Federal Child Care Minister Kate Ellis has announced several new projects designed to find new and better ways to build a more flexible child care system for Australian families. New models of weekend and school holiday care, helping low income ...

The Greens have announced a capital grants fund dedicated to increasing the number of places in childcare centres. The fund would see $200 million provided to community and not-for-profit centres over four years. This will increase the number of available ...

Amendments to the Education and Care Services National Regulations come into effect on 1 September in all Australian states and territories except Western Australia. The amendments will deliver benefits to providers and resolve several issues raised since the introduction of ...

The Federal Government has launched a new initiative that will give additional support for childcare. The Better Schools: Before and After program will provide funding for up to 500 schools so that more flexible opening hours can be offered, including ...

Early Childhood Australia (ECA) has welcomed the Federal Government’s announcement of additional support for outside school hours care which they say helps working families. ECA chief executive Samantha Page said that the recent announcement will help parents who are having ...

A study conducted by Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research has found that year 3 nationwide NAPLAN test outcomes are higher for those who attended pre-school. The higher scores are significant for numeracy, reading, writing and spelling. However, ...

Playgroup Victoria has called for entries in their inaugural Playgroup Awards.  As a non-profit organisation that helps families find a playgroup for their child, Playgroup Victoria is launching the awards to acknowledge outstanding community and supported playgroups. To participate, anyone ...

Australia’s childcare sector is booming according to a new report, although the figures have been disputed by the Australian Childcare Alliance. A key finding the Child Care in Australia report commissioned by the Federal Government claims there are more than ...