Child Care News
We're older and working harder
The Australian - Rick Morton - August 9, 2013AUSTRALIANS are older, harder working and more reliant on childcare than ever before, according to a new report that takes the pulse of the nation's welfare every two years. The Australian Health and Welfare Institute's report, Australia's Welfare 2013, was launched in Sydney yesterday and...
Australian Education trust profit surges 71 per cent
Financial Review - Nick Lenaghan - August 9, 2013Childcare centre landlord Australian Education Trust has forecast increased distributions in the current year, as it reaps the benefit of lower debt costs. Now part of the Folkestone stable of funds, the property trust controls a $367 million portfolio of centres across Australia and New Zealand...
Website update 'no help'
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - August 8, 2013KEVIN Rudd's $2 million upgrade of the government's childcare website has been slammed by the opposition as another "Rudd re-run", like FuelWatch and Grocery Watch, that won't fix spiralling costs. Mr Rudd said yesterday that Labor would "make it easier for parents" to find places for...
Teachers should be trained to save lives, says NSW Asthma Foundation
Daily Telegraph - August 8, 2013SHOCKED by the tragic death of an eight-year-old schoolboy, the NSW Asthma Foundation will consider lobbying the state government to make asthma emergency training compulsory in schools and childcare centres. The Year 2 student suffered a cardiac arrest after a suspected asthma...
Fast-food outlets, childcare centres see demand from investors
Financial Review - Rebecca Thistleton - August 8, 2013Low interest rates and interest from self-managed superannuation funds are driving the sub-$5 million commercial investment market, with agents noting particular investor interest in childcare centres and fast-food outlets. "This interest-rate cut, combined with the others, will have a big...
University of Melbourne research finds preschool directly responsible for improvement in later NAPLAN scores
Herald Sun - Wes Hosking - August 7, 2013CHILDREN who attend preschool are up to five months ahead of their peers in critical disciplines midway through primary school. Those whose teacher had a relevant diploma or degree gain the most according to new research. But it's feared some youngsters won't benefit from new rules...
Childcare is no child's play
The Age - Stephanie Peatling - August 6, 2013Parents are struggling to get the childcare they need in what is an expensive and often inaccessible system, writes Stephanie Peatling. Georgia Marshall's return to work was not supposed to include tears in public and the fear that her husband might have to quit his job so that she could go back...
Fortnightly payment options are assisting busy working families
The Australian - Patricia Karvelas - August 6, 2013THE fortnightly childcare rebate has become the payment method of choice for new families entering the system, as mothers and fathers face cost-of-living pressures and rising fees. Childcare Minister Kate Ellis will today reveal that about 80 per cent - 145,000 - of Australian families who...
The Coalition's specific number on soaring care costs based on bureaucracy are only "half true"
The Age - Peter Martin - August 6, 2013The Claim. The Liberal Party's spokeswoman on childcare Sussan Ley has blamed bureaucracy for rising childcare fees. And she is very specific. Extra requirements, such as those needed to put childcare centre ratings on the MyChild website, has "pushed your fees up [by] 22 per cent in...
Government spends $450m on after hours school care
The Age - Judith Ireland - August 5, 2013Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has announced $450 million to improve before and after hours school care in one of his last acts before the Parliament is dissolved and the government goes into caretaker mode. In his first press conference on day one of the election campaign, Mr Rudd said...
Childcare figures disputed
The Australian - Rebecca Puddy - August 5, 2013THE childcare industry has accused the federal government of double-counting following claims by Kate Ellis of record growth in the sector. Ms Ellis, the Minister for Early Childhood, Childcare and Youth, yesterday released a government report that found the number of children in childcare...
Daycare crisis hits new high in Sydney
Daily Telegraph - Vikki Campion - August 5, 2013SYDNEY'S baby boom has created a childcare crisis with one council trying to double the number of family daycare educators in a bid to address a 900-child waiting list. With waiting lists stretching for years and leaving Sydney families stripped of an income, Waverley Council is calling on new...
Family day care right on target in Victoria
Herald Sun - Susie O'Brien - August 4, 2013FAMILY day care is booming in Victoria, with more working parents seeking around-the-clock, home-based care for their children. This form of childcare, in which a trained educator looks after up to four preschoolers in their own home, has grown by 18 per cent in the last quarter. Family...
Childcare surge but city places hard to find
The Age - Rachel Browne - August 4, 2013Families in parts of Sydney and Melbourne are still struggling to find childcare vacancies despite a surge in new providers and a record number of children in centres. One million children use childcare according to figures being released on Sunday, which also show a 40 per cent increase...
Childcare splits parents, experts
The Australian - Justine Ferrari - August 3, 2013PARENTS see childcare centres as a babysitting service allowing them to work, with their main concern being the safety of their child rather than the quality of education provided in the most crucial years of development. Research commissioned by the Centre for Community Child Health...
