Dear friends and supporters,
You know that quote about there being decades where nothing happens, and then weeks where decades happen?
October 2022 can be remembered as the latter! It's been a month where it's felt like decades of progress have happened - at a federal and state level - with the potential to meaningfully improve the lives of many parents and children in Australia.
This has been the year in which the significance of early childhood education and care and paid parental leave are finally being recognised and embraced by federal and state politicians across the spectrum - and that’s fantastic news! We've wrapped the news up for you below.
Have a great November and thanks for your support.
The Parenthood team
FAMILY-FRIENDLY BUDGET
The Albanese Government handed down their first budget which delivered significant early childhood education and care support, expanded paid parental leave and a commitment to make gender equality a national priority. Read our media release here.
VICTORIAN GOVERNMENT TO INVEST IN KINDERS
The Victorian Government announced that, if re-elected, it will deliver $705 million to build and expand around 180 government-owned kinders as part of its $9 billion Best Start Best Life package. "Investing in early education now and in the long-term will benefit children, support parents wanting to get back to work and stimulate the economy,” said Georgie Dent in our media release.
INTRODUCTION OF NEW KINDY FUNDING SCHEME IN QUEENSLAND
The introduction of a new kindy funding scheme in Queensland will offer 40,000 families free or cheaper kindy from 2023. “All young children have the right to access high-quality early learning regardless of their postcode or the income of their parents, so it’s fantastic to see that vulnerable and disadvantaged Queensland families will get more support to access kindergarten.” Read more here.
START OF NSW GOVERNMENT’S EARLY LEARNING PACKAGE
The NSW Government’s early learning reform package was officially launched in October. It is aimed at making early childhood education and care more accessible in the state and will drive up to $5 billion of investment in the sector over 10 years to support NSW families with access to early learning. Find out more here.
CONTACT YOUR POLITICIAN AHEAD OF THE VIC & NSW ELECTIONS!
The Victorian and NSW elections are fast approaching! With both state governments offering free play based learning if re-elected, now is the time to ensure these important reforms happen - no matter who wins each election.
Politicians need to hear from you in order to implement suitable policy reform for families. We've created two super duper short videos to help you get started, which you can squeeze into your already busy day as a parent :) Watch the videos here, then join our Victorian WhatsApp chat or NSW WhatsApp chat, to discuss and find out next steps.
