Child Care News
Wollongong child care provider cops big, fat fine for forgotten boy
Illawarra Mercury - Angela Thompson - March 8, 2018Illawarra child care provider Big Fat Smile has been slapped with a $24,000 fine, plus costs, after a sleeping three-year-old boy was left undiscovered at a Wollongong centre for almost an hour after closing time. The fine is the second serious sum to be paid out by the provider for supervision...
Early intervention key to beating poverty trap
Griffith University - Deborah Marshall - March 8, 2018"Secondly, get the kids into early childhood education at age three, not four. Get them into an enriched kindergarten or pre-school environment, not just child care. Thirdly, keep kids at school. One of the biggest risk factors in youth justice is the lack of attachment to school.” Professor Homel...
Experts say three-year-old kinder is 'vital' for Australia's future
Herald Sun - Ashley Argoon - March 7, 2018ACCESS to three-year-old kindergarten for all Australian pre-school children is "vital" for the future of the nation, according to experts. As the State and Federal governments are locked in furious argument over annual funding rollovers for four-year-old kinder, experts have claimed...
Ballarat charity set to aid 2000 Victorian Kindergartens
The Courier - Ben Hopkins - March 7, 2018In a milestone agreement, the RACV has granted the Ballarat-based KIDS Foundation funding to extend the reach of their internationally recognised 'See More Safety and Education Program' to more than 2000 Victorian kindergartens and 100,000 Victorian homes over the next week...
Canberra Girls Grammar phasing out boys - but co-ed childcare to expand
The Canberra Times - Sherryn Groch - March 7, 2018Three-year-old boys in daycare at Canberra Girls Grammar will not be offered a place in prep, under a new move to phase out co-educational learning in the junior school by 2020. Principal Anne Coutts said the decision "strengthened the school's commitment" to single-sex education, after all-boys...
Three Perth childcare workers stripped of accreditation after assault on autistic child
Joondalup Times - March 7, 2018THREE Perth women have had their child care supervisor accreditation cancelled, and one faced a criminal charge, after a six-year-old autistic child was smacked and had soap put in their mouth. The incident happened on December 14 last year. Kathleen Anne Burton was charged...
Australia's new $175m SAP child care subsidy system counts down to go-live
IT News - Matt Johnston - March 7, 2018But timelines worry software providers. The federal Department of Education is in the final stages of user acceptance testing for a new SAP-based system that will administer child care subsidies, as it stares down a firm July deadline for go-live. The federal government allocated $175.3...
Canaccord, Wilsons kick off Think Education raising
Financial Review - Sarah Thompson, Anthony Macdonald & Joyce Moullakis - March 7, 2018Listed childcare centre owner Think Childcare is in front of fund managers seeking support for the acquisition of four new centres and a $10 million equity raising. Stockbrokers Wilsons and Canaccord Genuity launched the $10 million institutional placement on Wednesday morning...
How parents are saving $450 a week
Fraser Coast Chronicle - Charis Chang - March 7, 2018AIMEE Mulqueen's commute has increased dramatically from about 10 minutes to almost an hour but she says it's worth it to save about $350 a week in childcare. The Brisbane mother returned to full-time work this month after giving birth to her second child five months ago...
Toilet training meets foreign linguistics in Far North preschools
The Cairns Post - Chris Calcino - March 6, 2018KINDERGARTENERS still mastering their wee wees and poo poos are now learning about oui oui and sacré blue. Second languages are being taught to about 800 preschoolers across 24 Far North preschools as part of the Federal Government's $15.7 million Early Learning Languages...
It may not be the smartest to over-invest in our kids' education
The Australian - Judith Sloan - March 6, 2018And here are two findings from the research that are often ignored by the ECEC rent-seeking brigade: first, the time young children spend with their parents is strongly positively correlated with success at school and in their subsequent lives; second, long hours in childcare...
Kelly O'Dwyer to issue a major slap down to business on treatment of women
Daily Telegraph - Lanai Scarr - March 6, 2018And Ms O'Dwyer will today commit to reporting on female representation every six months until the government meets its 50 per cent target. "Given the current levels of representation on ASX 200 boards is 18.5 percentage points less that the Government sector the private sector...
Daycare centre first in Australia to launch bullying program
The Daily Examiner - Ebony Stansfield - March 6, 2018A CLARENCE Valley day care is the first Family Day Care in Australia to teach children about bullying before they begin school. Clarence Family Day Care officially launched the Kindness On Purpose program yesterday after recognising one in four students will be bullied at school...
Low socio-economic children consume more junk food and sugar Deakin University study finds
Geelong Advertiser - Tamara McDonald - March 5, 2018"Our conversations with parents so far tell us that they want support in terms of skills and education, decreased availability of sweet drinks in the settings they frequent (such as supermarkets) and bans on marketing targeted towards children. That also includes supporting policies that...
SA Labor promises childcare boost
SBS News - March 5, 2018SA Labor has promised $37.5 million to build 10 additional early learning childcare centres across Adelaide. South Australian families will have greater access to children's healthcare, early education, and family support programs under a $37.5 million deal if Labor is returned at the...
