longer required for calculating the personnel key.

Hessian Child Promotion Act (HessKiföG)

Effect of the average care values ​​according to §25c HKJGB (HessKiföG) on the calculation of specialist hours

Hesse is the only federal state in which the staffing in day-care centers is legally prescribed by means of average care values. Although the average childcare values were abolished in 2011 for the reasons mentioned above, they were included in the draft of the controversial Hessian Child Promotion Act (HessKifög, § 25c) of December 4, 2012. In the explanatory memorandum for the law, reference was expressly made to the statistics of child and youth welfare 2010: The established mean values ​​for childcare are based on the assumptions of the Federal Statistical Office in its evaluation "The staff key in day care centers" (2010). However, the fourth average care value of 52.5 hours per week (10.5 hours per day) contained in the publication of the Federal Office was omitted.

Already during the first deliberations on the draft law and later in the statements of the professional associations, the use of care mean values ​​and the cap of 42.5 hours were criticized. Nevertheless, the method of calculation was basically retained because it served to simplify administration. In the amendment to the draft law of April 2013, a fourth average care value was added.

Regardless of the surveys carried out on March 1 in 2012 and 2013 on statistics without mean values ​​for childcare, the HessKiföG was passed on May 23, 2013 (GVBl. I p. 207). Experience with the type of specialist hour calculation prompted the Hessian Association of Towns and Municipalities to propose a different calculation method in a later statement dated November 11, 2014.

The evaluation of the HessKiföG, which was carried out by the Institute for Social Work and Social Pedagogy until the end of 2016, also provided critical information on the mean values for childcare.

Thereafter, the public criticism essentially referred to the following statements:

  • The temporal structure of the offer changes in particular due to the mean values ​​for supervision. Care contracts are based on average care values; the needs of families take a back seat.
  • The mean care values ​​do not meet the flexible care needs of families.
  • The categories of the supervision mean values ​​are too rough.

Experts claim that the average care values ​​are distorted in comparison to the actually agreed care times and argue for greater differentiation or the complete abolition of the average care values. The carriers do not agree on this. The calculation of the personnel requirements using average care values ​​leads to deviations in 94% of the day care facilities compared to the actually agreed care times. Whether these are positive or negative depends on the length of the care duration.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Federal Statistical Office: "The staff key in day care centers", 2010 , accessed on May 30, 2015.
  2. ↑ a b Federal Statistical Office: "The staff key in day care centers", 2017, page 5, "Methodology of the staff key calculation from 2012" , accessed on April 4, 2019
  3. ↑ § 25c HKJGB - minimum personnel requirement
  4. ↑ Hessischer Landtag, Drs. 18/6733, p. 19.
  5. ↑ Committee template SPA 18/85, part 1
  6. ↑ Committee template SPA 18/85, Part 2
  7. ↑ Committee draft SPA 18/85, part 4
  8. ↑ Hessischer Landtag, Drs. 18/7208
  9. ↑ Hessischer Landtag, recommendation for resolution on Drs. 18/7208
  10. ↑ Hessischer Landtag, submission SIA 19/18 Part 2, pp. 28/29.
  11. ↑ HMSI: Information on the evaluation
  12. ↑ Evaluation report on HessKiföG (PDF 4.5 MB), para. 4.2.1.5, p. 149f
  13. ↑ Evaluation report on HessKiföG (PDF 4.5 MB), Paragraph 4.2.1.8, p. 205ff