Following the end of the 2018/19 financial year, the first since eligible families moved from Child Care Benefit and Child Care Rebate to one system of Child Care Subsidy, both providers and families have expressed concern about the confusion of the system, which has left some with high debts owing to services, and others with unexpected windfalls which rightfully belong to services.

Australia’s system of childcare support is pretty good.It ensures high-quality care is provided to a large number of children, it is targeted through income-based subsidies, and it is attentive to the needs of disadvantaged children and families.

More than half of Australia’s parents who are currently receiving the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) would be willing to receive less subsidy if it meant they had more flexibility in how it was spent, research from the Centre for Independent Studies (CIS) has revealed.

Five not-for-profit preschools in Sydney’s north western suburbs have called on a local council to renegotiate rent for their preschools across the district, with The Daily Telegraph reporting rates are set to “skyrocket” 500 per cent.

The advent of “running costs only” long day care (LDC) services in Sydney, provided by the newly established Sydney Catholic Early Childhood Services (SCECS) is “the answer to a prayer” for families accessing the services, The Catholic Weekly has reported.