Child Care News
Childcare sector saturated, small businesses at risk say industry groups
ABC News - Ursula Malone - January 29, 2018A survey by Community Early Learning Australia (CELA) - an established industry body for childhood education - revealed 70 per cent of their members had reported a fall in enrolments this year compared to 2017. Education Minister Senator Simon Birmingham said increased competition...
Sydney Trains ruling could restrict strikes in service industries
Financial Review - David Marin-Guzman - January 28, 2018But Professor McCrystal said it was open for the legislation to apply to smaller populations. "The section says nothing about thousands of people. It says population or part of it. "It is not clear how [much] the FWC would be prepared to narrow that down – and some large childcare operators...
Aussie kids are slipping in literacy. Here''s how you can improve your child's reading before school starts
News.com.au - Lanai Scarr - Januaey 28, 2018AUSTRALIA is facing a "national crisis" on literacy with students showing up to kindergarten less prepared than ever before. Experts say distracted parents are not doing enough to equip their children with reading and speaking skills and are wrongly mistaking developing those skills as solely the job...
School's going back and our hip pocket will be better for it
Sydney Morning Herald - Georgina Dent - January 27, 2018The fact it coincides with that other notoriously expensive fixture in the calendar, Christmas, adds to the fun. At least, it seems we're not alone. Research by comparison site Finder shows the amount of money parents spend looking after their children over the festive period has soared...
Toddler left in hot bus for more than an hour by Gold Coast childcare worker
Brisbane Times - Toby Crockford - January 26, 2018Concerned parents have lodged a complaint with police after their one-year-old daughter was left in a vehicle outside a Gold Coast childcare centre on Tuesday. The young girl was left on the bus used by Goodstart Early Learning in Parkwood for more than an hour, on a day when temperatures...
Spearwood childcare centre fined after kids found playing on main road
WA Today - Hannah Barry - January 25, 2018A Spearwood childcare centre has been slapped with a fine after it was found two children in its care wandered onto a main road "completely unnoticed". According to an enforcement action by the State Administrate Tribunal, the incident happened at Little People's Place on September 6...
The joys and challenges of raising grandchildren
Illawarra Mercury - Stig Andersen - January 24, 2018As the school holidays draw to a close, and parents have already returned to the daily grind, you may have noticed a growing trend as you make your way around town. It's increasingly common to see children out and about with their grandparents on weekdays after Mum or Dad's annual leave...
Australian Education Union SA branch calls for two years of preschool
The Advertiser - Tim Williams - January 24, 2018PROVIDING two years of preschool, initially for the most vulnerable children and eventually for all, must be on the next state government's agenda, the teachers'' union says. The Australian Education Union's SA branch has released a position paper that is both an election wishlist...
Guardian Early Learning fronts lenders, Fort Street involved
Financial Review - Sarah Thompson, Anthony Macdonald & Joyce Moullakis - January 24, 2018Private equity-backed child care group Guardian Early Learning is seeking to make the most of favourable financing market conditions with a $250 million-odd refinancing of its existing debt. Street Talk understands Guardian Early Learning owner Partners Group has presented a handful...
Free flu vaccines for all NSW children under five years after horror flu season
Sydney Morning Herald - Kate Aubusson - January 23, 2018Free flu vaccinations will now be available for all NSW children between six months and five years old, after a horror season killed two preschoolers in 2017. The NSW government will invest $3.5 million in 2018 for the children's flu vaccines, Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced on Tuesday...
For the kids: Australia's au pair industry needs an urgent review
WA Today - Sue Pember - January 22, 2018in 2018, it's predicted that the demand for au pairs in Australia will continue to grow. Around Australia, families are looking to hire an au pair instead of juggling inflexible child care hours or relying on family for unexpected, out-of-hours situations. Over the past five years, the demand for...
Glen Waverley woman's fight against childcare centre fails, permit approved by VCAT
Herald Sun - Georgie Cowan - January 22, 2018THE state's peak planning tribunal has approved a double-storey childcare centre in Glen Waverley, despite the concerns of Monash Council and a neighbouring property owner. In a decision released last Friday, the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT) approved a permit...
Building resilience in children early helps prevent mental illness as adults
Herald Sun - Aneeka Simonis and Jayitri Smiles - January 22, 2018KIDS who are exposed to safe challenges in their early years are more likely to be mentally resilient in later life, according to new research. Mental health organisation beyondblue has found children who talk about their feelings, learn to think positively, and those who are confronted with...
Brisbane after school care places shortage leaves parents 'scrambling'
ABC News - Kirrin McKechnie - January 21, 2018As children head back to school this week, many working parents are facing a nightmare about what to do with their kids before and after school, with a massive shortage of after-school care places in Brisbane. Sophie Harrington thought she was getting in early when she put her son Hugo...
Anti-vaxxers create their own childcare centres for unvaccinated kids to avoid tough new laws
The Sunday Telegraph - Jane Hansen - January 21, 2018ANTI-VAXXERS have come up with a new scheme to avoid tough new No Jab No Play laws stopping unvaccinated children from attending day care - by starting their own centre. NSW effectively banned unvaccinated children from day care as of January 1 and directors face a fine of up to...
