More working families in NSW will benefit from convenient and accessible early childhood education and care, as the Flexible Initiatives Trial delivers its third round of funding.
The Minns Labor Government will invest more than $3 million in 28 early learning centres across the state, including 20 in regional NSW and six in Western Sydney, which will benefit up to 840 children and their families.
This round of funding will allow the services receiving grants to trial new or or adapted initiatives to best serve the needs of their communities, including:
- Supporting seven family day care providers in regional and remote communities to establish new educator roles.
- Creating 18 new educator roles within community preschools to support extended hours of care.
- Providing extended hours of care for up to 120 children with outside of school hours services at four public schools, as well as establishing seven new holiday care programs.
The Flexible Initiatives Trial benefits working families by providing more convenient and accessible early childhood education and care.
In previous funding rounds this included providing families with more flexible care arrangements, including flexible pick-up and drop-off times, as well as increasing the availability of places for children where and when they are needed most.
The trial also helps establish new family day care options in regional and remote parts of NSW.
The Flexible Initiatives Trial began in 2023 and is the first grants program to be delivered under the Childcare and Economic Opportunity Fund.
During the first two rounds of funding, more than $8 million was awarded to 53 early learning centres across the state.
The program is part of the Minns Government's long-term commitment to support children and young families, including an historic $769 million investment t o build 100 new public preschools in NSW, the largest investment in public preschools in the state's history.
The Minns Government has also committed $60 million to build and upgrade preschools at non-government schools in areas where they are needed most.
Acting Minister for Education and Early Learning Courtney Houssos said:
"Our Flexible Initiatives Trial is all about giving working families all across NSW better access to affordable and quality early learning services which meet their needs.
"The Minns Labor Government, with the leadership of Deputy Premier Prue Car, wants every family to have access to high quality early learning, regardless of where they live or what they earn.
"Our government is supporting services to offer the care families and communities need, where and when they need it."
