Child Care News

Indigenous disadvantage: Aboriginal children's centre at risk
The Age - Miki Perkins - July 17, 2016

But despite its glowing reputation, Bubup Wilam faces an uncertain future. Federal funding ran out two years ago, and neither the federal nor state government will stump up more. "Governments talk about investing in the early years but someone needs to do more than just talk. These kids can't...

Moelis seeks $20 million for childcare start-up Thrive Early Learning Centres
Financial Review - Sarah Thompson, Anthony Macdonald, Joyce Moullakis - July 14, 2016

It's understood Moelis Australia Asset Management is seeking to raise $20 million to invest in a new domestic childcare operator, Thrive Early Learning Centres. Thrive was set up by Carl and Raymond Elassal and is seeking the capital injection to fund construction and fit out of new sites. The pair sold…

Phil Cave's Anchorage went from Dick Smith to childcare, should we worry?
Sydney Morning Herald - Colin Kruger - July 14, 2016

The group was already trumpeting its latest deal, the acquisition of Affinity Education Group, with a portfolio of more than 160 centres, for $212 million. “Our focus will remain first and foremost to provide exceptional child care and educational services," said Anchorage's managing director, Daniel Wong…

Early child care teachers, educators learn how to identify family violence
ABC News - Jessica Longbottom - July 13, 2016

Child care workers in Victoria are being trained to help identify and prevent family violence, with experts saying educators are increasingly on the front line when it comes to tackling the abuse. More than 100 early child care professionals attended a training day in Melbourne in the first of its kind in the state...

Gastroenteritis spike prompts warning from NSW health
Sydney Morning Herald - Kate Aubusson - July 7, 2016

Nursing homes, child care centres and hospitals are all affected as reported cases soar. It is vital that if you or your family contract gastroenteritis that you stay home from work or keep a child home from school or childcare if they are sick for at least 24 hours after the last symptom of gastroenteritis...

Obese preschoolers' healthcare costs nearly 60% more than healthy-weight children
Sydney Morning Herald - Julie Power - July 6, 2016

Obese preschoolers are two to three times more likely to end up sick and in hospital than other children their age, a new Australian study says. Obese children also accounted for health costs that were 60 per cent higher than other children their age, said the study, which was published in...

NSW man caught filming kids at childcare
NEWS.com.au - July 6, 2016

A man has allegedly been caught filming young children on his phone from outside a childcare centre in Sydney's west. It's alleged the man was spotted pointing his phone over the fence of the Guildford centre while the children were playing outside on Tuesday morning. An employee at the...

Childcare costs in Queensland part of the reason Prep and Year 1 students are being suspended in growing numbers
Courier-Mail - Lauren Martyn-Jones - July 5, 2016

HIGH childcare costs are contributing to a rise in the number of Prep and Year 1 students being suspended, as cash-strapped parents enrol children in school before they are ready. Last year, Prep and Year 1 students received more than 2660 suspensions with physical misconduct and violence...

New Sydney childcare spots to meet demand
7News - July 5, 2016

Families battling to find childcare spots in inner-city Sydney will soon see some welcome relief, with four new childcare centres to open their doors by the end of the year. The City of Sydney has announced centres being built in Alexandria, Darlinghurst, Annandale and Green Square will be open...

Federal election 2016: Young mums pushed swing to Labor
The Australian - John Black - July 5, 2016

They may not have had a vote, but their mums and dads did and they thumped Scott Morrison's budget out of the ballpark on Saturday. They took aim at it because of its failure to increase the limit on childcare subsidies, as this meant many working mums in this group ran out of their commonwealth...

Why your business should care about childcare reform this election
Smart Company - Max Stainkamph - July 1, 2016

Bringing more women into the workforce could leave Australian Gross Domestic Product $25 billion dollars better off if the female workforce participation rate matched that of Canada's, which is 6% higher, the Grattan Institute found in 2012. Childcare affordability has a "significant" ...

Federal election 2016: ALP attacked for childcare 'con'
The Australian - Sarah Martin - July 1, 2016

The government has accused Labor of cutting spending on childcare from 2018, saying it is trying to mask a "secret" budget saving worth more than $4 billion over the next decade. Costings released by the opposition last Sunday show that Labor has adopted the government's $3bn increase in...

Disciplinary action launched against North Perth child care centre
WA Today - Heather McNeill - June 30, 2016

The state government has launched disciplinary action against the North Perth child care centre where two children were allegedly taken from its grounds and sexually assaulted - claiming several safety breaches. Two children, a four-year-old girl and a five-year-old boy, were allegedly lured...

'The current system is a total mess': Waleed Aly fires up on childcare policies, agrees with Coalition's proposed overhaul
News.com.au - June 30, 2016

WALEED Aly has fired up about childcare policies on The Project, slamming the current model as a "total mess" and agreeing with the Coalition's proposed overhaul. Two options are currently in place for Australian parents: The means-tested Child Care Benefit (CCB) and a non-means...

Family first! A company is offering its employees returning to work after having children an extra $100 A DAY to cover the cost of childcare
Daily Mail - Lauren Grounsell - June 30, 2016

A Sydney company is making it easier for new parents to return to work by offering them an extra $100-a-day bonus to cover childcare costs. The Works agency in Sydney will introduce the initiative next month after some of their employees said the cost of childcare was inhibiting them from...