Child Care News
Record deflation in consumer prices driven by free childcare, while lockdown essentials jump
ABC News - Michael Janda and Phillip Lasker - July 30, 2020Australia has recorded its biggest-ever quarterly fall in consumer prices, which dropped 1.9 per cent in the June quarter amid the coronavirus pandemic. But it was mainly working parents with young children who received the biggest benefits, with a 95 per cent reduction in childcare...
Innovative Dapto preschool St Luke's to have Labradoodle pup Harvey trained as a mental health therapy dog for staff and children
Illawarra Mercury - Greg Ellis - July 29, 2020Harvey is being trained as a mental health therapy dog after St Luke's submitted an innovative idea to the State Insurance Regulatory Authority (SIRA) when it launched a Recovery Boost initiative as part its Recover at Work program to inspire solutions to improving mental...
Hated Brisbane childcare project to go ahead after two-year fight
The Courier Mail - Brendan O’Malley - July 29, 2020A controversial unit and childcare project on busy Richmond Rd in Morningside will go ahead after an agreement was struck between Council and the developer. The proposal was rejected by Brisbane City Council in October, 2018, leading Cr Kara Cook to hail the decision...
Deflation arrives for first time in 22 years
Financial Review - Matthew Cranston - July 29, 2020Prices on childcare, rents and lower fuel costs all contributed to a 1.9 per cent fall in the June quarter headline inflation - the biggest quarterly fall since the Australian Bureau of Statistics started keeping records in 1948. Child care costs plunged 95 per cent in the quarter...
Small business ombudsman calls for new and simpler award for employee pay and conditions
The Guardian - Paul Karp - July 29, 2020The pay and conditions of small business employees should be set by a new and simpler award with a “permaflexi” classification for casual staff to receive benefits such as sick pay, according to the small and family business ombudsman. Kate Carnell will make the proposal...
Brendon McAssey put childcare millions to luxurious use
Financial Review - July 28, 2020Bain Capital is fighting Only About Children founder and minority owner Brendan McAssey in the NSW Supreme Court. He claims he's owed $38 million in bonuses for having met performance hurdles. The Mike Murphy-headed private equity firm, go figure, disagrees...
Greater Shepparton Council places children front and centre in consultation plans
The Sector - Freya Lucas - July 28, 2020The Greater Shepparton City Council has endorsed the Draft Greater Shepparton Best Start Early Years Plan 2020-2025 and released it for public exhibition until 19 August. The six-year plan aims to improve the learning, health and wellbeing outcomes for children aged ...
VCAT backs Geelong council decision to approve Leopold child care centre
Geelong Advertiser - Natalee Kerr - July 28, 2020A childcare centre proposed for Leopold is set to go ahead following a review at the state’s planning tribunal. The Victorian Civil Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) granted a permit for the project at 219 Melaluka Road last week after a two-day hearing this month. The Victorian ...
Bendigo childcare educators encouraged to wear face masks at work amid coronavirus restrictions
Bendigo Advertiser - Tara Cosoleto - July 27, 2020Educators at some Bendigo childcare centres are being encouraged to wear face masks while at work. Face masks are not compulsory in regions outside metropolitan Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire. But Goodstart Early Learning, which operates five centres in Greater Bendigo...
Inflation set for worst quarter on record
Australian Financial Review - William McInnes - July 27, 2020Economists are bracing for the worst quarter of inflation on record and facing domestic inflation expectations that won't return the economy to the Reserve Bank's target band for a decade if financial markets are right... a combination of lower fuel prices and free childcare was likely...
NSW Police investigate alleged sexual assault of two-year-old girl at Lollipop's Playland in Penrith
ABC News - Lydia Feng - July 27, 2020Police are investigating the alleged sexual assault of a toddler at a play centre in Sydney's west after she went missing inside the venue and was later discovered with injuries. Officers were called to the Lollipop's Playland and Cafe in Penrith just after midday yesterday after the ...
YWCA Canberra job skills program will support those wanting to work in ECEC
The Sector - Freya Lucas - July 27, 2020YWCA Canberra has launched a new program this morning which aims to train people to work in early childhood education and care (ECEC) roles. As well as providing vocational training, participants will be supported to address any social, health, housing or wellbeing barriers...
Six out of 10 NT childcare centres ask for help
Katherine Times - Chris McLennan - July 27, 2020Nearly 90 childcare operators sought financial assistance from the NT Government when one-off grants of up to $10,000 were offered to help them through COVID-19. There are 149 early childhood education and care services in the Territory. The NT Early Childhood Education and Care...
Supporting Our Childcare Sector: Nearly 90 Operators Apply for $10,000 Assistance Grants
Mirage News - July 27, 2020Nearly 90 childcare operators sought financial assistance from the Territory Labor Government when one-off grants of up to $10,000 were offered to help them through COVID-19. The NT Early Childhood Education and Care COVID-19 Special Assistance Grant was available from...
Families withdraw from childcare as fees resume
The Guardian - Caitlin Fitzsimmons - July 26, 2020Families are pulling their children out of childcare since the reintroduction of fees this month, with a number of operators reporting significant falls in enrolment. The hit to household income and working hours mean childcare bookings are down both compared with earlier in the pandemic...
