New childcare centre opening in Alice Springs labelled an ‘important day’
A new childcare centre opening in the Red Centre capital is being billed as an ‘important day’ for the town. Find out why.
The opening of a new 37 place child care centre in the Red Centre capital is being billed as an “important day” for the town.
The Todd Street Child Care Centre, run the Central Australia Aboriginal Congress Aboriginal Corporation (CAAC) has opened.
Federal early childhood education and youth minister Jess Walsh called the opening an “important day First Nations children and families in Alice Springs”.
“Early education gives children the best start in life, and every child in the Northern Territory should benefit from access to quality and culturally safe early education and its transformative benefits,” she said.
The federal government has provided funding to the centre as part of its $30 million expansion of the Community Childcare Fund Restricted Program.
The Todd St centre is an expansion of CAAC’s Ampe Kenhe Apmere Gap Road Childcare centre, and will specialise in educating First Nations kids in local languages and supporting their development and learning in preparation for preschool.
The Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) lists the centre as having 37 places, and as of the latest update on Tuesday, the was given a “not yet assessed” as an overall rating.
CAAC child, youth and families general manager Dawn Ross said the centre “provides local families with confidence that their children will be cared for in a safe, nurturing environment that supports the children’s development and learning needs”.
“Extending this service means more children will benefit from a holistic approach to their development, enabling any need for interventions to be identified and accessed easily and at the service,” she said.
Federal Indigenous Australians minister Malarndirri McCarthy said the new centre “will ensure more First Nations children in Alice Springs have access to quality early education”.
“Ensuring First Nations children are engaged in high quality and culturally appropriate early childhood education is an important part of Closing the Gap,” she said.
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Originally published as New childcare centre opening in Alice Springs labelled an ‘important day’
