NSW and Victoria announce increased funding for childcare programs over the next decade

Now’s the right time to make service upgrades at your centre.

As a result of the ongoing collaboration between the New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria governments, significant changes are coming to the childcare and education sector. In what the state premiers have called “the greatest transformation of early education in a generation”, an additional year of play-based learning will be introduced.  

The policy reform will benefit all children in Victoria and New South Wales. As they have a full year of play-based learning before they begin school, they have the opportunity to grow, learn, make friends and gain new experiences. Children four years of age will be offered 30 hours per week of play-based learning, up from the current 15 hours/week. The program will be called “pre-prep” in Victoria and “pre-kindergarten” in NSW. 

They have also announced plans to invest billions in childcare to drive down prices and increase the number of places over the next ten years. More than $5.8 billion will be allocated to introduce universal pre-kindergarten in NSW by 2030. Meanwhile, programs will be rolled out in Victoria starting in 2025 as part of early childhood education’s $9 billion overhaul. 

New childcare centres will be built in suburbs where there are long waiting lists. This will increase the overall childcare supply by about 3 to 5 per cent. This will help solve the problem in childcare deserts or places in the state where there are more than three times as many children as childcare facilities within 20 minutes of a family’s home. The reform will benefit hundreds of thousands of working families with limited access to childcare, making it easier for working parents to return to work on their own terms.

 This collaborative effort will undoubtedly benefit providers of early childhood care and education. A workforce plan is also included in the policy to ensure expanding centres can find qualified staff. These reforms should enhance the financial stability of childcare providers. Centres will be in an excellent place to consider improving business practices and availing themselves of upgrades to continue thriving.  

Revisiting software upgrade plans can help services future-proof their business. Adopting convenient and easy-to-use platforms like Playground is a practical next step. Playground integrates compliance, safety and parent engagement into one platform. It makes it easy to document learning outcomes, record observations, and improve parent engagement—resulting in centres providing better quality care. As the childcare sector takes a step forward, so should your centre. 

Find out more about Playground.