Budget has heart but more needed on ECEC reforms

Treasurer Chalmers has delivered his second budget, a budget that sees Australia head back into a small $4.2b surplus.

Last year’s budget, which was brought down post-election in October 2022, delivered a massiveinvestment to fund the Government’s Cheaper Child Care Policy.

 

This budget, by contrast, has little direct spending to benefit Early Childhood Education and Care(ECEC).

 

The 9 May budget, delivered during a time of tighter financial controls, falls short of the fulsomechanges advocated for across the sector. There has unfortunately been no movement on the activitytest to ensure more children can access early childhood education. The budget is also silent oneducator wages, despite the urgent need for a wage boost to stabilise the workforce and supportdelivery of the Government’s Cheaper Child Care initiative.

 

There’s also no new funding announced to address childcare deserts and expand access, bar themodest $18 million grant program announced last week.

 

Within this slim budget there are, however, a range of measures, that increase equity and supportchildren and families, and a small number of initiatives that might support ECEC services to operate.

 

Direct investments in Early Childhood Education and Care

 

The budget includes the recently announced $72.4 million for professional learning.

 

This is welcome funding that will subsidise services to backfill for educators undertaking training,and fund allowances for out-of-hours training.

 

Funding is also allocated for staff to undertake a paid practicum. We know the cost of undertakingpracticum and foregoing wages can be prohibitive – this initiative is aimed at easing the cost burdenfor 6000 students.

 

Another 2000 workers can undertake a practicum in a different service including funding for a livingallowance which is crucial to enable students to undertake experiences in rural and remotelocations.

 

Streamlining the process for Additional Child Care Subsidy (child wellbeing) applications is alsowelcomed while savings measures, such as payment integrity activities (including fraud preventionactivities to curb things like false Child Care Subsidy claims), are aimed at delivering net savings of$139.4 million over four years from 2023–24.

 

Increasing equity and supporting families

 

Other Budget announcements will also have a positive impact on families. The extension of theSingle Parenting Payment (single) will support 57,000 single parents and carers to remain onincreased payments until their youngest child turns fourteen.

 

A $40 per fortnight increase on government benefits, including Youth Allowance and Job Seeker, willsupport families, including students in ECEC courses, and ease poverty in jobless families. The 15%increase in rent assistance is welcome, albeit coming in the face of major rent increases. The cost of housing is a key barrier to finding ECEC staff in some regions, and this modest increase is helpful butlikely insufficient.

 

The $326.7m investment in a raft of women’s safety initiatives, under the National Plan to EndViolence Against Women and Children 2022–32, including place-based, early intervention andrecovery services will support highly vulnerable children and families. ‘Circuit breaker’ safetyinitiatives like these could potentially be delivered as part of wrap around services at ECEC servicesalong with other supports such as counselling and speech therapy if future funding is provided.

 

A range of health prevention and early intervention initiatives was also included, includingsupporting children at risk of deafness, funding for Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder prevention,diagnosis and support activities, early intervention for infants with early signs of autism, andactivities to address declines in childhood immunisation rates.

 

The trebling of bulk billing incentives should make accessing a doctor cheaper for families.

 

Supporting workforce growth

 

A number of initiatives in the Budget are aimed at supporting workforce growth. These includefoundation skills training and mentoring for apprentices and trainees and supporting community-based and culturally safe pathways to training. These initiatives may support more culturally diversestudents to undertake studies in Early Childhood Education and Care.

 

There is also improved skills recognition to provide fast-tracked skills assessments, and a mechanismfor mutual recognition of qualifications between India and Australia which could help to expand thepipeline of ECEC workers.

 

The government has indicated it is again recommending the Fair Work Commission ensure realwages are maintained. The recently announced $11.3 billion in aged care funding for wage growthalso features in this Budget, giving hope that early childhood education could be next. ELAA,alongside other peaks, have been actively advocating for increased ECEC wages.

 

Other initiatives worth a look

 

The Budget includes a range of other initiatives that may reduce the cost of operating an ECECservice. There is a $1.5b Energy Bill Relief fund that both supports low-income households and smallbusiness retail customers. There is also an additional deduction allowed under the Small BusinessEnergy Incentive.

 

And an interesting initiative, with the Government partnering with leading philanthropicorganisations through an Investment Dialogue for Australia’s Children to enable better-coordinatedinvestments and data sharing and enable co-investment in place-based initiatives that support earlychildhood education and development.

 

This will continue to help build the evidence base about what works, particularly to engage, educate and empower vulnerable children and communities.

 

The budget is low in direct investment in Early Childhood Education and Care. However, the range ofequity initiatives in this cost-of-living-focused Budget should help children and families.

 

Whilst acknowledging the cost pressures on the government, there remains a need to invest in theinfrastructure needed to deliver on the promise of supporting parents to access to affordable earlychildhood education – both physical infrastructure and our more important asset, our workforce. This budget focused on a range of early intervention measures – a further measure would be toexpand access to early childhood education to all children, noting what a game changer it can be.

 

Megan O’Connell is Acting CEO at Early Learning Association Australia (ELAA).