Today is a significant day for children in Australia. For a long time we have known that high-quality education and care (ECEC) helps shift the dial on addressing childhood disadvantage, and today we see that recognised and celebrated.
Prime Minister Albanese’s commitment to ensuring young children in Australia have access to high-quality early childhood education marks a significant shift, reframing early learning from mere "babysitting" to a fundamental educational entitlement for all.
The activity test has long locked out families experiencing disadvantage. The Front Project’s CEO, Dr Caroline Croser-Barlow stresses that families on low incomes, those experiencing family violence, unemployment, long term health challenges, single headed households and First Nations’ families are faced with complex rules around how much subsidised care they can access.
"The activity test makes a child’s access to the opportunities provided by early learning dependent on what is going on in their parents’ work lives. We don’t do that with school, and we shouldn’t do it in the early years, where children’s brains are growing at their fastest rate.”
“Removing the activity test simplifies the Child Care Subsidy, enhances family choice and supports equity. This is a meaningful pledge for children and families in Australia," said Dr Caroline Croser-Barlow.
The Front Project also welcomes the Government’s commitment to deliver more places in unserved and underserved communities via a $1 billion Building Early Education Fund. This will go a long way to addressing the concerns of families, especially in regional and remote areas of Australia, where finding an early learning place can be difficult.
“Today’s announcement signals a shift from passively observing the ECEC market to actively shaping it. Funding a wage increase with price caps, introducing an entitlement for every child and actively shaping quality supply is system stewardship in-action.”
"It is a guarantee that moves the Government from watching the ECEC market to actively shaping it to deliver outcomes for children." said Dr Caroline Corser-Barlow.
We warmly welcome and encourage this approach and look forward to working with government and the sector to ensure a universal entitlement becomes reality for all children.
Contact:
Rachel Wallbridge, Government Relations and Engagement Manager, the Front Project, 0402 680 092.