G8 Education’s Trainee and Study Pathway program ushering Cairns students into childcare jobs
Tight educator-child ratios in childcare centres mean the sector’s worker shortage is tormenting parents desperate to find vacancies, but local centres have devised a solution that’s already working.
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G8 Education’s Trainee and Study Pathway program is encouraging school-age students to gain paid work experience in Cairns G8 centres, such as First Grammar Freshwater, and offers them support including paid study time and study sponsorships.
First Grammar Freshwater centre manager Yvonne Pitcher said she began her career as a school-based trainee, which helped her gain necessary skills to work confidently with children.
She said precise staff ratios were restricting enrolment numbers in the sector when coupled with the worker shortage.
“Typically we have about 20 staff here and centre vacancies come down to ratios,” she said.
“For children under two years old we need one educator for every four children, so we need quite a lot of staff to care for the younger age groups.
“We need the right kind of employees too. Having the right people in the right positions is really important.”
Redlynch State College student Kiyah Drury, 15, is the centre’s newest trainee and completes one to two days paid childcare work per week. She joins two other school-based trainees currently working in G8 centres in FNQ.
Ms Drury said she had been enjoying her traineeship and wants to continue a career in childcare.
“I love working with kids. I love reading to them and playing games with them. My school helped me find the position here,” she said.
Ms Pitcher said a position is definitely waiting for Ms Drury once she finishes her traineeship.
A HESTA 2021 report found that a fifth of early childhood workers intend to leave the industry within two years, citing “desire to develop new skills” as the top reason for leaving.
KindiCare founder Benjamin Balk said this recruitment strategy by G8 is important because it shows young people the viability of a career in early learning.
He said the sector’s current worker shortages caused less vacancy for parents looking for childcare and were triggering a spiral of negative outcomes that could only be stopped with serious and innovative intervention.
“The regions also have a lot of smaller, single owner-operated centres that just don’t have the finances to support staff through study.”
“We’re finding some centres are closing baby rooms because of educator shortages,” he said.
“Worker shortages then add workload pressure to other staff who then can’t find time for career development, and on it goes.”
The Cairns G8 Education team will be at the Cairns Youth and Careers Expo on August 25.
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Originally published as G8 Education’s Trainee and Study Pathway program ushering Cairns students into childcare jobs