Child Care News

Australian Child Care Alliance warning over subsidy activity test
The West Australian - Phoebe Wearne - April 11, 2018

The Federal Government's childcare overhaul could wreak "chaos" on family budgets, with many parents facing inconsistent payments week to week because of the new activity test, a peak industry body has warned. About 1.2 million families with children in care are being urged...

Materials that make heat worse for our kids demand a rethink by designers
The Conversation - Abby Mellick Lopes , Matthew Blick & Sebastian Pfautsch - April 11, 2018

Our preliminary study over the record-breaking summer of 2017-8 assessed the thermal characteristics of outdoor play spaces in three childcare centres in Western Sydney. We discovered that summer temperatures can vary dramatically, depending on the materials and...

Boys tend to get marked harder by teachers
The Courier Mail - Jackie Sinnerton - April 11, 2018

Playful males in early learning years are often considered rebellious or disruptive by childcare staff and teachers, but the girls are not viewed in the same way - setting boys up for low self-esteem as they head into formal schooling years. The report has been published...

Police investigate allegation of after-school care abuse
Courier Mail - Emma Schafer - April 10, 2018

Police are investigating a claim of child abuse involving a four-year-old in after-school care at an Ipswich school. An allegation against a childcare worker employed by Camp Australia, which is currently contracted by 10 government schools across Ipswich, has been reported...

Daycare rorting: where there's easy funding, there's a feeding frenzy
The Australian - Rick Morton - April 10, 2018

The more observant might have been able to predict what would happen when the childcare rebate was unleashed on the then well-respected family day care sector. More than $2bn was siphoned off by new providers who discovered the low-overhead, low-document nirvana...

NDIS service linked to daycare rorting
The Australian - Rick Morton - April 10, 2018

A family daycare operator who had her taxpayer subsidies terminated for producing false statements and documents is also the director of a company that has at least four clients under the $22 billion National Disability ­Insurance Scheme. The case of Anizia Inyasio...

Call to parents to update childcare detail
9News.com.au - April 10, 2018

Do you use childcare? Parents with children now in care will not automatically be rolled into the new fee subsidy system starting in July, but the government hopes its new ad campaign will make sure they realise this in time. The Turnbull government is combining existing subsidies for...

$5.4 million in taxpayer funds claimed in alleged childcare fraud
Sydney Morning Herald - Patrick Begley - April 8, 2018

March 13 looked like a red letter day for iGrow Family Day Care as it signed 1775 children onto its books. Listing its head office as a small white weatherboard home in Sydney's west, iGrow recorded the supposed torrent of new bookings in July - and then backdated each entry...

New childcare rebate needs new parent info
SBS News - April 8, 2018

Parents who want to keep their childcare costs as low as possible have three months to fill in an online form if they want to keep receiving government subsidies on their fees. The new system of taxpayer subsidies starts from July 2 but the 1.2 million families who are now receiving...

SA Ombudsman defends decision to scrap family day carer from register following raft of complaints
The Advertiser - Matt Smith - April 7, 2018

A FAMILY daycare worker who was accused of telling a boy in her care to "grow some balls" has been removed from the State Government-approved carer register – but is still able to care for children. The unnamed woman, who operated a family daycare service from her home...

New interactive map shows the best childcare services in South Australia
The Advertiser - Matt Smith - April 7, 2018

ONE in 10 childcare providers in South Australia is yet to reach industry best-practice standards, despite big improvements across the sector in the past year. New figures from the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority show 89 per cent of SA's approved childcare providers...

Some directors of Blue Sky Alternative Investments have been buying up stock with prices hitting three-year lows
The Courier Mail - Liam Walsh - April 6, 2018

But some directors of Blue Sky Alternative Investments this week have also been buying up stock with prices hitting three-year lows. The fund manager has been under fire for its level of disclosures from California-based short-seller Glaucus – which makes money from share prices...

G8 Affinity takeover charges: Mary-Anne Greaves, David Burke charged following ASIC probe
The Courier Mail - Liam Walsh - April 6, 2018

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has been probing Gold Coast childcare giant G8's failed attempt to buy rival Affinity Education in early July 2015. The Takeovers Panel that year ruled G8's bid involved unacceptable circumstances and breaches of disclosure...

Two thirds of young children do not do enough physical activity
The University of Western Australia - April 6, 2018

The largest global study to examine physical activity in children aged between two and five years old has found 66 per cent of children are not getting the nationally recommended three hours of daily physical activity needed for their growth and development. The PLAYCE...

Program Focused on Aboriginal Culture Welcomes in Clarence and Richmond Valley Childcare Centres
Heartland Magazine - April 6, 2018

Several childcare services in the Clarence and Richmond valleys will have access to the appropriate resources to embed Aboriginal culture into everyday activities and engage with the local Aboriginal community, Clarence Nationals MP has announced. Mr Gulaptis said the NSW...