The situation of early childhood intervention in Austria is analysed on diverse systemslevel (legal situation, organisation, concrete procedure. Children with disability or atrisk of being disabled qualify for early childhood intervention as well as partly and tosome extent also children in the context of socially disadvantaged families. Based onnine provincial laws, the structure of early childhood intervention in Austria isheterogeneous. A consensus regarding key terms, the age of the child (0 3 or 6), andhome-based services exists. Future challenges focus on early identification ofvulnerable target groups by increased communication with community based networks(social worker, mental health specialists) as the number of children with unspecificdevelopmental delays or vulnerability will increase (www.strong-kids.eu).

Early Childhood Intervention; systems development, Austria