FDCA CEO calls on Government to ensure long term viability of family day care

Family Day Care Australia (FDCA) Chief Executive Officer Andrew Paterson has called upon the Australian Government Department of Treasury to ensure the long-term viability of family day care through targeted funding measures in the upcoming Budget.

“With our sector facing workforce shortages, long waiting lists for places and an increasingly uncertain future, we contend that family day care (FDC) is a critical consideration in the next Federal Budget,” Mr Patterson said. 

FDCA’s Pre-Budget Submission identifies four key investment measures to secure the future of FDC in Australia, namely: 

Raise the hourly Child Care Subsidy (CCS) cap rate for family day care to better reflect the actual cost of providing education and care.

Apply an additional loading of 20 per cent to the recalculated CCS fee cap for non-standard hours care, to reflect the increased cost of providing overnight and non-standard hours care.

Implement a direct funding support program for services to assist in the recruitment, induction and training of new educators, to help attract and retain more educators to early childhood.

Implement a direct funding support program for new educators to help their business get off the ground, noting the significant start-up costs for many family day care educators.

“It’s a tough time for all of us who work within, or rely upon, early childhood education and care,” Mr Paterson said.

“Families on waiting lists a mile long, educator shortages in the thousands, regional communities struggling with a lack of availability. That’s why we are urging the Australian Government to step in and prioritise our sector, so that we can continue to support working parents and families across the country”.

View the submission here.