Childcare Qld: Parents hit by long waits, expensive fees

A national survey has uncovered childcare struggles for Queensland parents, some of whom have had to delay returning to work.

Queensland parents are experiencing delays in returning to work due to a lack of childcare, while some are struggling with “extremely expensive” fees, a national survey has found.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission survey of more than 2000 families showed some waiting lists for childcare were over a year.

Commission chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said the responses created a picture of the issues families were struggling with and provided data on industry costs and pressures.

Almost all families surveyed reported childcare fees had increased throughout the past 12 months with the majority now in “somewhat financial burden” or struggling to pay fees.

“We are still in the process of collecting and analysing information to understand the cost of

providing childcare and the prices people are paying,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

“These preliminary insights from families are providing important perspectives that help inform our evolving understanding of the childcare sector.”

Findings from the survey also showed most families joined childcare waitlists more than a

year in advance to secure a spot, in many cases well before the child is born.

“Despite this, many families still say they couldn’t get a childcare place when they needed it,

which delayed their return to paid work or study, or caused them to have to reduce their

hours of work,” the commission said in a statement.

“Concerns about how waitlists function have featured among several survey responses, with

waitlists described as disorganised, and that the lists seem to operate arbitrarily.”

Surveyed parents of children with a disability also claimed to have also been refused childcare while others in similar situations described finding a suitable provider as “very difficult”.

“We appreciate the experiences of families with children with disability are diverse and while

this may not be the experience for all, it is an important preliminary insight from the parents

and guardians survey,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.

The survey is open until June 4, 2023 for families with children aged 0-13, or children with a disability aged 0-18.