Better, Cheaper Childcare Is on the Horizon in Australia, but 4 Key Challenges Remain

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misbahulalam
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Better, Cheaper Childcare Is on the Horizon in Australia, but 4 Key Challenges Remain

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About 100 early childhood experts are meeting in Canberra today for a national summit on children who are five and under. This is part of the Albanese government’s work to develop an early years strategy to ensure Australian kids “have the best start at life in their critical early years of development”. It is also the latest in a flurry of activity around early childhood education and care. The federal government has just set up two major inquiries. Last week it established a Productivity Commission inquiry into early childhood education.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission began its inquiry into the cost of childcare last month. Meanwhile, states are also making massive commitments. The Victorian and New South Wales Country Email List governments have made multibillion-dollar promises to expand preschool for three- and four-year-olds. Former prime minister Julia Gillard is leading a royal commission into early education and care in South Australia, with an interim report due in August. Help shape our Voice to Parliament coverage. Universal, affordable and high-quality early education for Australian families is on the horizon. But four key challenges remain. 1. We still have ‘childcare deserts’ Access to early childhood education and care is not equal in Australia, and depends on where families live.

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Regional and rural families are more likely to have poorer access, and many live in “childcare deserts”. In these areas, more than three children vie for every childcare place. About one million Australians live in an area with no access to childcare at all. It is easier to get a childcare place in high socioeconomic and metropolitan areas, suggesting access is not equitable. We need to address this, as research in Australia and overseas highlights the importance of early education and care for children’s social and cognitive development, especially for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
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