Australia
Unpaid childcare
In Australia 5,259,412 people (27.6% of people aged 15+) provided unpaid care to children in 2016. Of these, 1,483,438 people were caring for children other than their own.
The role of unpaid childcare in Australia is determined by many different factors. For example areas with high levels of unpaid child care may have a dominance of single income families with one significant earner, or there could be a lack of provision of paid child care in the area. The level to which people care for others children can also indicate the role of extended family (eg. grandparents caring for grandchildren, family day care).
The role of unpaid child care is a complex one so this topic should be viewed in conjunction with several others, including Household Type, Employment, Household Income and Educational Attendance.
Derived from the Census question:
'In the last two weeks did the person spend time looking after a child, without pay?', which specifically asks respondents to differentiate between caring for their own children and caring for others children.
Persons aged 15 years and over.
| Unpaid childcare | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence) | 2016 | 2011 | Change | |||||
| Unpaid child care | Number | % | Australian Capital Territory % | Number | % | Australian Capital Territory % | 2011 to 2016 | |
| Provided unpaid child care (all) | 5,259,412 | 27.6 | 28.9 | 4,827,395 | 27.8 | 28.3 | +432,017 | 12001 |
| Cared for own child/ren | 3,775,974 | 19.8 | 20.9 | 3,426,108 | 19.7 | 19.9 | +349,866 | 12002 |
| Cared for other child/ren | 1,338,486 | 7.0 | 7.2 | 1,237,950 | 7.1 | 7.3 | +100,536 | 12003 |
| Cared for own child/ren and other child/ren | 144,952 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 163,337 | 0.9 | 1.1 | -18,385 | 12004 |
| No unpaid child care provided | 12,194,397 | 64.1 | 64.4 | 11,181,410 | 64.4 | 66.0 | +1,012,987 | 12005 |
| Not stated | 1,583,491 | 8.3 | 6.7 | 1,352,351 | 7.8 | 5.7 | +231,140 | 12006 |
| Total persons aged 15+ | 19,037,300 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 17,361,156 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +1,676,144 | |
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing (opens a new window) 2011 and 2016. Compiled and presented by .id (opens a new window)(informed decisions).
Compiled and presented in profile.id by .id (informed decisions).
Compiled and presented in profile.id by .id (informed decisions).
Dominant groups
Analysis of the unpaid child care provided by the population in Australia in 2016 compared to Australian Capital Territory shows that there was a lower proportion of people who provided unpaid child care either to their own or to other children. Overall, 27.6% of the population provided unpaid child care, compared with 28.9% for Australian Capital Territory.
The major difference between the share of the population providing unpaid child care in Australia and Australian Capital Territory was:
- A smaller percentage who provided unpaid childcare for own child/ren (19.8% compared to 20.9%)
Emerging groups
The number of people who provided unpaid child care for their own and/or other people's children in Australia increased by 432,017 between 2011 and 2016.
The largest changes in the number of people performing unpaid child care in Australia, between 2011 and 2016 were those who:
- Provided no unpaid child care (+1,012,987 persons)
- Cared for their own child/ren (+349,866 persons)
- Cared for other child/ren (+100,536 persons)
- Cared for their own child/ren and other child/ren (-18,385 persons)