Child Care News
G8 Education snaps up Sterling
The Australian - Bridget Carter - March 25, 2014THE owners of the childcare provider Sterling Early Education have sold the business to G8 Education just days after plans were scrapped for an Australian sharemarket listing of the recently formed company. The listed G8 is snapping up the business as part of a $228 million acquisition...
G8 Education to buy 91 centres for $228m
Financial Review - Jessica Gardner - March 24, 2014Childcare operator G8 Education has broken its own rules on how much it is willing to pay for new centres, buying 91 from Sterling Early Education for $228 million, just a week after Sterling's float was pulled. The deal takes the number of new centres bought by G8 Education in 2014 to 154...
Baby care needs nurturing
Canberra Times - Julie Smith - March 23, 2014It's time for a more sophisticated look at paid parental leave, to aid the health and wellbeing of society. The debate over Prime Minister Tony Abbott's paid parental leave scheme is focused entirely on the cost of the scheme to the bottom line rather than a more sophisticated discussion...
Parents cheat 85% of childcare centres: survey
Sun Herald - Cosima Marriner - March 23, 2014Parents have cheated 85 per cent of childcare centres nationally by "centre hopping" without paying their bills, even though they still claim the 50 per cent federal government childcare subsidy. A survey of 700 childcare operators by industry website CareforKids found two-thirds of centres..
Almost 300 childcare centres failing to meet minimum standards
Herald Sun - Evonne Barry - March 23, 2014ALMOST 300 Victorian childcare centres are failing to meet minimum standards under the strict new federal rating system. Eighteen months into the three-year grading process, less than two in every five centres had been assessed nationwide. And while Victoria has the best record of any state...
Childcare's in deep poo
Sunday Telegraph - Claire Harvey - March 23, 2014Filthy, filthy little children. Snotty and pooey and dribbly and dirty, grotty and gross, smelly and stinky. Don't get too close - and if you must touch, reach for some bleach to clean off the dirt. If you have a Hazmat suit, put it on. This, believe it or not, is how your delightful little darlings are...
Nanny with no fear of challenges
The Age - Elizabeth Minter - March 23, 2014...for the contribution she has made to the life of Ms Adams and her family, she was nominated for Australian nanny of the year by job agency Placement Solutions. Chief executive Louise Dunham encouraged Ms Carlisle Stranger to enter the competition - run by the International Nanny...
Full-time childcare fees up $7 a day as Melbourne parents face waiting lists of up to two years for places
Herald Sun - Jessica Marszalek - March 21, 2014FULL-TIME childcare in Melbourne has risen by $7 a day in just a year, nearing the highest cost in the country. A nationwide survey of 300 centres by the Greens found the average daily fee had climbed from $96 to $103 since last year, nearing the nation high in Sydney of $105 a day...
Family Tax Benefit, Child Care Rebate and Paid Parental Leave: What the changes mean to you
Smart Company - Terry Hayes - March 20, 2014Amendments to a bill currently before Parliament have made changes that affect many people. These concern the Family Tax Benefit, the Child Care Rebate and how the Paid Parental Leave scheme is administered. The Social Services and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2013 was...
Inquiry looms for childcare wage deal
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - March 20, 2014THE former Labor government's $300 million boost to lift childcare wages - attacked as a means to spread union coverage in the sector - will be investigated by the Auditor-General. Auditor-General Ian McPhee will be able to investigate hitherto confidential information about the $300m Early...
Overseas student hit by contrary rules
The Australian - Andrew Trounson - March 20, 2014NEW requirements on early childhood teaching graduates seeking skilled migration have left some international students stranded with insufficient work placements from their degrees because the changes are inconsistent with university accreditation standards. For some graduates they simply...
Paid parental leave: how Swedish mums and dads do it
Sydney Morning Herald - Richard Orange - March 20, 2014Arguably, Sweden's universal parental leave and childcare system pays for itself through the higher tax revenues it generates from those women workers who have managed to maintain their careers through motherhood. Sweden's government takes 44.3 per cent of national output in taxes...
Preschooling funding sought for non-government schools
Canberra Times - Tom McIlroy - March 19, 2014Children enrolled in preschool education at Canberra's non-government schools should be funded at 50 per cent of pupils in kindergarten to year 3 classes, according to a budget submission. The Non-Government Schools Education Council has used the budget submission to call on Education...
Wellbeing of preschoolers at risk from increased exposure to smartphones, tablets, computer games
The Age - Miki Perkins - March 18, 2014When young children clamour to watch another episode or seven of their favourite TV shows, frazzled parents often find themselves caving in to their offspring's requests. But a new Australian-led study has found that increased electronic media use - including smartphones, tablets and...
Thanks Tony, but can we have a parental scheme that fits?
BRW - Fiona Smith - March 18, 2014What an ungrateful lot we women are. Our biggest-ever feminist convert, Tony Abbott, offers us a bonanza paid parental leave scheme, and where is the cheer squad? Silence. Talk about looking a gift horse in the mouth. I guess the problem is, he didn’t ask us what we wanted first. I’ve got no...
