NSW Government recaps benefits of $430 million in fee relief funding

The New South Wales Government has outlined the benefits (thus far) of its $430 million allocation of funding which is intended to provide fee relief for families of three, four and five-year-olds across the state. 

This funding, the Government notes, has already benefited hundreds of thousands of families across the state, including through:

• Up to $4220 a year for three- to five-year-olds attending eligible community and mobile preschools
• Up to $2110 a year for children aged four and above attending eligible preschool programs in long day care services. This can be received on top of Australian Government Child Care Subsidy payment
• Up to $500 a year for three-year-olds attending eligible preschool programs in long day care services, on top of their Child Care Subsidy payment

Up to 200,000 families across the state have benefited from, or are expected to benefit from, the ‘largest ever investment in early education fee relief.’

“Since the NSW Government introduced up to $500 a year fee relief for three-year-olds, more than 62,000 families, or up to 88 per cent of eligible children, have accessed the initiative,” a Government spokesperson said.

“To meet increasing demand for fee relief in a cost-of-living crisis, the NSW Government has increased the funding to existing programs, and expanded eligibility to three-year-olds, to ensure every child has the opportunity to access quality early education.”

The Brighter Beginnings Parent and Carer information Hub was launched in February 2024 to streamline families’ access to fee relief and other important supports for children’s health and development in the first five years of life.  Since that time over 200,000 families have accessed the resource.

On top of fee relief, the funding will support the NSW Government’s commitment to build 100 new public preschools by 2027, the largest expansion of public preschools in the state’s history.

Learn more about the funding here.