Child Care News
Netball Australia urges female sport bosses to help with childcare
Canberra Times - Chris Dutton - April 10, 2014Netball Australia boss Kate Palmer has implored female sporting bodies to soak up some of the costs of having children in a high performance environment until women can be full-time professional athletes. In response to Basketball Australia's new parental policy, which has forced...
Calls for change as childcare costs push parents out of work
7.30 Report (ABC News) - Sabra Lane - April 9, 2014More than a quarter of a million Australians who'd like to be in paid work are choosing to stay at home and issues with childcare are cited by many, leading to calls to simplify the sector and make it more accountable, and allow nannies as a tax deduction...
Warning over kinder funding
The Age - Daniella Miletic - April 9, 2014The Victorian government has called on its federal counterpart to commit to early learning funding amid warnings kindergarten hours could fall to 10 hours a week and teaching jobs could be lost if a national agreement is abandoned. Victorian Minister for Children Wendy Lovell urged Assistant...
Affinity buys childcares, boosts Victorian revenue
Financial Review - Trevor Hoy - April 9, 2014Management said there was a compelling strategic rationale behind the acquisitions aside from simply looking for benefits of scale. These included portfolio diversification in most east coast states and Western Australia and the acquisition of a corporate group of centres where management...
CLP childcare money pre-election sweetener for Blain
NT News - Zach Hope - April 9, 2014FAMILIES will save about $130 a year on childcare costs from next financial year as the Country Liberals make their pitch to parents in Blain struggling under cost-of-living pressures. The early Budget announcement of a 10 per cent increase to the childcare subsidy will mean parents of...
Affinity Education latest childcare operator to join buying spree
The Age - Jessica Gardner - April 9, 2014Childcare operator Affinity Education has increased the price it is willing to pay for growth, announcing it will buy 51 centres in an $80-million deal that is equivalent to about two-thirds of its market value. The deal is a sign that two major corporate operators, Affinity and G8 Education...
After school care 'crisis': Alliance targets NSW Government over shortage of places in Sydney
ABC News - Rebecca Barrett - April 9, 2014An alliance of after school care providers and parents, brought together by Sydney's Leichhardt Council, is ramping up pressure on the New South Wales Government to intervene in what they say is a growing childcare crisis. Leichhardt Mayor Darcy Byrne says children are increasingly being...
Children suffer DNA damage from stress
Sydney Morning Herald - Nicky Phillips - April 9, 2014Children who grow up in poverty or an unstable family show early signs of genetic ageing that may make them more vulnerable to certain diseases, a study has found. Telomeres, the protective caps that prevent the ends of chromosomes from unravelling over time, were shorter in children who...
Cough: Don't worry, parents, the kids are all right
Sydney Morning Herald - Elissa Blake - April 9, 2014A new play from a former day-care centre worker playfully examines the rules and regulations governing our youngest citizens and takes a gentle poke at Sydney's stressed-out parents. "Kids can't climb trees or play in the dirt any more," playwright Emily Calder says. "It seems like the...
Affinity gobbles up more childcare centres
NEWS.com.au - April 8, 2014CHILDCARE operator Affinity Education Group is taking over 51 childcare centres across Australia for $80 million. The acquisitions - through $65 million in cash and $15 million in Affinity shares - are on top of the seven centres it took over in March. The company says it expects the expansion...
Parents on the go in Melbourne's west welcome flexible child care options at the YMCA
Herald Sun - Ami Humpage - April 8, 2014In a bid to deliver a range of flexible and family friendly options for child care, YMCA Early Learning Centres in Derrimut, Kororoit Creek, Taylors Hill and Truganina South are trialling a new family flexibility project. Under the trial, families will have centre-based access to health services...
Working mothers claim discrimination
The Australian - April 7, 2014ALMOST one in five working mums lost their job before or after having a baby, a report says. Half of Australia's working mothers report discrimination during pregnancy, parental leave or when returning to work. Pregnant workers say they have been sacked, threatened with sacking or...
None of these award gains were hard won by unions
The Australian - Judith Sloane - April 7, 2014Take the case of childcare. The main union, United Voice, has been keen to secure higher rates of pay for the workforce, as well as promote higher rates of union membership, but there are limits to how much customers of childcare providers (the parents) will pay in higher fees before it...
Childcare workers undervalued and underpaid, Victorian study reveals
The Age - Daniella Miletic - April 7, 2014Early childhood educators feel they are perceived as being "just babysitters", with little respect and recognition for their qualifications, years of experience and talent, research has shown. A study of Victorian-based childcare workers found that a majority felt they were being driven out of the...
Why childcare is now a privilege: five-star centres popping up all over Sydney
Sunday Telegraph - Jordan Baker - April 6, 2014OH to be a Sydney toddler. Yoga. Zumba. Language classes. Meal plans designed by nutritionists and cooked by professional chefs. If it were not for their pint-sized patrons, childcare centres could be confused with day spas. And they have a price tag to match. In some parts of city, the average cost...
