Vorarlberg records Austria’s fewest child welfare investigations

Vorarlberg recorded Austria’s lowest rate of child welfare investigations in 2025, according to a report cited by ORF. The province opened 1,664 investigations into possible risks to children, an increase of 0.8 percent from the previous year and 3 percent of the national total.

Across Austria, child and youth welfare services opened 54,901 investigations last year. That was a 3.3 percent increase and almost 50 percent more than in 2020.

A child welfare investigation is an official procedure in which specialists assess whether a child or young person is safe and well or whether their welfare is at risk.

Reliance on public vigilance

It is unclear whether children in Vorarlberg are better protected or whether fewer problems are being reported, Children’s and Youth Ombudsman Christian Netzer told ORF Vorarlberg.

Whether a suspicion reaches child and youth welfare services depends on people around a child, such as neighbours, teachers and paediatricians, noticing warning signs and passing on the information, Netzer said. The authorities can act only after receiving such a report.

The child protection service of the Institute for Social Services, known as ifs, said it could not comment reliably on the statistics because it does not conduct welfare investigations. Its focus is on supporting children and young people regardless of how they are referred. The service provides advice and assistance to help them stabilise in difficult situations, and seeks to raise public awareness through lectures, workshops and anonymous counselling.

When child welfare is at risk

Under the law, child welfare is considered at risk when children are abused or neglected. Examples include physical violence such as hitting and burning, psychological violence through insults or the withdrawal of affection, and sexual violence.

Neglect caused by inadequate care or supervision, as well as violence within the family, also falls into this category. The decisive factor is whether a child’s development and safety are seriously and persistently threatened, rather than affected by a single bad situation.

Anyone can report a concern, including anonymously, to the child and youth welfare service at the district authority responsible for the child’s place of residence, either online or by telephone. Certain professional groups, including educators, doctors and psychotherapists, are legally required to report well-founded suspicions.

Advice for uncertain cases is available from the ifs child protection service and the Children’s and Youth Ombudsman’s Office.

Province focuses on prevention

Vorarlberg’s child and youth welfare service said it follows clear guidelines for handling information received by the authority. A standardised procedure ensures that every indication of possible child welfare risks is examined thoroughly. Where there is a concrete suspicion, a formal investigation is opened.

The province said prevention was a central part of its child welfare policy. Particular attention is given to preventing early childhood attachment disorders through services including comprehensive parental counselling and Marte Meo counselling.

According to the province, Vorarlberg’s Early Help programme is a best-practice model used throughout Austria and permanently funded through a 15a agreement.