Employment
Unpaid childcare
About this topic
Unpaid childcare records whether people aged 15 years and over spent time looking after a child without pay, including their own children and other people's children. It reflects the role of parents, grandparents, extended family, and community networks in caring for children.
This topic helps show how childcare is supported outside the paid care sector and can highlight the role of family-based care. It is best interpreted with household type, employment, and income, because unpaid childcare patterns are shaped by family structure, work arrangements, and access to formal childcare.
Interpretation notes
- This records unpaid childcare in the previous two weeks for people aged 15 years and over, including care for a person's own children and other children.
- It identifies whether childcare was provided, not the number of hours or whether care was regular, occasional, or shared with formal services.
Related topics
Key insight
In 2021, not providing unpaid child care was the most common response among residents aged 15 and over in Adelaide Plains, accounting for 64.2% (5,132 people). This share was lower than Regional SA (67.9%).
Section overview
Unpaid childcare
Adelaide Plains - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)
This table summarises unpaid childcare for Adelaide Plains in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Regional SA and change since 2016.
Unpaid childcare snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Adelaide Plains, with comparison markers for Regional SA.
Provided Unpaid Child Care (All)
2021 count
2,295
% of total
28.7%
Change from 2016
-
2,295
28.7%
-
Cared For Own Child Ren
2021 count
1,592
% of total
19.9%
Change from 2016
-
1,592
19.9%
-
Cared For Other Child Ren
2021 count
624
% of total
7.8%
Change from 2016
-
624
7.8%
-
Cared For Own Child Ren And Other Child Ren
2021 count
81
% of total
1.0%
Change from 2016
-
81
1.0%
-
No Unpaid Child Care Provided
2021 count
5,132
% of total
64.2%
Change from 2016
-
5,132
64.2%
-
Not Stated
2021 count
565
% of total
7.1%
Change from 2016
-
565
7.1%
-
Chart view
Unpaid childcare change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Data table
Unpaid childcare for Adelaide Plains. Unpaid childcare. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Regional SA.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | % | Regional SA% | Count | pp | |
| Provided Unpaid Child Care (All) | 2,295 | 28.7% | 24.3% | - | - | 26.2% | - | - |
| Cared For Own Child Ren | 1,592 | 19.9% | 16.2% | - | - | 17.4% | - | - |
| Cared For Other Child Ren | 624 | 7.8% | 7.2% | - | - | 7.9% | - | - |
| Cared For Own Child Ren And Other Child Ren | 81 | 1.0% | 0.8% | - | - | 0.9% | - | - |
| No Unpaid Child Care Provided | 5,132 | 64.2% | 67.9% | - | - | 64.3% | - | - |
| Not Stated | 565 | 7.1% | 7.8% | - | - | 9.5% | - | - |
| Total | 7,993 | 100.0% | 100.0% | - | - | 100.0% | - | - |