Fixing childcare shortage not as simple as ABC
By Ashlee Betteridge
The childcare shortage in the
Woollahra municipality is improving,
but affordability and centre
operating hours continue to be an
issue for local parents, according
to Woollahra Council’s director of
community services Kylie Walshe.
A year ago, Village Voice reported
on Federal Government figures that
revealed the Woollahra local gov-
ernment area area was completely
lacking in long day care vacancies.
But Ms Walshe said that a child-
care supply and demand study un-
dertaken by council in November
last year showed that there were
now 230 more childcare and pre-
school places in Woollahra than in
2005.
“We still have gaps in the zero to
two age group, but things are look-
ing better for three to fives,” Ms
Walshe said.
“Operating hours and affordabil-
ity are still big issues though for par-
ents,” she said.
A number of local private schools
have established their own centres
recently, Ms Walshe said.
“In these cases, the schools don’t
have to buy land to build a centre, so
it’s more economical for them than
someone starting from scratch,” she
said.
WHERE WE STAND
New figures from Woollahra
Council show that there
has been an increase in the
number of childcare places in the
municipality.
There is now a total of 835
childcare and preschool places in
the area.
These services provide places for
91 per cent of children living in the
area aged between 2 and 5, but for
only 9 per cent of infants between 0
to 1 years.
While many of the newer com-
mercial centres had high fees, they
would reduce the pressure on com-
munity and not-for-profit centre
waiting lists, Ms Walshe said.
Local childcare operators con-
tacted by the Village Voice said they
still had lengthy waiting lists, par-
ticularly for children under three
years.
Elizabeth Warren, director of the
Sir Phillip Baxter Childcare Centre
in Woollahra, said the area could
do with more childcare places for
children under three years, but new
preschool services meant that there
were enough places for four to five
year olds.
Michelle Bathgate, director of
Ballykin at Rose Bay, said her cen-
tre had a waiting list of around 80
families.
“It’s just really hard because we
can’t accommodate all the families
on our waiting list,” Ms Bathgate
said.
“There’s a real shortage of places
in the area, and it’s really disheart-
ening telling families we can’t guar-
antee them a place,” she said.
Ms Bathgate said all levels of gov-
ernment should introduce grants to
offset the cost of opening new child-
care centres, which would help solve
the shortage.
VILLAGE VOICE EASTERN HARBOURSIDE April 11