Child Care News
Coronavirus vaccines mandated for Victorian school and childcare staff
SBS News - September 22, 2021Teachers and childcare workers in Victoria will have to get at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose before being allowed to return to work. Education Minister James Merlino on Wednesday announced all staff at schools and childcare services will need to have...
How addressing our young kids’ COVID-19 learning loss is a matter of child’s play
The Sector - Hetty Roessingh - September 22, 2021A well-rounded, balanced approach to early childhood education through play involves both child-led and adult-led play and allows for both unstructured and structured activity. It targets all five domains of child development that teachers need to assess and monitor...
Childcare assets increasingly desired by larger funds
The Market Herald - Rhys Prka - September 21, 2021The importance of childcare has been demonstrated by the fact that centres have remained open throughout the COVID-19-induced lockdowns and related restrictions. The Federal Government gives about $9 billion per year through the Child Care Subsidy...
Childcare investing for stable income returns
Livewire - Shane Wakelin - September 21, 2021In 2020, the Australian Government offered financial assistance of more than $1.5bn to all Childcare operators with the Early Childhood Education and Care Relief Package which provided free childcare for families. Despite the increase in funding to the sector in 2020...
Compulsory vaccination edict for Victorian teachers, childcare workers expected
Herald Sun - Susie O'Brien and Mitch Clarke - September 21, 2021Teachers and early childhood educators will have to have the Covid jab to keep working, with authorities setting a big target before the end of the year. Teachers and early-childhood educators will be subject to mandatory vaccinations, with key sector stakeholders expecting...
Australian children at risk of being left behind on early learning
Mirage News - September 20, 2021Children who have the opportunity to attend preschool are more likely to start school ready to learn, more likely to finish school ready for life and more likely to participate in paid employment. They’re healthier and have higher levels of social participation. The AEU calls on all governments...
How Melbourne schools will stage staggered return
Herald Sun - Suzan Delibasic and Susie O'Brien - September 20, 2021Fully vaccinated parents can send their children to childcare from October 26, but others will have to wait until November 5, according to the road map announced by the Premier on Sunday. The milestone 80 per cent double-dose vaccination, which is expected to...
The heavy mental load of decision-making when it comes to kids and COVID
ABC News - Brittany McGill - September 19, 2021But, as we're so often told, the Delta variant is a "game-changer". We also know that 211 childcare facilities around the country are currently closed, more than 150 of those in NSW, and the vast majority because of COVID transmission. It seems that no amount of...
COVID-19 hasn't changed much for outback school kids, but there's one thing they're missing dearly
ABC News - Jonathan Poulson - September 19, 2021The unit has been providing childcare and play group sessions for grazier families across Far West NSW and south-west Queensland for nearly 40 years. Childcare workers Emma Fenton and Vicki Olds would travel hundreds of kilometres a day to bring interactive...
85 Australian childcare centres go broke as parents keep kids at home and still pay for placements
Herald Sun - Natasha Bita - September 18, 2021Exclusive: Dozens of daycare centres have gone broke and closed permanently this year as parents keep kids home during the pandemic. Thirty childcare centres closed their doors last month, after 12 shut down in July, 19 in June and 24 in March, April and May...
‘We’re risking our lives’: Early childhood educators speak out about their fears for the future
Womens Agenda - Jessica Roberts - September 17, 2021Undervalued, underpaid and overworked, early childhood educators have been the silent workers of this pandemic. You haven’t heard claps of support for these workers and their contributions during COVID-19 are rarely mentioned. Childcare workers in Victoria have...
Mack is missing his mates – how one educator is helping preschoolers cope with COVID
The Sector - Freya Lucas - September 17, 2021Zoe Tolhurst, an educator at Stroud Preschool is doing her best to help the children in her care to cope with the challenges of the extended lockdown period in New South Wales, encouraging the preschoolers in her care to make colourful posters to display...
Queensland’s best childcare centres revealed
Courier Mail - Stephanie Bennett - September 17, 2021A Brisbane kindergarten has been named as one of the best in the country, after being awarded an excellent rating by the industry’s key authority. Ashgrove Memorial Kindergarten has been awarded an “excellent” rating by the Australian Children’s Education and Care...
Childcare, kinder attendance ‘rebounds’ despite lockdown
The Age - Madeleine Heffernan - September 15, 2021Attendance at Melbourne’s early learning centres seems to be creeping up despite strict restrictions on access, as more parents ask about staff vaccination rates and the industry grapples with persistent COVID-19 cases. Early learning centres are accepting...
Long-awaited renovations come to fruition at Orange Preschool
The Sector - Freya Lucas - September 15, 2021Orange Preschool, in regional New South Wales, will shortly undergo a long awaited renovation which is the result of 25 years of fundraising and a generous grant. Sustainability will be one of the main priorities, Director Sonya Murphy explained to local news source...
