Families of up to 64,000 NSW children will benefit from $500 in fee relief under the Minns Labor government's push to boost preschool education and provide cost of living relief.
This is part of a more than $100 million package of initiatives to invest in early learning and enhance the sector's workforce, after opportunities in this important sector were missed by the Liberals and the Nationals.
Investment in quality early childhood education and care has lifelong benefits for NSW's youngest learners and is a key to enabling parental workforce participation.
The initiatives include:
- Fee relief: $64 million over 2 years to provide $500 in fee relief per child, per year for parents of 3-year-olds in long day care preschool programs.
- Flexibility for families: $20 million for the Flexible Initiatives trial to expand access to early childhood education and care, extended hours and assist parents re-entering the workforce.
- New services: $20 million in capital funds to support new not-for-profit services in high-growth and regional communities.
- Workforce: $22 million over 5 years to recruit and retain essential early childhood workers including providing professional development and scholarships for tertiary education of early childhood workers.
Premier of NSW Chris Minns said:
"We were elected with a mandate to reinvest in essential services - and that includes giving children the best possible start in life, and a great education.
"Today's announcement is an important step towards ensuring all children in NSW have access to early education.
"We know how important early education is to a child's development. These are big reforms that will impact the way we deliver early education in NSW."
Deputy Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car said:
"This government is committed to making sure all children in NSW get the best start in life.
"Achieving that goal includes making the investments necessary to make preschool more affordable and accessible for all families.
"We also need to usher in a strong and reliable pipeline of early childhood workers, so our system is supported now and into the future.
"Attending preschool is so important for young children's development, and the investments we make today will make a world of difference for these children's futures."
