Reducing developmental risks by additional staff hours: Effects of a government program to support day care centers with socially deprived children

To ameliorate effects of social inequalities on children's development the German federal state law for child day care and preschools provides additional funds for day care centers in socioeconomically deprived regions in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The goal of these funds is to support three to six year old children with developmental risks. Day care centers can choose to use these funds for the employment of additional staff. Our study aims to investigate whether the number of weekly working hours provided by this additional staff is associated with a reduction of developmental risks in 4 competence areas over one year. A multilevel linear model (n = 83 day care centers) reveals that additional working hours decrease the prevalence of children with developmental risks. These results provide evidence for a beneficial effect of the federal state law.