Dr Anne Aly joins newly appointed WA early childhood education minister on centre tour

Federal Minister for Early Childhood Education, Dr Anne Aly, has joined Western Australia’s newly appointed Minister for Early Childhood and Pre-Prep, Sabine Winton, on a tour of an early childhood service in Tapping, WA, where Ms Winton shared details of how the State and Federal Government will work together to boost outcomes in the early years. 

“I’m delighted to be working with WA’s first dedicated Minister for Early Childhood Education, Sabine Winton, to deliver more accessible early years education in the West,” Dr Aly said. 

From July 1st, 2023, Federal Government reforms will make early childhood education and care (ECEC) more affordable for around 1.26 million families, including more than 86,000 families in Western Australia. The reforms will also help support more First Nations children by ensuring up to 36 hours of subsidised early childhood education and care a fortnight.

The Federal Government is working with the WA Government as well as other states and territories to develop a shared long-term vision for ECEC, designed around the principles of equity, accessibility, affordability, and quality, which includes working with the broader sector to  improve the attraction, retention, and sustainability of the workforce.

To support this intention the WA Government has also launched a new Early Childhood Education and Care Job Ready Program. This program was developed in collaboration with WA industries to deliver short, sharp training for job seekers and young people and to introduce participants to the working environment of an early childhood educator.

The program complements other training and workforce initiatives introduced by the WA Government to support the sector. This includes $1 million in local government grants to assist with attracting and retaining early childhood educators, significantly reduced course fees for Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care, and low-fee existing working traineeships for early childhood teachers.

“As a teacher of 27 years in various metropolitan, regional and remote locations across Western Australia, I understand firsthand how important the early stages of a child’s life are and the need for quality early childhood education,” Ms Winton said.

“I look forward to working with Minister Aly and representing Western Australia to ensure stronger and more accessible learning and development opportunities for our children.”