Grattan Institute’s Post

Last week, the Commonwealth Government announced several measures to expand access to early childhood education and care for all families.   It will guarantee 3 days per week of childcare for each child under 5, by removing the activity test for those days. And it will invest $1 billion in expanding the number of childcare centres and places, with a particular focus on under-served and unserved areas.   This is sensible policy, which will benefit disadvantaged children and households the most.   Aruna Sathanapally and I wrote about these measures in the AFR earlier this week.

Did you know that Utah parents spend anywhere between $42,000-$50,000 per child on early childhood care and services before kindergarten? Check out this updated two-pager titled "What Utahns Need to Know: Childcare/Pre-K" for more key facts, benefits of improving early childhood services, and what you can do to help. https://lnkd.in/eQgiQnmH

While it's welcome that the Minister now has a plan for how the £25 million allocated to #childcare will be spent, we need to see more detail of the planned subsidy for parents, and a timeline for delivery. Promises were made around the delivery of 'interim support' so it is crucial that this is rolled out quickly to support parents and childcare providers with affordability and tackle the immediate crisis facing the sector. The plan to standardise pre-school places to 22.5 hours has been in development since 2022. While access to high quality pre-school education is critical for children's educational and social development, it is not childcare and does not help all families, especially those with the youngest children. These plans must reflect the needs of parents, children and our childcare sector, based on the evidence that we and others have been presented for many years. Aoife Hamilton https://lnkd.in/eapXMET5

Childcare is crucial for many people, but the costs are rising faster than inflation. Surprisingly, those who care for our youngest children are among the lowest-paid workers in the country. Christina Taylor, CEO of the Early Childhood Council of Larimer County, sheds light on the childcare crisis in Larimer County, its effects on the community, and suggests ways to address it. Learn more below. #earlychildhoodeducation #larimercounty #earlychildhood #childcare #childcarecrisis

On the Money: Childcare. It’s a word that can strike dread into the hearts of young parents. We all love our children but the economic realities of modern life dictate that both parents in most families will have to work outside the home. And that’s even before you consider that women – and it is almost always women who are expected to commit to family child-minding duties – have every right to an expectation that they can pursue a career path with the same ambition as their partners.

For those of you working with colleagues who are juggling little ones at home, try your best to be patient with them! Childcare for full-time working parents is 100x harder than I ever imagined it would be. Last year, I paid over $18,000 for ONE child for full-time care. Meanwhile, in-state tuition for a four-year public college in New York is ~$7,900 (according to this article). It's more than twice as expensive to send my child to daycare than college. 🤯 That's not to even mention all of the days she's home due to illness, staff development days, holidays, etc. Plus when we have to pay an additional babysitter if I have an evening work event or want an occasional date night. We're about to start school in the fall and now childcare options for before/after school are even more scarce (and just as expensive). Not everyone has "a village." Being a working parent is mentally, emotionally, and financially draining for so many reasons. The word "crisis" feels like an understatement.

There is a widespread misconception that the hurdles of childcare significantly diminish once children enter school. https://buff.ly/4b8nyut #humanresources #backgroundcheck #hiring #drugtesting #tenantscreening #propertymanagment #tenant

There is a widespread misconception that the hurdles of childcare significantly diminish once children enter school. https://buff.ly/4b8nyut #humanresources #backgroundcheck #hiring #drugtesting #tenantscreening #propertymanagment #tenant

On the Money: Childcare. It’s a word that can strike dread into the hearts of young parents. We all love our children but the economic realities of modern life dictate that both parents in most families will have to work outside the home. And that’s even before you consider that women – and it is almost always women who are expected to commit to family child-minding duties – have every right to an expectation that they can pursue a career path with the same ambition as their partners.

We examine the survey findings in the Early Education and Childcare Coalition's Pulse Check 2024 to get an understanding of the public attitude towards Early Years in England. https://loom.ly/M0_W8-M #QualityForChildren #EarlyYearsIreland #EarlyYearsPolicy