Most Australians provide care to others at various stages of their life: to children, other family members, friends and neighbours; or to users of welfare services through direct employment or volunteering. Care is also provided indirectly by taxpayers in the form of subsidies, payments and services funded through the taxation system.
This section presents statistics on some of the different ways Australians provide care to each other, formally and informally, directly and indirectly.
Half of all children under 15 attend child care
In 2009, 49% of children aged 0–14 attended child care, including after-school care, at some time during the year. Child care use was most common for children aged 2–5 (59%), then declined with age to 25% of teenagers aged 13 or 14.
Children in couple families whose parents' combined income was $2,000 or more per week were twice as likely to have usual child care arrangements as those whose parents' combined income was less than $800 per week. In part, this may be because many higher income families have two working parents and therefore may have a greater need for childcare. On the other hand, cost may be a barrier to child care for some low-income families.
Child care use, 2009
Fast facts
There were around 110,000 child care workers in 2010. On average, child carers worked 37.5 hours and earned $753.50 per week.
Australia's welfare Chapter 4
Women and older people provide most informal care
In 2009, 2.6 million people (12% of the population) were informal carers of a person with a disability or someone who was ageing. Of these, 771,000 were primary carers—the person who provides the most informal care to a care recipient. Over half of all informal carers and two-thirds of all primary carers were female.
Primary carers aged 15–24 were most likely to be caring for a parent; those aged 25–44 were most likely to be caring for their son or daughter; and primary carers aged 45 or older were most likely to be caring for their spouse/partner.
One in four primary carers were aged 65 or over in 2009, compared to one in five in 1998. Like the Australian population generally, the informal carer population is ageing.
Population providing informal care, 2009
Fast facts
Almost one-third of all primary carers aged 15 or over (243,000 people) had spent 10 years or more in the caring role—including 46,000 who had been caring for 25 years or more.
Australia's welfare Chapter 7
More children living in out-of-home care
Children may be placed in out-of-home care for a range of reasons including for protective concerns, situations where the parents are incapable of providing adequate care, or where alternative accommodation for the child is needed, such as during times of family crisis.
On 30 June 2010 there were almost 36,000 children living in out-of-home care across Australia. Roughly equal numbers of these children were in foster care and relative/kinship care arrangements (where children are placed with relatives/kin other than their immediate family). Around 3,000 children were living in other forms of out-of-home care, such as family group homes, residential care or independent living.
Between 2006 and 2010 the number of children living in out-of-home care rose by more than 10,000. Much of this increase is due to the length of time children tend to remain in care.
Number of children in out-of-home care, 2006–2010
Fast facts
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were almost ten times as likely as non-Indigenous children to be in out-of-home care.
Australia's welfare Chapter 4
More than $130 billion spent on welfare in 2008–09
In 2008–09, $136.6 billion was spent providing welfare services and payments to Australians (not including tax expenditures or exemptions, or payments or services to people who were unemployed). The bulk of Australia's welfare expenditure is targeted at supporting three groups: families and children; older people; and people with disabilities.
More than two-thirds (69%, or $94.4 billion) of the total welfare expenditure was for cash payments such as the Age Pension, Family Tax Benefit and Disability Support Pension. Expenditure on welfare services included residential aged care, home and community care for older people, and specialist services for people with disability. Assistance provided to families to meet child care costs (for example, the Child Care Benefit and Child Care Rebate) is included under welfare services.
Major areas of government welfare expenditure, 2008–09
Fast facts
While almost three-quarters of funding for welfare services came from governments, most services were provided by non-government organisations.
Almost all of the funding for cash payments came from governments.
Australia's welfare Chapter 11
Community service organisations employ over half a million people
In June 2009 there were 571,000 people employed by organisations providing community services such as aged care, disability support, child care, and child protection services. Compared to the wider Australian workforce, community service workers were more likely to be female, employed on a part-time, casual or contract basis, and less likely to have a degree or higher qualification. However, there were some important differences between specific workforces within the community services sector.
Note: Data refer to 2009 except for aged care, which are from 2007.
Fast facts
An estimated 325,000 volunteers assisted community service organisations in 2008–09, giving an average 78.3 hours each throughout the year.
Australia's welfare Chapter 10