Austria’s leading social organisations are calling for greater attention to inclusion and social work in early childhood education, as part of the ongoing reform of nursery schools. On the occasion of World Early Childhood Education Day and International Education Day on 24 January, Caritas and the Protestant Diakonie warn that structural disadvantages “take root in early childhood, and therefore inclusion, social support and early intervention must be addressed together to ensure educational equity from the very beginning”. Caritas focuses on early childhood education as a means to achieve greater equality of opportunity: its president, Nora Tödtling-Musenbichler, calls for more efforts to combat the “legacy” of educational disadvantage. “Social work in nursery schools is a powerful tool in this regard”, she said today. An early approach helps to “compensate for disadvantages and create better opportunities for children from the start”. As for social assistance in nurseries, Caritas informs that pilot projects are underway in compensate for disadvantages, involving a total of 52 childcare facilities.