Child Care News
Affordable childcare is a no brainer for unlocking the workforce
Women's Agenda - Sue Morphet - May 19, 2022Higher full-time female workforce participation is an economic necessity, writes Sue Morphet, past president of Chief Executive Women. But it won’t happen without policies enabling more affordable and accessible early childhood education. Australian women are the...
No fees and more support: Exactly where the major parties stand on childcare.
MamaMia - Brielle Burns - May 18, 2022With the cost-of-living rising, childcare remains a major issue affecting Aussie families right now. Not only are parents reaching further into their pockets than ever before, but childcare costs are getting in the way of women's participation in the workforce...
Out of school hours care providers fear getting squeezed in trial
The Age - Daniella White - May 18, 2022Before and after school care providers fear the NSW government’s trial of extended school hours will undermine their commercial viability, warning it will create uncertainty in an already strained industry. The sector wants assurances that existing services won’t be financially...
Family scorecard puts Labor ahead on childcare, but both major parties behind on parental leave
The Sydney Morning Herald - Jordan Baker - May 17, 2022Labor’s election promises do more to help families balance work and care but neither party has done enough to help parents under pressure, particularly when it comes to paid parental leave, a review of the two major parties’ policies by more than 30 academics has found...
Latest Burgess Rawson auction campaign sees robust ECEC centre demand
The Sector - Jason Roberts - May 17, 2022Early childhood education and care (ECEC) real estate and business broker Burgess Rawson has completed its May auction campaign in which six ECEC centres were sold for a combined total of $16.6 million. The centres, located across New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria...
ECEC quality ratings edge higher despite slowdown in A&R visits and spike in waivers
The Sector - Jason Roberts - May 17, 2022The percentage of early childhood education and care (ECEC) services rated as meeting or exceeding the National Quality Standard (NQS) has edged to a new record despite a significant reduction in Regulatory Authority (RA) quality focused visits and a jump in staffing waivers...
RAT rule change for Vic ECEC services, and updates on other programs and services
The Sector - Freya Lucas - May 16, 2022Lisa Gandolfo, the Assistant Deputy Secretary of Early Childhood Education for the Victorian Department of Education and Training, has issued an update for early childhood education and care (ECEC) services. Ms Gandolfo’s update shared important information about the...
Free kindergarten available for Victorian families
Northern Star Weekly - May 15, 2022Victorian families, such as those in Hume and Whittlesea, will have access to more free kindergarten education next year thanks to a $131 million investment from the Victorian government. Families will have access to between five and fifteen hours of funded three-year-old...
‘Postcode lottery’: The suburbs where families are living in ‘childcare deserts’
The Daily Telegraph - Alexandra Smith - May 14, 2022Childcare is shaping to be a key element of next month’s NSW budget as new figures show women in affluent areas of Sydney have significantly more access to care than those in poorer suburbs. The state government’s proposed intervention into childcare, which is currently...
If governments were really concerned about tax and the cost of living they would cut the cost of childcare
The Conversation - Miranda Stewart, Angela Jackson and Leonora Risse - May 13, 2022Amid the talk about tax changes set to cut the middle-income rate to 30%, a shortage of workers and incomes not keeping up with the cost of living, one common threat shines through. It’s the cost of childcare, which, according to new calculations, imposes an effective tax...
The Hills Shire: List of new childcare centres proposed for north west Sydney
The Daily Telegraph - Odessa Blain - May 13, 2022The rapid pace of residential development in north west Sydney has been met with calls from residents to increase the number childcare centres. Current trends indicate there will be 107,000 new Hills residents in the next 14 years. This is staggering population growth...
NSW Health warns of flu risk in ECEC where infants may never have been exposed
The Sector - Freya Lucas - May 13, 2022NSW Health has issued a specific warning to early childhood education and care (ECEC) services as the cooler weather rolls in, noting that influenza and COVID-19 present “a double threat” to the smooth operation of schools and early childhood services over the winter months. Due to low exposure to flu over the past two years with international and state borders closed, there is a...
Childcare policies 'miss the mark' as nine million Australians struggle to access care, research shows
ABC News - Zara Margolis and Larissa Waterson - May 13, 2022Educator Lyndal Mayer says she is fed up with Australia's major political parties "constantly missing the mark" when it comes to the country's childcare crisis. Ms Mayer, who is chief executive of Queensland Lutheran Early Childhood Services, said she had watched...
Wage support for ECEC services which engage apprentices and trainees
The Sector - Freya Lucas - May 13, 2022Early childhood education and care (ECEC) services who engage an apprentice or trainee between 5 October 2020 and 30 June 2022 may be eligible for a subsidy of 50 per cent of gross wages (up to $7,000 per quarter) for 12 months, with the program closing to...
Parents turned away as childcare centres don’t have enough staff
The Courier Mail - Jackie Sinnerton - May 12, 2022Queensland’s childcare industry is being crippled by worker shortages with many centres forced to turn parents away due to regulatory child and staff ratios. The number of job vacancies in the early learning sector are at record highs across the country with one in 10...
