FDCA disappointed by “tired rhetoric” about the FDC sector

Family Day Care Australia (FDCA) has expressed its disappointment about what it terms the continuous use of the family day care (FDC) sector as “a vehicle to spruik budgetary savings,” from as far back as 2015.

The statements come after stories ran late last month recapping serious incidents including fraud in New South Wales.

“This coverage regarding a small group of unscrupulous 'operators' continues to unfairly taint the reputation of our sector, which is made up of fantastic educators and services that go above and beyond to support families and provide high quality outcomes for children all across Australia '' an FDCA spokesperson said.

The continued portrayal is one which is concerning for FDCA, who said this targeted focus on the FDC sector was a matter which they had raised with regulators, making it clear that “the time for this rhetoric over”.

FDCA CEO Andrew Paterson made it clear that demand for FDC remains strong, and that the sector “continues to play a crucial role in the (broader) education and care sector due to the unique qualities it can provide Australian families.”

While FDCA supports the removal of unscrupulous operators from the sector, Mr Paterson said, services need to be supported by regulators and governments in order to be able to recruit educators and grow the sector.

“As the sector's national peak we have recently met with regulators and governments across the country as part of our Sector Viability Strategy to discuss matters such as this in order to ensure a strong and sustainable future for the sector,” he added.

“We are aware that the source for this story was the NSW Government and we will be addressing these matters directly with them. We will continue to work hard to share positive stories across Australia about FDC and also encourage all of our members to share their stories with us, so that we can distribute them to media outlets,” Mr Paterson said.

FDC services and educators provide high-quality early childhood education and care in a natural home environment that allows children to form strong bonds with passionate educators in small group settings. The ability for FDC to offer this type of environment is what makes FDC the natural choice in early childhood education and care for thousands of Australian families, he concluded.