Child Care Finder is flagship for a cradle to grave service journey

Freya Lucas

Dec 14, 2018

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New early childhood education and care (ECEC) service Child Care Finder is the first of many platforms hosted by Service Connect which Australians will use to “access all of the support services they need, covering the entire journey of life events from cradle to grave.” Minister for Human Services and Digital Transformation, Michael Keenan has said.

In a joint release with Minister for Education, Dan Tehan, Mr Keenan said childcare was the first of many services that will undergo significant digital makeovers in the period ahead to improve convenience for those who rely on them.

“As part of delivering the Digital Transformation Strategy, the Department of Human Services has developed Service Connect, a new whole-of-government platform that will connect Australians with trusted service providers,” Mr Keenan said.

Mr Tehan praised the move, saying that Child Care Finder would make finding the “right child care centre” faster and easier, providing parents with all the information they need about child care in their area.

The Sector published reminders in the lead up to the launch, encouraging services to ensure their information was accurately reflecting vacancy and fee information, to avoid financial penalties under Family Assistance Law.

Child Care Finder replaces the previous “My Child” website and features “big improvements” that enable parents to search for a provider using specific criteria such as the distance from their home or a price range – a similar experience to using a hotel-booking site, the Ministers said.

“The website is part of our Government’s reforms to childcare that are making the system fairer, stronger and more flexible, supporting working families as they balance work and family life.” Mr Tehan added.

Further information about Child Care Finder can be found on their website.

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