SEVEN in ten Australians have agreed that cheaper childcare would be beneficial to the economy according to results from the Early Learning Monitor poll. The national poll by Essential Research for Minderoo Foundation’s Thrive by Five campaign surveyed over 4500 people and it reveals some interesting statistics about how Australians feel on many childcare-related topics. Thrive by Five is fighting for childcare to undergo a reform in Australia and they’re using this important research to demonstrate the effects expensive childcare costs have on families.
87% of Australians understand that many families either don’t send them to childcare at all, or for a certain amount of time as a result of costs. 80% of parents with a child under school age believe that access to more affordable and high quality early learning would benefit their family. 71% of Australians agree early childhood education would be great for the Australian economy altogether.
63% of people think the subsidy system administered through Centrelink is complex and is a time-consuming hindrance to accessing childcare. Thrive by Five CEO Jay Weatherill comments on the poll results, saying it affirms the ongoing difficulties of the affordability of childcare. “This poll confirms the seismic shift in public opinion where Australians no longer view early childhood education as ‘child minding’ but value the broader developmental, economic and social value of the service.” “There are 102,000 parents, mostly women, locked out of the workforce because of the high out of pocket costs of childcare.”
Weatherill states that the Federal Government needs to make changes fast to make the burden easier on struggling families. “Thrive by Five is calling on the Federal Government to bring forward its proposed changes to the Child Care Subsidy to January next year to help address critical workforce shortages and save low income families an additional $295.” “At the same time, it must act on the shortage of almost 40,000 early childhood educators by funding a pay rise for the sector, attracting back early educators who have left in recent times, and increasing training opportunities.”
“The activity test is also one of the major barriers families face when accessing early learning and childcare. Abolishing or simplifying this test would ensure that children and their families have greater access to early learning and childcare that positively supports their development and continued learning.” “The urgent need to reform Australia’s early learning and childcare system, including bringing forward Labor’s Child Care Subsidy changes, should be the top priority at the forthcoming Federal Budget,” Weatherill said.