The Minns Labor Government is investing $100 million to help community preschools expand their hours and cater for more children, giving working families better access to quality early education.
This next stage of the Government's early learning reforms will lift the quality of childcare by supporting not-for-profit providers to open longer and serve more families.
It forms part of the Government's commitment to rebalance a sector increasingly dominated by for-profit providers, which have grown by 90 per cent in the past decade and now account for 58 per cent of NSW's 6,300 services.
Community preschools will be encouraged to extend their operating hours, open more days, and expand the age range of children they serve, making it easier for working families to access trusted, quality care.
With strong community roots, and an excellent record of quality service, these not-for-profits are widely regarded as among the best providers in NSW.
Through the new Expanding Quality Access program, community preschools will be supported to extend beyond current 9am-3pm hours and cater for children from birth through to school age. A strong uptake could see thousands of children gain access to services prioritising early learning.
This announcement follows the Government's landmark legislation introduced last week to prioritise the safety and wellbeing of children and restore parents' trust in early childhood education and care. The bill delivers 30 reforms to the Children (Education and Care Services National Law Application) Act 2010, including:
- Enshrining in law the principle that the rights and best interests of children come first.
- A 300 per cent increase in fines for non-compliant services, and a 900 per cent increase for large providers operating 25 or more services.
- A new requirement for providers to display their compliance history and details of any current investigations.
Together, these initiatives build on the Minns Labor Government's record investment in early education, including the commitment to build 100 new public preschools - the largest ever by a state government. This will double the number of public preschools in NSW and deliver up to 9,000 new preschool places.
The $100 million investment will support eligible preschools over two years to upgrade their facilities, improve IT and administration, and build workforce capability to support expanded services. Applications for the Expanding Quality Access program open today, with providers encouraged to apply.
The community preschool sector has been arguing for increased funding and while the NSW Government doesn't fund wages in the sector, we do provide program funding, and this is a substantial uplift for the sector that can be accessed with an application to the Expanding Quality Access Program.
Acting Minister for Education and Early Learning Courtney Houssos said:
"The Minns Labor Government understands the value of early education - it's central to our commitment to universal preschool for our littlest learners. That's why we're backing the community preschool sector to provide more services for families who already value their fantastic, high-quality services.
"We believe every child should have access to the best possible education, regardless of their age, and this investment will help community preschools deliver that.
"We want more families to access quality early education close to home and at hours that suit them. The community preschool sector's credentials are trusted by so many families, so it makes perfect sense to support them to grow and reach more."
