Parents’ new plea as childcare costs soar above housing costs

For mum-of-two Ellen Sowersby, sending her girls to one extra day of childcare costs her $200 more each week. The hike is due to a loophole aching parents across Melbourne — seeing a shift in their biggest monthly expense.

Mum-of-two Ellen Sowersby says childcare costs keep going up and eat up the government subsidy on offer. Picture: Jay Town

Parents with more than one child in paid care are pleading for fee relief, as a single mum says her childcare costs have soared to more than her rent.

Inner Melbourne centres now charge as much as $154 for a day for subsidised childcare, with families saying it is a disincentive for some parents to go back to work.

Centres in outer suburbs and regional towns are also hiking fees, which are being blamed on staff and rent costs.

Hadfield mum Ellen Sowersby said she had recently gone back to full-time work, but sending her girls to care five days a week rather than four days a week cost her an extra $200 — due to a fortnightly subsidy cap of 100 hours.

Ms Sowersby said this “cancels out any financial benefit of working more hours”.

“I am now paying more in childcare fees than I am in rent,” she said.

Ms Sowersby recently wrote to the federal government to outline her situation, saying the cap was “disincentivising women from working more, and in some cases, from working at all”.

Parents in Victoria are now paying an average of $15,400 a year for childcare — based on 30 hours a week for 48 weeks a year.

Subsidies were reformed by the Coalition last term, with more money pumped in to the system costing taxpayers about $8.6 billion a year.

Ellen Sowersby said she had recently gone back to full-time work, but sending her girls to care five days a week rather than four costs her an extra $200. Picture Jay Town

But the federal opposition says many families are still under financial stress at the same time as operators are reaping big profits.

Labor’s childcare spokeswoman Amanda Rishworth said that 18 months after changes to the system it had “failed to keep a lid on fees and out of pocket costs”.

“We only need to look at areas like inner Melbourne, where fees are as high as $154 for a regular 12 hour day, to know childcare costs have spiralled out of control,” she said.

But Education Minister Dan Tehan said average out-of-pocket costs for families in Melbourne are 9.1 per cent lower than they were before the introduction of a new subsidy.

He said the government didn’t set fees but “providers tell us that the biggest impacts on fee increases are staff costs and rent”.

“I will meet with the sector to discuss options to keep downward pressure on fee growth. There is also a legislated review of the subsidy hourly cap later this year,” he said.

MORE NEWS

DRIVEWAY SHOOTING LEAVES MAN FIGHTING FOR LIFE

BILLIE JEAN’S SURPRISE SUPPORT FOR RIVAL MARGARET COURT

WOMEN IN WOOLWORTHS TOILET PAPER BRAWL