The number of children using Child Care Subsidy approved care fell in every state and territory in the June quarter of 2026 compared with a year earlier. At the same time, centre based day care services continued to grow nationally and average fees increased.
For Sparrow Early Learning, finding a childcare management system (CCMS) that could support their scale and ambitions was never going to be a decision made lightly. Sparrow needed a partner it could trust to operate at its scale for years to come, a structured migration plan, and support that protected educators, operational teams and, most importantly, children and families.
The Childcare Leadership Alliance (CLA) has reached a major organisational milestone, officially signing a direct Social Investment Project Contract with BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA).
Every child deserves a strong start to their learning. Victoria’s landmark universal three-year-old kindergarten reform is delivering just that. New findings from a major study at University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Education have revealed that children who receive two years of funded kindergarten compared to one year have an additional five-months of progress in language development and two to three-months of progress in memory and problem-solving skills by the time they begin school.
New data from Be You, Beyond Blue's mental health in education initiative, reveals that educators are becoming more confident in supporting everyday mental health concerns, but less confident their schools and early learning services are prepared to respond to critical incidents.
Early childhood and primary teacher, children’s author, and literacy advocate Poppy Yayakos has joined the World Literacy Foundation’s Sun Books: Global Children’s Library as an Author Patron, expanding her commitment to literacy that already reaches families throughout her community in Darwin, Australia.
Outstanding teachers and educators from across Queensland have been recognised at the 2026 C&K Awards, celebrating innovation, leadership and excellence in early childhood education and care.
Vision Australia has launched a specialised program designed to support children and young people who are deafblind, providing families with a more coordinated approach to vision and hearing services.
South Australia's Aboriginal Early Childhood Strategy is providing early childhood education and care providers with a clearer picture of how Aboriginal leadership, Cultural authority and Community partnerships will help shape the state's future early childhood reforms, including the rollout of universal three-year-old preschool.
Queensland Childcare Services (QCCS) has brought festive cheer to the great outdoors this winter, with children celebrating Christmas in July through its Beach Kindy program alongside a very special visitor – Surfboard Santa.
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