Child Care News
Top women break ranks on Abbott
Financial Review - Joanna Mather and Mark Ludlow - August 20, 2013Some of Australia's most prominent women voices support Tony Abbott's controversial paid parental leave scheme but they warn it will not have the desired productivity uplift unless childcare is made less expensive. Melbourne University Publishing chief executive Louise Adler said Mr...
ALP promises action on childcare
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - August 20, 2013SEVEN trials aimed at meeting the childcare needs of low-income shift and weekend workers will be revealed by Labor today, with a pledge they will be rolled out nationally by a Rudd government if successful at the election. Labor's push to build a more flexible system counters a pledge by...
Economic gains from leave scheme in doubt
Sydney Morning Herald - Matt Wade, Clay Lucas - August 20, 2013Opposition Leader Tony Abbott's paid parental leave scheme promises to reduce the long-term financial advantage that men have over women. But experts have warned any productivity benefits from the expensive plan could be blunted unless the childcare system is improved. The...
Adelaide will be tough to retain: Ellis
NEWS.com.au - August 19, 2013EARLY Childhood Minister Kate Ellis says retaining her seat of Adelaide will be a tough challenge at next month's election. Ms Ellis says she's never taken the seat for granted but remains convinced there is nobody who would work harder for the electorate. "(Labor doesn't) take any election for...
Vaccination plan not a cure-all, say public health experts
ABC Radio - Stephanie Smail - August 19, 2013Public health experts say the Federal Government's plan to withhold payments from families who don't vaccinate their children won't be a cure-all for improving immunisation rates. The Australian Medical Association supports the plan but says the Government should also ban unvaccinated...
Vaccine refusers to miss out on $2000 family payments
The Sunday Telegraph - August 17, 2013PRIME Minister Kevin Rudd has promised to strip parents who refuse to vaccinate their children of family payments worth more than $2000. In a get-tough message to "vaccine refusers" who ignore advice to immunise children against life-threatening diseases such as chickenpox, polio and...
Cost is the Coalition's priority around child care
Women's Agenda - Georgina Dent - August 16, 2013Cost is the biggest obstacle the Shadow Minister for Early Childhood and Childcare Sussan Ley wants to overcome. "I have been attending roundtable discussions around the country and throughout Australia, in rural areas, in capital cities, along the coast, the same theme is emerging...
How will the government address affordability and accessibility of childcare?
Women's Agenda - Georgina Dent - August 15, 2013When speaking to the Minister for Early Childhood and Childcare, Kate Ellis, about the affordability and accessibility of childcare she is struck by something in my voice. "I speak to lots of people around the country and your reaction is not uncommon," Ellis says. "It's almost disbelief." Indeed...
'Babysitter needed' - kids posted online
Gold Coast Bulletin - Robyn Wuth - August 15, 2013GOLD Coast parents are unwittingly offering their children to predators by posting cute pictures online as they hunt for babysitters. The pictures have been posted as part of advertisements on online buying and selling website Gumtree, as parents struggle to find carers for their children...
Sex, lies and a quick escape as election battle hits Sydney's west
The Australian - Jared Owens and Mitchell Nadin - August 14, 2013LABOR has come under fire over "misleading" and "defamatory" advertising in several battleground electorates, after issuing leaflets warning that the Liberal Party would privatise council-owned suburban parks, childcare centres and pools in western Sydney. In Greenway, the most marginal...
Childcare chain Goodstart calls for cash boost to fund workers' pay rise
News.com.au - Natasha Bita - August 11, 2013GOODSTART - Australia's biggest childcare chain - has applied for taxpayers' money to give its 15,000 workers a pay rise of $3 to $5 per hour. Every one of the 650 Goodstart Early Learning centres has sought a slice of the Federal Government's $300m childcare wage fund - but some...
Mini baby boom puts squeeze on parents
The Age - Cosima Marriner - August 11, 2013Preschools offer "significantly higher quality" than long day care centres, a longitudinal study of 3000 Australian children has found. Yet pure preschool is becoming an education luxury that many working parents can't afford for their children, because of the mismatch between the eight-hour...
Budgeting for a million childcare places
Sydney Morning Herald - Peter Martin and Ellie Harvey - August 11, 2013THE CLAIM. It has been a big week for childcare. Kevin Rudd kicked off his campaign with a promise of $450 million in extra funding to improve childcare centres. His minister Kate Ellis said: "As a result of our policies, the number of children in approved childcare has grown to more than...
Childcare centres of earning
Sydney Morning Herald - Carolyn Cummins - August 10, 2013The low interest-rate environment has seen investors heading swiftly towards the higher-yielding bricks-and-mortar sector, with demand rising for an array of property types. These range from petrol stations and convenience stores to bank chambers and childcare centres. Most investors...
Childcare policies compared: making your vote easier
Women's Agenda - Georgina Dent - August 9, 2013A 'game-changer' is how the Grattan Institute described the effect on productivity of addressing the availability and affordability of childcare in 2012. There is clear evidence, which Treasury agrees with, that improving the quality, availability and affordability of childcare boosts women's...
