What Victoria’s changing restrictions mean for childcare, kinders
In a massive win for struggling parents, Victoria’s road map out of stage four includes plans to abolish the permit system adopted for parents wanting to access child care centres. Here’s what it means for you.
Education
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Metropolitan pre-schoolers will get “back on track” with the reopening of metropolitan childcare centres from September 28 and kinders from October 5.
Childcare parents will not need workers’ permits to access centres.
The move was described by Education Minister James Merlino as “a significant step forward for all parents”.
The return to full operation will be a relief for the struggling sector, with many centres running at 20 to 40 per cent occupancy on the verge of closing.
The Front Project CEO Jane Hunt said the move was a “step in the right direction to get children back on track and avoid a developmental gap”.
There are widespread concerns that many children’s school readiness has been affected by their lack of access to formal early childhood education this year.
Georgie Dent, executive officer of The Parenthood, said the return to centre-based care was “a huge step on the road to recovery”.
“It will also be a relief to a lot of educators who can return to more formal working patterns,” she said.
John Cherry, advocacy manger for Goodstart, said the return to centre-based care was a positive move.
But he questioned whether changes to stages in regional areas would affect the ability of the government to waive out-of-pocket expenses for kids who don’t attend childcare. Regional centres have remained open, but up to one third of parents are keeping kids home.
The move comes as the funding of childcare remains under scrutiny.
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