Child Care News
Ring-in parents at Rudd childcare photo op
NEWS.com.au - Lanai Scarr and Sarah Michael - August 27, 2013IT was Kevin Rudd's perfect childcare picture opportunity, posing with parents in favour of his paid parental leave scheme and, as they were Chinese, he could chat in Mandarin with them as well. But neither set of parents had kids who actually attend the childcare centre the Prime Minister was...
Rudd takes election message to toddlers
SBS News - August 26, 2013Prime Minister Kevin Rudd never misses an opportunity to spruik Labor values, even if it is to an audience of toddlers. "We've got to build things up, haven't we?" he told a group of young children playing with Lego pieces at a childcare centre in Sydney's southeast on Monday. "We're making...
Coalition lashes claims childcare under threat under Abbott
Herald Sun - Susie O'Brien - August 26, 2013THE Coalition hit back today at union claims that parents will pay more for poorer-quality childcare under an Abbott Government. The United Voice union today claimed the Coalition is not intending to fund childcare fee increases linked to staff pay increases that could boost fees by 25 per cent...
More children stutter than thought: study
NEWS.com.au - Clifford Fram - August 26, 2013STUTTERING is twice as common as experts thought, according to research that shows it affects more than one in 10 children by the age of four. The good news, however, is that treatment usually works and children up till four years of age typically don't suffer anguish or developmental delays...
Drop in kindergarten numbers in Queensland concerns educators
Courier Mail - Tanya Chilcott - August 26, 2013ABOUT one in four Queensland children did not attend a kindergarten program last year, potentially putting them behind their peers at the start of school. Teachers and principals warn parents should hold children back from Prep if they are not emotionally and socially ready, following an increase...
Kids who are not socially or emotionally ready for Prep should stay home another year
Courier Mail - Tanya Chilcott - August 26, 2013BEING socially and emotionally ready for school is more important than being academically ready, teachers warn. Early Childhood Teachers' Association president Kim Walters said while it was a teacher's job to be able to work with a child at any academic stage, if they were not socially...
Community preschools facing closure after funding cuts for three-year-old children
Daily Telegraph - Peter Bodkin - August 26, 2013COMMUNITY preschools across the state could be sent broke under changes to state-government funding for three-year-olds as daily fees nearly double for parents of the younger children. The sector is warning many community centres will be forced to close under a new model that slashes...
Fine words but childcare still overcrowded
Sydney Morning Herald - Cosima Marriner, Craig Butt - August 25, 2013Almost one-third of Sydney childcare centres have no vacancies, forcing some parents to wait nearly two years for a place, with neither Labor nor the Coalition outlining a solution to the childcare crisis experts say is hampering women's workforce participation. Of the 743 full-day...
Many wait as parental leave debate buries childcare crisis
The Age - Cosima Marriner, Craig Butt - August 25, 2013One in seven Melbourne childcare centres has no vacancies, forcing some parents to wait more than a year for a place, yet neither Labor nor the Coalition has so far outlined how they will fix the childcare crisis which is hampering women's workforce participation. Australian Chamber of...
Locked in mother of a stoush
Canberra Times - Larissa Nicholson - August 25, 2013PAID parental leave is one of the push-button issues of the federal election, with each of the major parties offering universal schemes. Local business and women's advocates agree that a good national paid parental leave scheme is important for Australian women and for small businesses...
Childcare body wants PC review of funding
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - August 24, 2013THE peak early childhood body has thrown its support behind Tony Abbott's call for a Productivity Commission inquiry into the funding of the sector. Today Early Childhood Australia will release its wish list for the next government, which calls for the inquiry to look at, among other things...
What's the point of a PPL scheme without child care?
ABC Radio National - Madeleine Genner - August 23, 2013Paid Parental Leave has been top of the agenda during this campaign. But many argue that a PPL scheme will only work with an affordable and accessible childcare system. The Rudd Government says there are currently more than one million childcare places available - a 30 per cent increase…
Early education and care: the best start for Australian children?
Crikey - Marie McInerney - August 22, 2013By 2020 all Australian children should 'have the best start in life to create a better future for themselves and for the nation.' That's the aim of the National Early Childhood Development Strategy developed by the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), and comes from...
Kate Ellis gives a big high five to union power
Daily Telegraph - Simon Benson - August 22, 2013CHILD care Minister Kate Ellis has enlisted one of the country's most powerful unions to help recruit child care centre workers to publicly campaign for her over fears she may lose her seat. A confidential email intended for members of United Voice this week demanded child care workers...
Childcare operator G8 Education lifts profits
Courier Mail - Jenny Rogers - August 21, 2013INVESTOR backing that has enabled it to continue adding to its portfolio of childcare businesses has helped Gold Coast company G8 Education lift its first-half net profit by 62 per cent. The result caps a strong run by G8 shares which has seen its rising market capitalisation enable the company to...
