Place guarantee in early childhood education and care (ECEC)

Children aged up to 3 years

Care for children aged up to 3 years is a statutory task of the commune (gmina, the lowest-level local government unit). However, there is no guarantee in the legislation to provide a place at a childcare institution to children aged under 3 years.

The main barrier to access is the small number of crèches in relation to the demand. Changes introduced since 2011 have aimed to provide conditions for the development of diverse care settings and to improve the quality of care for children aged up to 3 years. Recent years have seen a significant increase in the number of early childhood care institutions. 

After a temporary halt in this increase caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the situation is slowly returning to normal, although interest in crèche care is still lower than in 2020. In 2022, around 191,000 children, including around 1,800 children with a disability, attended care institutions for children aged up to 3 years. 

Compared to 2021, the number of childcare institutions increased by 11% in 2022. The demand for places in crèches has yet to be met. For example, in 2022, crèches administered by the communes represented only 26% of all crèches (a 1% increase compared with 2021); the remaining crèches (74%) were non-public institutions.  The communes also administer only 18% of kids’ clubs (an increase by 1% compared with 2021); 82% were non-public institutions.

Table 1. Number of institutions and places for children aged up to 3 years, 2011–2022

Source: Reports on the care for children aged up to 3 years, 2011–2022. The 2011 and 2012 reports do not include the number of places in non-public settings; the figures are based on the Council of Ministers report on the implementation of the Act of 4 February 2011 on the Care for Children aged up to 3 years in 2022.

At the end of 2022, childcare institutions (crèches, kids’ clubs and day-care providers) were already available in 1,354 communes, representing 55% of all communes in Poland, as compared with 1,273 communes (51%) in 2021 (data from the report of the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy). As regards rural communes, at the end of 2022, childcare institutions were available in 624 (40%) of all rural communes, compared to 558 communes (36%) at the end of 2021.

The data shows that the number of childcare institutions increases each year, as does the number of communes where childcare services are available. However, the pace of changes is still too slow. At the end of 2022, communes and non-public entities in 841 communes (around 34% of all communes in Poland) estimated that they needed around 65,200 childcare places in total, including around 55,700 places in crèches, around 4,100 in kids’ clubs, and around 5,400 at day-care provider settings. Among the communes that declared the need for new childcare places, 313 were rural communes. They reported the need for 6,300 places. In the previous year 271 communes needed 4,700 places. 

Table 2. Children aged 0–3 years enrolled in childcare settings (based on the Central Statistical Office data)

At the end of 2021, around 33.2% of children aged over 1 year were provided with childcare. Children under 1 year of age in childcare represented only 1.0% of the total population. However, it should be noted that parents themselves most often look after their children under 1 year of age and take parental leave to do so. Additionally, pursuant to the Act of 4 February 2011 on the Care for Children aged up to 3 years (ustawa o opiece nad dziećmi w wieku do 3 lat), kids’ clubs take children aged over 1 year, which has an impact on this age group as a proportion of the total population enrolled in various childcare settings.

The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy expects that the rate of participation in centre-based childcare for children aged up to 3 years will reach 33% by the end of 2030.

Children with a disability and children requiring special care represented around 0.9% of all children enrolled in crèches and kids’ clubs (an increase by 0.2% compared to 2021). 

Children aged 3–6 years

Every child is entitled to receive preschool education from the beginning of the school year in the calendar year when they reach the age of 3 years until the end of the school year in the calendar year when they reach the age of 7 years. Children aged 3–5 years have the right to participate in preschool education in a nursery school, a preschool class in the primary school or another preschool education setting. It is compulsory for 6-year-old children to complete one year of preparatory preschool education.

Nursery schools and schools have not been established in some sparsely populated rural areas owing to the small number of children. Thus, there is still a considerable unsatisfied need in these areas in terms of access to preschool education. Moreover, communes in these areas have very rarely chosen to establish preschool education units or centres close to children’s homes. As provided for in the legislation, communes should establish such alternative preschool education settings in specific demographic and geographical conditions to supplement the network of nursery schools. Like nursery schools, alternative settings can be public or non-public. The establishment and administration of alternative preschool education settings are statutory tasks of the commune. Public preschool education settings can also be administered by legal or natural persons on the basis of a permit issued by the commune concerned. In such cases, they also receive from the commune a grant for each child which is equal to at least 50% of the current expenditure per child in nursery schools administered by the commune.

To administer a non-public alternative preschool education setting, legal and natural persons should be entered onto the Register of Non-Public Schools and Educational Institutions, which is kept by the commune. If a non-public alternative preschool education setting: 

1. offers fee-free education and childcare for the number of hours that is not lower than that set by the commune council for public alternative preschool education settings administered by the commune; 
2. charges fees for preschool education that are not higher than those set by the commune council; 
3. applies the rules for admission applicable to public alternative preschool education settings established in the Law on School Education (ustawa Prawo oświatowe). 

it receives from the commune budget a grant for each child that is equal to 50% of the grant for nursery schools. The grant for a pupil with a disability may not be lower than the amount set in the school education part of the general subsidy for the commune for a pupil with a disability attending an alternative preschool education setting. 

If a non-public alternative preschool education setting does not meet the conditions listed above, the grant awarded is equal to 40% of the current expenditure per child incurred by a public nursery school in a given commune. 

Like nursery schools, alternative settings implement the national core curriculum for preschool education, and activities / classes with children are run by teachers who have qualifications required for work in a nursery school. Like in the case of other preschool education institutions, the Head of the Regional Education Authorities (kurator oświaty) exercises pedagogical supervision over alternative preschool education settings.

The measures taken by the Ministry of National Education to tackle the shortage of ECEC places include:

• development of the network of preschool education institutions, and availability of various preschool education settings for preschool-age children;

• provision of counselling and guidance (so-called psychological and pedagogical support) to support the development and education of children;

• State-budget financial support for local government units to satisfy preschool education needs at a faster pace.

The rates of participation in preschool education for children aged 3 to 5 years in the school years 2019/2020-2023/2024 were as follows:

Table 3. Preschool education participation rates for children aged 3 to 5 years (based on the data of the Central Statistical Office and the Ministry of National Education)

In the school year 2023/2024, the preschool education participation rate for children aged 3-5 years was 94.2%, which indicates an increase of 4.0% compared with 2022/2023.

6-year-olds take the compulsory preparatory preschool education year or may start full-time compulsory education in the first grade of the primary school, as parents are free to choose a preferred education path for their 6-year-old children (preschool education or school education).

In 2023, 1,511,600 children participated in preschool education (a decline by 21,800 compared with 2022). Since the preschool education participation rate for children aged 3-5 years is increasing, the decline results primarily from the downward demographic trend (each year, the number of newborn children drops on average by 20,000). 

Preschool education institutions are attended by a much larger proportion of children aged 3-5 years in urban areas (102.5%) than in rural areas (84.0%). The relatively low participation rate in rural areas results, in particular, from the fact that some children living in rural areas attend preschool education settings in cities (parents commute for work to the city where their children participate in preschool education). Furthermore, children of Ukrainian refugees more often attend preschool education institutions in cities (29,700 children in total). 

Affordability

Children aged up to 3 years

Parents are required to cover the costs of their children’s attendance at, and meals provided in a crèche, a kids’ club or a day-care provider setting (home-based provision). The competent local government body (the council of the commune (gmina), the council of the district (powiat) or the council of the regional assembly (sejmik wojewódzki) sets a fee for the stay and the maximum amount to be charged for meals. The competent body may also lay down conditions for full or partial fee waivers. Fees in crèches and kids’ clubs administered by entities other than local government units are set by the bodies administering such institutions.

A fee for attending a crèche, kids’ club or day-care provider setting may be paid on a monthly or hourly basis.

The statutes of a crèche or kids’ club establish rules for setting fees for attendance and meals during a child’s absence.

Monthly attendance fees in 2022 were, in most cases, within the following range (the average exchange rate used in the sections on crèches is 1 euro = 4.6899 PLN):

• crèches: from PLN 350.01 to 600 (EUR 74.63 to 127.93) at 21% of crèches; from PLN 600.01 to 850 (EUR 127.93 to 181.24) at 19%; and from PLN 1,000.01 to 1,250 (EUR 213.23 to 266.53) at 15%; 

• kids’ clubs: from PLN 1 000.01 to 1,250 (EUR 213.23 to 266.53) at 20% of kids’ clubs; from PLN 350.01 to 600 (EUR 74.63 to 127.92) at 18%; from PLN 600.01 to 850 (EUR 127.93 to 181.24) at 19%; 

• day-care providers: from PLN 1 250.01 to 1,500 (EUR 266.53 to 319.84) at 22% of day-care provider settings; from PLN 1 000.01 to 1,250 (EUR 213.23 to 266.53) at 21%; and above PLN 1,500 (above EUR 319.84) at 19%. 

(Based on the Council of Ministers report on the implementation of the Act of 4 February 2011 on the Care for Children aged up to 3 years in 2022) (text in Polish).

Parents usually paid a daily fee for meals. Regardless of the type of childcare setting, fees ranged in most cases from PLN 7.51 to 10 (EUR 1.60 to 2.13) and above PLN 10. The overwhelming majority of childcare institutions charged fees above PLN 10 per day. Thus, in most cases, parents paid from PLN 157.71 to 210 (EUR 33.63 to 44.78) and more than PLN 210 per month (for a child who attends an institution 21 working days per month).

Fees for crèches, kids’ clubs and day-care provider settings vary depending on the sector to which entities establishing childcare institutions belong. Fees charged to parents by public-sector entities are lower than those in the private sector as communes (lowest-level local government units) use their own funds to cover a large part of the running costs of places at childcare institutions.

In 2022, local government units allocated PLN 2,143,760,000 (over MEUR 457.1) for places for children aged up to 3 years at public institutions (including capital spending). The corresponding amount in the previous year was 2,137,700,000 (over MEUR 455.8).

Additionally, PLN 143.14 million (EUR 30.5) were allocated for this purpose from the EU funds. 

Pursuant to the amended Act on the Care for Children aged up to 3 years (ustawa o opiece nad dziećmi w wieku do 3 lat), financial support, amounting to PLN 400 (EUR 85.12) per month, has been provided since 1 April 2022 to reduce fees for the stay of a child at a crèche, kids’ club or day-care provider setting.

Such financial support is available for a child who attends a crèche, kids’ club or day-care provider setting if they have not received a so-called family care capital grant (rodzinny kapitał opiekuńczy). Family care capital grants aim to cover partially the expenses of raising a child, including caring for and meeting the child’s living needs.

Children are entitled to a family care capital grant from the first day of the month when they reach the age of 12 months till the last day of the month preceding the month when they reach the age of 36 months. The grant amounts to PLN 500 (EUR 106.61) or PLN 1,000 (EUR 213.22) per month and per child in the family.

The total amount of the grant to be paid may not exceed PLN 12,000 (EUR 2,558.69) per child.

Children aged 3–6 years

For children aged 3 years and over, free-of-charge education and care is provided for at least 5 hours a day. Each commune decides the duration of fee-free education and care (not shorter than 5 hours per day). Pursuant to the Act of 27 October 2017 on the Financing of School Education Tasks (ustawa z dnia 27 października 2017 o finansowaniu zadań oświatowych), the maximum amount of the fee that communes could charge to parents, as set on 1 September 2023, was PLN 1.30 (EUR 0.30, according to the exchange rate 1 euro = 4.348 PLN) for each additional hour of preschool education (beyond the minimum of 5 fee-free hours). The commune can also lay down conditions for full or partial fee waiver. The maximum fee that can be charged since 1 September 2024 is PLN 1.44 (EUR 0.33) For 6-year-olds, preschool education is free of charge regardless of the duration of stay (parents pay for meals only).

In the case of 5-year- and 6-year-olds, if the distance between the child’s home and the school or nursery school exceeds 3 km, the commune is required to provide free transport to a public nursery school, public alternative preschool education setting or public school with a preschool class, and free care during transport, or to reimburse the costs of public transport.

Public nursery schools can organise various additional classes in, for example, rhythmic gymnastics or an additional foreign language, but may not charge related additional fees (such classes can be taught only as part of the regular fees that did not exceed PLN 1.30, and may not exceed PLN 1.44 since September 2024.