In Europe, the introduction of the Council Recommendation establishing a European
Child Guarantee has helped put concerns relating to childhood disadvantages higher
up on the policy agenda. Structured around ensuring effective access to a series of
key child services, the ultimate goal of the European Child Guarantee is to promote
opportunities for children from disadvantaged backgrounds and help stop the transmission
of poverty and social exclusion across generations. But as European countries move
forward with their plans for implementation, it is important to understand what child
disadvantage looks like, as well as the potential lifelong effects it can have on
children’s lives. This paper explores childhood socio-economic disadvantage in Austria
from a comparative perspective. It sketches the breadth and depth of child poverty
and material deprivation in Austria today, and discusses the potential longer-run
economic costs of childhood disadvantage once disadvantaged children reach adulthood,
based on findings from Clarke et al. (2022). It also discusses key policy challenges
Austria will need to consider to tackle childhood socio-economic disadvantage.
Published on November 23, 2023
In series:OECD Papers on Well-being and Inequalitiesview more titles