tag:theconversation.com,2011:/africa/topics/childcare-funding-23044/articlesChildcare funding – The Conversation2023-05-17T12:39:40Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1994932023-05-17T12:39:40Z2023-05-17T12:39:40ZLack of affordable child care is hurting young farm families’ ability to grow their businesses – the US farm bill may finally offer some help<p>Kerissa and Charlie Payne are beginning farmers living their dream of raising two daughters on a farm in Central Ohio. By conventional measures, their livestock farm, Covey Rise, is a success. Yet, below the surface, the challenge of finding quality affordable child care has kept their business from growing and reaching its full potential.</p>
<p>“It feels like we’re always split between keeping the kids safe on the farm, being a good parent, and the needs of the farm,” Kerissa Payne said. </p>
<p>The United States has a child care crisis, yet the issue remains largely invisible in the farm sector. For too long, the nation has ignored the fact that farm parents are working parents who must juggle child care while working what can be one of the most <a href="https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2020/a-look-at-workplace-safety-in-agriculture.htm">dangerous and stressful jobs</a> in America.</p>
<p>But as Bob Dylan might say, “The times they are a-changin’.”</p>
<p>For the first time in history, the two largest farm organizations, the <a href="https://www.fb.org/files/2023-Farm-Bill-Priorities-FINAL-23.0119.pdf">American Farm Bureau</a> and the <a href="https://nfu.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/2023-NFU-Policy-Book.pdf">National Farmers Union</a>, have included child care in their policy priorities for the 2023 <a href="https://theconversation.com/these-four-challenges-will-shape-the-next-farm-bill-and-how-the-us-eats-202555">federal farm bill</a>, a massive spending bill that passes every five years. As <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=FxS3OVEAAAAJ&hl=en">rural researchers</a>, <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=GlcrpecAAAAJ&hl=en">our conversations</a> with policymakers suggest that there may be bipartisan support to help increase access to affordable quality rural child care as lawmakers hear from families. </p>
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<img alt="A man and adolescent work in a greenhouse." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526702/original/file-20230517-17-xion68.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526702/original/file-20230517-17-xion68.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526702/original/file-20230517-17-xion68.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526702/original/file-20230517-17-xion68.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526702/original/file-20230517-17-xion68.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526702/original/file-20230517-17-xion68.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526702/original/file-20230517-17-xion68.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Keeping children busy and safe can divert time from parents’ own farm work.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/man-with-child-in-the-farm-royalty-free-image/1315791629">AnnaStills/iStock/Getty Images Plus</a></span>
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<p>Over the past 10 years, we have interviewed and surveyed thousands of farmers across the country to understand how child care affects farm business economic viability, farm safety, farm families’ quality of life <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-022-10307-4">and the future of the nation’s food supply</a>. What we found debunks the three most common myths that have kept child care in the shadows of farm policy debates and points to solutions that can support farm parents.</p>
<h2>Myth #1: Child care is a not a problem in the farm sector</h2>
<p>Despite hearing from countless parents about their challenges with child care, the issue has been largely invisible among farm business advisers, farm organizations, and federal and state agricultural agencies. When we were interviewing advisers and decision-makers about this topic early in the COVID-19 pandemic, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.1043774">common first reactions we heard were</a>: “child care is not an issue for farmers,” “we have never thought to ask about it” and “does it affect the farm business?”</p>
<p>Nationally, three-quarters (77%) of farm families with children under 18 report <a href="https://doi.org/10.21636/nfmc.nccrahs.childcaresurvey.researchbrief.1.2023">difficulties securing child care</a> because of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15575330.2020.1800772">lack of affordability</a>, availability or quality. Almost half (48%) report that having access to affordable child care is important for maintaining and growing their farm business. </p>
<p>Our research has <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/1059924X.2022.2068716">consistently found</a> child care is an issue that affects all of agriculture regardless of farm size, production system or location.</p>
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<img alt="A smiling little girl in a bright pink coat looks through the wires of a fence at the cattle beyond." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526099/original/file-20230515-20-i2fvqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C1007%2C691&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526099/original/file-20230515-20-i2fvqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=761&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526099/original/file-20230515-20-i2fvqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=761&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526099/original/file-20230515-20-i2fvqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=761&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526099/original/file-20230515-20-i2fvqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=957&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526099/original/file-20230515-20-i2fvqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=957&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526099/original/file-20230515-20-i2fvqh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=957&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Growing up on a farm can be fun and educational, even as parents worry about risks.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kerissa and Charlie Payne</span></span>
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<p>Access to child care is <a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/article/coronavirus-will-make-child-care-deserts-worse-exacerbate-inequality/">especially acute in rural areas</a>, where even before COVID-19, 3 in 5 rural communities were <a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/article/americas-child-care-deserts-2018/">categorized as child care deserts</a>. The high cost of child care left the Paynes in a position familiar to many Americans – they make too much to qualify for child care support, but they don’t make enough to afford the type of quality child care they want.</p>
<p>The Paynes’ experience reflects what we consistently hear from farmers: Child care affects the trajectory of the farm business and the ability of a farm family to stay on the land.</p>
<p><iframe id="CZGMg" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/CZGMg/11/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>Myth #2: Farmers don’t want or need help with child care because they have family help</h2>
<p>Perhaps one of the biggest myths we have heard is that farm parents want to do it all on their own, and when they need help, they have family members who can watch the children.</p>
<p>This might work if relatives are nearby, but almost half of farmers we surveyed said their own parents were too busy to help with child care, had died or were in declining health.</p>
<p>Often, farm parents have <a href="http://doi.org/10.1080/15575330.2020.1800772">had to move away</a> from family and friends to find affordable land. These parents consistently said the lack of community made it harder to take care of their children.</p>
<p>Farmers have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/1059924X.2022.2068716">repeatedly said that it is a myth</a> that they don’t want help taking care of children. The problem is that they cannot find or afford help.</p>
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<img alt="An adolescent boy in full beekeeper coveralls and veil stands besides his mother as she lifts a bee-covered honeycomb from a beehive." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526620/original/file-20230516-19-98pbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526620/original/file-20230516-19-98pbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526620/original/file-20230516-19-98pbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526620/original/file-20230516-19-98pbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526620/original/file-20230516-19-98pbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526620/original/file-20230516-19-98pbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526620/original/file-20230516-19-98pbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A honey producer teaches her son about beekeeping in Maryland.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/usdagov/51243388682/in/album-72157719739711317/">Preston Keres/USDA/FPAC</a></span>
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<h2>Myth #3: Children can just come along when doing farm work</h2>
<p>While wonderful places to grow up, farms can be dangerous, with large equipment, electric fencing, large animals, ponds and other potential hazards. Every day, <a href="https://marshfieldresearch.org/Media/Default/NFMC/PDFs/ChildAgInjuryFactsheet2020.pdf">33 children are seriously injured</a> in agricultural-related incidents, and every three days a child dies on a farm.</p>
<p>Farm parents we spoke with recounted stories of children who died after falling out of a tractor, drowned when they fell into a pond, or were maimed by a cow. Almost all farm parents – 97% – have <a href="https://doi.org/10.21636/nfmc.nccrahs.childcaresurvey.researchbrief.1.2023">worried that their children could get hurt</a> on the farm.</p>
<p>In our research, parents talked about constantly weighing the risks and benefits of having children on the farm. One farmer had hoped his young son would “be my little sidekick and do everything I did.” However, the reality was different. He admitted he “didn’t think about a baby not being able to be out in the sun all day,” and he was <a href="http://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-020-10162-1">struggling to balance care work and farm work</a>. The government has spent millions of dollars on farm stress programs, yet child care’s role in creating and exacerbating farm stress is rarely talked about.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A baby's bottle sticks out the front pocket of bib overalls." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526096/original/file-20230515-21-66xt42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526096/original/file-20230515-21-66xt42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526096/original/file-20230515-21-66xt42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526096/original/file-20230515-21-66xt42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526096/original/file-20230515-21-66xt42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526096/original/file-20230515-21-66xt42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526096/original/file-20230515-21-66xt42.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Without affordable child care, farm parents often do double duty.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Kerissa and Charlie Payne</span></span>
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<p>The Paynes asked a question we heard from many other parents: “Why is farming the only occupation where you are expected to take your kids to work?”</p>
<p>Farm safety programs have traditionally focused on education. However, our research shows that farm parents <a href="https://doi.org/10.21636/nfmc.nccrahs.childcaresurvey.researchbrief.1.2023">are highly aware of the risks</a>. Instead of education, parents explain that they need resources to help with child care – 86% said they sometimes bring children to the farm worksite because they lack other options.</p>
<h2>Finding solutions to support child care</h2>
<p>There is no one-size-fits-all solution to America’s child care problems, particularly for farm parents, who are juggling raising their own families while working to feed and clothe the nation.</p>
<p>In our research, farmers spoke about a wide range of solutions: free or affordable quality child care, before- and after-school programs, better parental leave policies for wage and self-employed workers, financial support for safe play areas on the farm, college debt relief, free college tuition and more affordable health insurance.</p>
<p>Seeing his farm community struggling with child care, Adam Alson, a corn and soybean farmer in Jasper County, Indiana, co-founded <a href="https://www.appleseedchildhoodeducation.org/">Appleseed Childhood Education</a>, a nonprofit dedicated to creating care and education opportunities for children from birth through high school. It opened its first early learning center in 2023 with a mix of public and private support.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="People shoot confetti into the air outside a building in celebration." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/526092/original/file-20230515-27-jf5lfm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Farmers, backers and staff celebrate the opening of the new Appleseed Childhood Education Center in Jasper County, Indiana, which had largely been a childcare desert, to the detriment of farm families.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Adam Alson</span></span>
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<p>Alson sees investing in child care as a path to attracting and retaining young farmers and families, and a strategy for growing and retaining the rural workforce.</p>
<p>“Throughout our country’s history, we have valued the importance of our rural communities and have invested in them and in sectors where the market does not go,” he said. “In 2023, quality child care is one of those sectors.”</p>
<p>As one Ohio farmer put it: “If America wants farmers, farm families need help with child care.”</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199493/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Shoshanah Inwood receives funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Florence Becot receives funding from the CDC National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.</span></em></p>Access to affordable child care affects farm productivity, safety and ultimately the nation’s food supply. Farm families across the U.S. are struggling without it.Shoshanah Inwood, Associate Professor of Rural Sociology, The Ohio State UniversityFlorence Becot, Associate Research Scientist in Rural Sociology, Adjunct Faculty - National Farm Medicine Center, The Ohio State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1943082022-11-28T06:52:23Z2022-11-28T06:52:23ZEngland’s early years educators are underpaid and undervalued – only government investment can improve this<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497195/original/file-20221124-18-1hdbl8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=40%2C8%2C5422%2C3628&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/teacher-pupils-using-flower-shapes-montessori-641732287">Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Early education and care for children aged from birth to five in England is at a critical point. </p>
<p>On one hand, the cost of care and education to parents at a time of high price rises is a key issue. In 2022, the <a href="https://www.coram.org.uk/sites/default/files/resource_files/Coram%20Childcare%20Survey%20-%202022.pdf">average annual cost</a> of a part-time nursery place for a child under two in Great Britain is £7,210. </p>
<p>At the same time, the government has been accused of “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2021/jun/15/ministers-knowingly-underfunding-childcare-sector-england">knowingly underfunding</a>” early years settings, many of which are struggling to stay afloat. The sector is also experiencing challenges in recruiting and retaining staff. Early years educators may well be <a href="https://dera.ioe.ac.uk//33301/">leaving for better paid retail work</a>. </p>
<p>The government’s most recent <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/596884/Workforce_strategy_02-03-2017.pdf">early years workforce strategy</a> for England was published in 2017. It claimed it represented “the government’s commitment to supporting the early years sector to thrive”, but the early years workforce has not seen <a href="https://www.lse.ac.uk/News/Latest-news-from-LSE/2021/f-June-21/Lack-of-early-years-support-costs-England-over-16-billion-per-year">sustained investment</a>. There was a notable lack of reference to any funding for early years care and education in the <a href="https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/news/article/autumn-statement-2022-government-accused-of-ignoring-the-sector-as-chancellor-announces-more-money-for-schools">recent autumn statement</a>.</p>
<p>All children in their early years should be cared for and educated by qualified professionals. <a href="https://www.nuffieldfoundation.org/sites/default/files/files/Quality_inequality_childcare_mathers_29_05_14.pdf">Research</a> has found a strong relationship between the level of staff qualifications and the quality of early childhood education and care. And while the qualifications of early educators are important for all children, the impact can be particularly significant when well qualified staff are supporting the development of children from disadvantaged backgrounds. </p>
<p>We also know that having university-educated staff <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/181480/DFE-RR144.pdf">makes a difference</a> to young children’s learning. So the skills, the experience and the calibre of early years educators matters. But, while there have been some reforms in recent years, qualification levels still vary across the sector.</p>
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<img alt="Children playing with teddy" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497204/original/file-20221124-12-c64pg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/497204/original/file-20221124-12-c64pg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497204/original/file-20221124-12-c64pg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497204/original/file-20221124-12-c64pg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497204/original/file-20221124-12-c64pg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497204/original/file-20221124-12-c64pg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/497204/original/file-20221124-12-c64pg8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Research shows that a better educated early years workforce benefits disadvantaged children.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cute-little-girl-boy-playing-toys-717259231">veryulissa/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>There is a diverse range of qualifications and professional roles in early childhood education and care, including teachers, early years educators, assistants and childminders. <a href="https://ndna.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/NDNA-Full-Workforce-Survey-Report-2018-2019-1.pdf">Research suggests</a> that the workforce is becoming younger, less highly qualified and less experienced. </p>
<p>At the same time, a 2020 study by the <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/906906/The_stability_of_the_early_years_workforce_in_England.pdf">Social Mobility Commission</a> shows a high degree of staff turnover. The commission found that the most important barriers to a stable early childhood education and care workforce were low income, high workload and responsibilities, insufficient training and opportunities for progression and the profession’s low status and reputation. </p>
<h2>Working conditions</h2>
<p>The importance of early childhood education and care is not matched by the pay for those working in the system. <a href="http://www.natcen.ac.uk/media/1857585/Understanding-the-Early-Years-Workforce.pdf?_ga=2.59801449.513264227.1581421727-2013887984.1581421727">Research</a> from 2020 shows that low salaries and poor pay progression are forcing staff out of the early years sector. A report published in 2019 found that 45% of childcare workers were claiming <a href="https://epi.org.uk/publications-and-research/the-early-years-workforce-in-england/">state benefits or tax credits</a>. </p>
<p>This situation has been made worse by the pandemic. Early years educators found themselves <a href="https://childcare-during-covid.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/CDC-19-Final-report.pdf">essential but undervalued</a>, resulting in high stress levels, low morale and poor wellbeing. These conditions are unlikely to be improved by the recent government suggestion of increasing the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2022/jul/04/plan-to-lower-nursery-staff-to-child-ratio-in-england-angers-parents-and-providers">child-to-staff ratio</a>, which would see each member of staff working with more children.</p>
<h2>International examples</h2>
<p>The Irish government and early years sector have developed a <a href="https://first5.gov.ie/">comprehensive plan</a> for qualifications and professional development alongside <a href="https://first5fundingmodel.gov.ie/">new funding</a> payments made direct to nurseries and childminders. In Australia, a <a href="https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-10/ShapingOurFutureChildrensEducationandCareNationalWorkforceStrategy-September2021.pdf">ten-year strategy</a> includes a commitment to improved pay and conditions. Meanwhile, in <a href="https://conversation-space.s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/SES_0342_ELS_10YP_Final+Report_Web.pdf">New Zealand</a>, there is a commitment, including funding, for all staff members to become qualified teachers in early learning centres.</p>
<p>In England, a simplified framework of qualifications, a plan for graduate level leaders and higher pay would be valuable improvements. These developments would not only provide a pipeline of future staff members, but would help to ensure further quality care and education for children. </p>
<p>The challenges that the workforce and early years settings are experiencing are evident. <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09669760.2021.1892601">Improving the sector</a> will require both political will and sustained investment.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194308/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nathan Archer does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Childcare is increasingly expensive for parents – and staff are leaving the sector.Nathan Archer, Director International Montessori Institute, Leeds Beckett UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1705512021-10-27T19:13:10Z2021-10-27T19:13:10Z40% of Australia’s unvaccinated population will soon be kids under 5. Childcare will be the next COVID frontline<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428653/original/file-20211026-27-16nf962.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cute-little-kids-playing-together-1248235762">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Once five to 11 year olds have access to COVID vaccines, children up to four years old will make up about 40% of Australia’s unvaccinated population. This will make Australia’s early learning sector the next frontline of the pandemic.</p>
<p>A new <a href="https://www.vu.edu.au/mitchell-institute/early-learning/covid-19-early-childhood-education-care">report from the Mitchell Institute</a> shows childcare centres are at risk of becoming major transmission locations without a comprehensive strategy to reduce the risk.</p>
<p>While high vaccinations rates across the population will slow the spread of COVID, outbreaks are still likely to occur with the virus predominantly finding the unvaccinated. As younger children are not yet protected by vaccines, it is important to implement measures that reduce possible transmission in educational settings.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428366/original/file-20211025-21-1eva8gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428366/original/file-20211025-21-1eva8gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=848&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428366/original/file-20211025-21-1eva8gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=848&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428366/original/file-20211025-21-1eva8gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=848&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428366/original/file-20211025-21-1eva8gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1066&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428366/original/file-20211025-21-1eva8gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1066&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428366/original/file-20211025-21-1eva8gp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1066&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Mitchell Institute report on COVID-19 and ECEC.</span>
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<p>Many of the approaches used to mitigate the spread of COVID in schools – such as masks and social distancing – will be more difficult to implement in childcare. The childcare funding model also means measures that result in a reduction in physical attendance threaten the viability of providers.</p>
<p>Our report calls for a federal strategy and package of support for the sector to reduce the risk of transmission among the one million unvaccinated children attending childcare and pre-school.</p>
<h2>Children and COVID</h2>
<p>Rates of sickness, hospitalisation and death due to COVID are much lower in children compared to adults. </p>
<p>Evidence from the most recent outbreak in New South Wales suggests <a href="https://ncirs.org.au/sites/default/files/2021-09/NCIRS%20NSW%20Schools%20COVID_Summary_8%20September%2021_Final_0.pdf">about 2% of children</a> and young people under 18 years old who catch COVID end up in hospital. The most common symptoms among children who showed <a href="https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2021/215/5/characteristics-sars-cov-2-positive-children-who-presented-australian-hospitals">symptoms of COVID</a> include fever, stuffy or runny nose, cough and fatigue. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/children-may-need-to-be-vaccinated-against-covid-19-too-heres-what-we-need-to-consider-146404">Children may need to be vaccinated against COVID-19 too. Here's what we need to consider</a>
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<p>But children can still be <a href="https://www.thieme-connect.com/products/ejournals/html/10.1055/s-0040-1710512#N68655">effective carriers of COVID</a>.</p>
<p>As vaccination rates rise among adults, so does the proportion of COVID cases involving children. </p>
<p>This has been the experience in Europe. The figure below shows the proportion of weekly reported COVID cases involving children under 15 years old in Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands, along with the rates of vaccination.</p>
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<p><iframe id="IPkxL" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/IPkxL/3/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
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<p>Before any vaccinations were available in these countries, children under 15 made up about 15-25% of reported COVID cases. They now make up about 35-40% of all reported cases.</p>
<p>As the figure below shows, children 0-4 years old make up about 6% of Australia’s total population. Once 5-11 year olds have access to vaccines, and vaccination rates are above 90%, children aged 0-4 make about 40% of the unvaccinated population.</p>
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<p><iframe id="7BDop" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/7BDop/4/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
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<p>Many of these children will interact on a daily basis at childcare centres. </p>
<p>There is <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2783022">also recent evidence</a> that shows children under five are 40% more likely to transmit COVID than older children. </p>
<p>About <a href="https://www.dese.gov.au/child-care-australia-report-march-quarter-2021">750,000 children aged 0 to 4 years</a> attend a childcare services. About <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/education/preschool-education-australia/latest-release">330,000 children</a> are enrolled in pre-school.</p>
<h2>Mitigation measures harder in childcare</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://www.mcri.edu.au/news/data-informing-return-students-classrooms-and-measures-keep-schools-covid-safe">consensus among health experts</a> is that mitigation measures will help manage the spread of COVID in early childhood education and care, and school settings.</p>
<p>But our report highlights these measures can be more difficult to implement in childcare and preschools compared to schools.</p>
<p>For instance, “cohorting” reduces contact between groups of children. In schools, this means keeping class groups together and separate from other classes as much as possible.</p>
<p>However, in childcare, there is not always a consistent or regular group of children attending and the mix of children can change every day. This makes such a measure difficult.</p>
<p>Improving ventilation <a href="https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/business/covid-safe-business/ventilation">has also been proposed</a> to reduce spread in childcare, preshools and schools. Open or well-ventilated spaces reduce the risk of COVID transmission because infectious particles are more quickly diffused in the open air than in spaces with less ventilation.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-19-cases-rise-when-schools-open-but-more-so-when-teachers-and-students-dont-wear-masks-169928">COVID-19 cases rise when schools open – but more so when teachers and students don't wear masks</a>
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<p>Some states have offered <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-23/victoria-melbourne-schools-plan-covers-ventilation-vaccination/100483622">funds to schools</a> and preschools to introduce better ventilation. But childcare centres don’t yet have the same level of support.</p>
<p>Childcare operators are largely run by not-for-profit or private organisations and may not have the means to invest in costly measures such as improved ventilation.</p>
<p>The funding model of early childhood education and care providers is also very different from schools. While schools can still receive funds if students are learning remotely, childcare funding is closely tied to physical attendance. </p>
<p>Any COVID mitigation measures that reduce the number of children at a centre can quickly threaten the financial viability of providers.</p>
<p>The Australian government has had to <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/FlagPost/2020/April/Coronavirus_response-Free_child_care">rescue the sector from collapse</a> — <a href="https://www.vu.edu.au/mitchell-institute/early-learning/governments-short-term-fixes-still-leave-childcare-sector-at-risk">twice</a> — during the pandemic when many children stopped attending.</p>
<h2>Australia needs a plan</h2>
<p>Some states and territories are providing schools with strategic direction and funding. But the childcare sector is largely the responsibility of the federal government, which does not have an urgently needed strategy or support package.</p>
<p>In the short term, Australia needs a plan specific to the operating reality of the early childhood education and care sector. The sector requires buttressing to not only prevent its collapse, but so it can play a significant part in minimising the potential harm COVID causes children and the wider population.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-government-has-again-rescued-the-childcare-sector-from-collapse-but-short-term-fixes-still-leave-it-at-risk-166568">The government has again rescued the childcare sector from collapse. But short-term fixes still leave it at risk</a>
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<p>And in the medium to long term, the pandemic highlights Australia may need to rethink how it funds and delivers early childhood education and care services. </p>
<p>There is <a href="https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/inbrief-science-of-ecd/">an enormous body of literature</a> describing the benefits of high-quality childcare. Australia needs a system that ensures children and families can continue to benefit from a more resilient early childhood education and care service, even in times of crisis.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/170551/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Hurley works for the Mitchell Institute who receive funding from Minderoo and the Thrive by Five campaign to undertake research on Australia's early childhood, education and care (ECEC) sector.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Maximilian de Courten is the director of the Mitchell Institute a Think Tank for Education and Health Policy.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jora Broerse does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A new report calls for a federal strategy and package of support for the sector to reduce the risk of transmission among the one million unvaccinated children attending childcare and pre-school.Peter Hurley, Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityJora Broerse, Research Fellow in Health Policy, Mitchell Institute for Education and Health Policy, Victoria UniversityMaximilian de Courten, Professor in Global Public Health and Director of the Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1665682021-08-24T02:58:14Z2021-08-24T02:58:14ZThe government has again rescued the childcare sector from collapse. But short-term fixes still leave it at risk<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/417485/original/file-20210824-15-287sdb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/closeup-asian-kids-hand-playing-colorful-576832756">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://ministers.dese.gov.au/morrison/targeted-assistance-child-care-services-during-covid-lockdown">federal government yesterday announced</a> a relief package for childcare providers affected by extended lockdowns. </p>
<p>Childcare services in Commonwealth-declared hotspots will be eligible for payments of 25% of their pre-lockdown revenue. Outside-school-hours-care services will be eligible for payments of 40%.</p>
<p>Childcare centres must be experiencing a 50% drop in attendance, and agree to a fee freeze for the duration of support. </p>
<p>About 60% of childcare centres in Sydney <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/commonwealth-flags-possible-changes-to-childcare-support-20210823-p58l0q.html">reportedly had less than half</a> their usual number of children. In Melbourne, the reported expectation is attendance would settle at about 40-50%.</p>
<p>Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the payments would immediately help around 3,600 childcare services in Greater Sydney. In Greater Melbourne, the package will assist <a href="https://www.dese.gov.au/early-childhood/resources/december-quarter-2020">about 2,300 services</a> and nearly 300 in the ACT.</p>
<p>This is the second time in two years the pandemic has brought parts of Australia’s childcare system to the verge of collapse. Last year, the government put in place <a href="https://ministers.dese.gov.au/tehan/child-care-support-continues-aid-covid-recovery">several rescue packages</a> for childcare and out-of-school-hours-care services.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/not-much-relief-for-parents-but-new-childcare-measures-will-rescue-providers-again-146752">Not much relief for parents, but new childcare measures will rescue providers (again)</a>
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<p>But unlike in 2020, the recently announced package falls short of meeting the full costs of closure.</p>
<p>The most recent announcement means the federal government will meet most, but not all, the fee revenue childcare services collect. Parents whose children are still attending childcare may be asked to pay gap fees.</p>
<h2>What does this package mean for providers?</h2>
<p>Around <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/aug/20/childcare-centres-urge-nsw-government-to-clarify-rules-during-delta-wave">160 childcare centres</a> have reportedly closed nationally due to the immediate risk of COVID transmission.</p>
<p>In Victoria, childcare and preschools are <a href="https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/authorised-provider-and-authorised-worker-permit#accessing-childcare">open to children</a> who have at least one parent or guardian with a valid authorised worker permit, working either at home or on site, and who can’t make alternative supervision arrangements.</p>
<p>In NSW, parents and families are strongly encouraged to keep their children at home.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=405&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/417505/original/file-20210824-25-1pjzkl9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=509&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Childcare isn’t open to all parents who need it.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/tired-mother-trying-work-on-laptop-1678267606">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>Australia’s childcare is provided by a mixture of for-profit and not-for-profit services who usually charge on a per hour or daily basis.</p>
<p>The federal government <a href="https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/services/centrelink/child-care-subsidy">provides a subsidy</a>, paid directly to early childhood services, who then pass it on to families as a fee reduction. </p>
<p>The amount of the subsidy, and the amount parents pay out-of-pocket, depends on family income and the fee childcare providers charge.</p>
<p>Normally, childcare providers must charge a gap fee to receive the federal government subsidy. </p>
<p>In 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic, the federal government implemented a “<a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/FlagPost/2020/April/Coronavirus_response-Free_child_care">free childcare</a>” package.</p>
<p>Effectively, this meant the federal government continued to pay childcare providers the subsidies they normally received, as well as cover parents’ out-of-pocket costs.</p>
<p>Before the announcement yesterday, the federal government had <a href="https://ministers.dese.gov.au/morrison/targeted-assistance-child-care-services-during-covid-lockdown">already agreed to waive gap fees</a> for services in certain coronavirus “hot-spots”. Childcare providers can still receive the federal childcare subsidy, regardless of whether the child attends the service or whether they charge a gap fee to the child’s family. </p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/it-takes-a-village-why-sending-your-kid-to-childcare-isnt-outsourcing-parenting-163264">It takes a village: why sending your kid to childcare isn't 'outsourcing parenting'</a>
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<p>However, the federal government was not covering the out-of-pocket costs of parents. Without fees collected from families, childcare providers were suffering. </p>
<p>The table below shows government subsidies account for about 62% of all income received by childcare providers. Out-of-pocket expenses are estimated to be on average about 38% of total revenue for early childhood service providers.</p>
<p><iframe id="8ffGs" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/8ffGs/3/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Without the fees collected from families, it was difficult for providers to pay and retain their staff during the crisis. There were other difficult choices, too.</p>
<p>Childcare providers needed to make the decision whether to continue charging out-of-pocket expenses or waive the gap fee. While some providers <a href="https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/campaign/covid-19-help-businesses">may be eligible</a> for state based support, many do not meet eligibility requirements. </p>
<p>For parents and carers, whether they were required to pay out-of-pocket costs depends on the childcare provider. Many were faced with the tough decision of whether to pay for a service they are not using to keep their child enrolled.</p>
<p>The current announcement has helped ease these issues, but the sector remains vulnerable, especially when the rescue measures end.</p>
<h2>Let’s fix the funding model</h2>
<p>In the short term, advocates in the sector are also calling for two further measures. The first is clarification about which children are able to access childcare, particularly in NSW. This is so childcare providers and parents can more clearly understand their obligations. </p>
<p>The second is a vaccination program that enables childcare workers to access vaccines as essential workers.</p>
<p>In the long term, Australia may need to review how it approaches childcare to ensure a more resilient system less susceptible to external shocks.</p>
<p>Australia’s childcare system is a market-based subsidy model. This is different from other education or health services, which are often directly run or funded by governments.</p>
<p>Mostly non-government providers operate in the sector. Providers choose where to operate and set their own fees.</p>
<p>Australia applies similar types of <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/childcare/report/childcare-volume2.pdf">economic principles to childcare</a> that it does industries such as <a href="https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3610&context=lcp">aviation</a>. Like an airline seat, payment is based entirely on use. Competition between providers on services and fees is encouraged.</p>
<p>Like the airline industry, the system is also prone to periodic collapse. In 2008, Australia’s largest provider of childcare services, <a href="https://www.mcgrathnicol.com/insight/abc-learning-10-years/">ABC Learning, folded</a> leaving the childcare arrangements for more than 110,000 children in the balance. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/quality-childcare-has-become-a-necessity-for-australian-families-and-for-society-its-time-the-government-paid-up-131748">Quality childcare has become a necessity for Australian families, and for society. It's time the government paid up</a>
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<p>There is a <a href="https://developingchild.harvard.edu/guide/what-is-early-childhood-development-a-guide-to-the-science/">huge amount of research</a> showing the benefits of high quality early childhood education and care.</p>
<p>According to <a href="https://www.oecd.org/education/school/37519079.pdf">the OECD</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The evidence suggests that direct public funding of services brings more effective governmental steering of early childhood services, advantages of scale, better national quality, more effective training for educators and a higher degree of equity in access compared with parent subsidy models.</p>
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<p>The experience of the pandemic shows a fundamentally different approach might be needed for Australia to take full advantage of the benefits childcare can offer.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/166568/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Hurley works for the Mitchell Institute who receive funding from Minderoo and the Thrive by Five campaign to undertake research on Australia's early childhood, education and care (ECEC) sector. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hannah Matthews works for the Mitchell Institute who receive funding from Minderoo and the Thrive by Five campaign to undertake research on Australia's early childhood, education and care (ECEC) sector.</span></em></p>The government is paying childcare services in hot-spots 25% of pre-pandemic revenue. But without parents’ fees, the sector is still in a tough position.Peter Hurley, Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityHannah Matthews, Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute for Health and Education, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1632952021-07-05T17:08:20Z2021-07-05T17:08:20ZHow missing out on nursery due to COVID has affected children’s development – new research<p>Nurseries can be noisy places. A clutch of three-year-olds gathered round a book shout excitedly. Across the room, a small committee of toddlers negotiates over stickers and string. Outside, key workers encourage pairs of miniature gymnasts while others sing to drowsy babies. And through the cacophony, children’s use of language develops.</p>
<p>For parents collecting their children, the chatter and buzz of childcare settings is always reassuring. All the more so during the pandemic: another day of play and learning is done, with protective measures in place. </p>
<p>Parents are understandably anxious about how the pandemic has affected their pre-schoolers’ development. More than half of the 570 parents <a href="https://www.suttontrust.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/The-parents-view.pdf">surveyed</a> for a recent Sutton Trust report felt that their two-to-four year-olds’ social and emotional development had been negatively affected during the pandemic. A quarter of these parents felt their child’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-lockdown-has-affected-childrens-speech-and-what-parents-can-do-to-help-160886">language growth</a> in particular had suffered. One in five had similar concerns about their physical development. </p>
<p>In a <a href="https://babylab.brookes.ac.uk/research/social-distancing-and-development">recent study</a> on what attending childcare does for children’s speech, understanding, and thinking skills, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/icd.2241">we found</a> that a child who regularly attended nursery or a childminder one day a week during the pandemic understood an average of 24 more new words over the research period compared with their peers. </p>
<h2>Pandemic restrictions</h2>
<p>As the first lockdown in England was announced in March 2020, nurseries, childminders and other early years providers were closed to all children except those of critical workers or those classed as vulnerable. In the four months that followed, nursery attendance in England was down to <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-attendance-in-education-and-early-years-settings">5-10%</a> of its usual rate. </p>
<p>Nursery staff worked hard to <a href="https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/features/article/working-with-families-close-to-home">stay connected</a> to families. Many provided free and easy online activities such as stories and songs, puppet shows and creative competitions.</p>
<p>Despite these huge efforts, we don’t yet know what impact the disruption will have on children in the longer term. Will those who were able to attend nursery have reaped the usual, pre-COVID benefits, as so many of their playmates and teachers were at home, and their usual play environment looked so different? </p>
<p>Although the benefits of early childhood education and care are particularly pronounced in children from <a href="https://acamh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcpp.13313">disadvantaged backgrounds</a>, those from more privileged backgrounds will likely also have been impacted by nursery closures, as families struggled to provide supportive learning environments at home while splitting their time between caring for young children, educating their other children and working. </p>
<p>To understand how this disruption has affected families and young children, we recruited nearly 200 UK families through our <a href="https://leedscdu.org/">research labs</a>. Between March and June 2020, we asked about their use of formal (such as nursery and childminders) and informal (family and friends) childcare, before, during, and between the first and second lockdowns in England. We also gathered information on income, level of education, occupation, and neighbourhood. </p>
<p>To investigate early thinking skills (known as <a href="https://www.albertafamilywellness.org/resources/video/executive-function">executive functions</a> – the control of attention, behaviour, and emotion), we asked parents how often their child showed different behaviour such as following instructions, exploring, and regulating their emotions. Parents and carers told us how many words their children said and understood from categories such as animals, vehicles and food. And we asked them to play games with their child –- which were designed to elicit <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/rhzkq/">skills</a> such as waiting, finding, and sorting –- then analysed their observations.</p>
<p>In November and December 2020, we then followed up with the families on their children’s abilities in the same areas, <a href="https://babylab.brookes.ac.uk/research/social-distancing-and-development/sd-the-team">and explored</a> the relationship between the time children had spent at nursery or with a childminder, their growth in language and thinking skills, and their socioeconomic background. </p>
<p><a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/icd.2241">We found</a> that
a child regularly attending two days came to understand 48 more new words than their peers over the same period. This effect was greater among children from less affluent backgrounds. Children who continued to attend nursery or a childminder also showed larger boosts in their cognitive control, flexibility, and memory, regardless of socioeconomic background.</p>
<h2>Levelling inequalities</h2>
<p>Our data clearly shows that time at nursery or with a childminder helps children strengthen their language and cognitive skills. This fits in with research that shows that, alongside a supportive <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09243453.2020.1693487">home learning environment</a> – vital for early <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24467656/">language and literacy</a> development – high-quality childcare is equally important. </p>
<p>Childcare can stimulate the social, cognitive, physical and language growth that children need for <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00148-021-00835-4">starting school</a>. And children who enter their education with firm foundations have better chances at school and better economic success in <a href="https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/7729/">adulthood</a>.</p>
<p>Children from <a href="https://acamh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcpp.13313">disadvantaged backgrounds</a> stand to gain extra benefits from early childhood education and care. Families who have to adapt to greater economic stress (lower income) and greater environmental stress (income volatility, housing discrimination) tend to <a href="https://psyarxiv.com/byp4k/">speak</a> <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27196418/">less</a> to their children, which can impact their language growth.</p>
<p>Research shows that high-quality childcare helps to <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3947639/">buffer</a> against these risk factors, as well as against individual risk factors. For example, <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29720785/">household instability</a> in early childhood has been shown to lead to worse cognitive and social outcomes by the age of five. Going to nursery or spending time with a childminder, however, can substantially reduce this impact.</p>
<p>This suggests that children from the most disadvantaged families gain the most from early childhood education and care. But chronic <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2021/jun/15/ministers-knowingly-underfunding-childcare-sector-england">underfunding</a> of early years education presents a major barrier. Government investment is therefore a powerful way of alleviating socioeconomic <a href="https://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/312/5782/1900.full.pdf?casa_token=Y3uSZ1cBSP8AAAAA:2GGewvhRpRKcpdE9sT6xTDLks18NRMLI0FDxM6Ta2n6pj5P3DYPsb_SWvykOLsugeLOmCjQ3ym1maBI">inequalities.</a></p>
<p><a href="https://ifs.org.uk/inequality/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/BN-Inequalities-in-education-skills-and-incomes-in-the-UK-the-implications-of-the-COVID-19-pandemic.pdf">Lower-income families</a>, who have been disproportionately affected by <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n376">infections</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/jan/22/low-paid-workers-in-uk-more-than-twice-as-likely-to-lose-job-in-pandemic">unemployment</a>, <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/releases/coronavirusanddepressioninadultsgreatbritainjanuarytomarch2021">mental ill-health</a> and <a href="https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/deathsinvolvingcovid19bylocalareasanddeprivation/deathsoccurringbetween1marchand17april">deaths</a> during the pandemic - all stressors which are likely to affect home interactions with children. Our findings provide evidence that access to early childhood education and care is important for all children, and is an effective way of tackling inequality. Government investment is therefore <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-early-years-education-must-be-prioritised-in-pandemic-recovery-plans-163342">crucial</a>.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/163295/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Catherine Davies receives funding from the Economic and Social Research Council</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexandra Hendry receives funding from the National Institute for Health Research and holds the Scott Family Junior Research Fellowship at University College, University of Oxford</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nayeli Gonzalez-Gomez receives funding from the Economic and Social Research Council</span></em></p>Not being able to attend nurseries due to lockdown has affected children’s growth in emotional, linguistic and physical terms. The longterm effect could heighten inequalityCatherine Davies, Associate Professor in Language Development, University of LeedsAlexandra Hendry, Junior Research Fellow, University of OxfordNayeli Gonzalez-Gomez, Senior Lecturer in Psychology, Oxford Brookes UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1633422021-07-02T17:03:58Z2021-07-02T17:03:58ZWhy early-years education must be prioritised in pandemic recovery plans<p>Nursery workers, childminders and nannies have been working hard throughout the pandemic. This work is, in part, what has allowed key workers to <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-52514919">keep working</a>. This has been crucial not only for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/24/when-our-nursery-reopened-after-covid-19-only-7-kids-came-back-parents-are-terrified">parents</a> and their employers, but also for the children themselves, especially those who are <a href="https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/chldrn/">vulnerable</a> or <a href="https://epi.org.uk/publications-and-research/education-in-england-annual-report-2020/">disadvantaged</a> and those with <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-support-children-with-special-educational-needs-as-they-return-to-school-139422">special educational needs</a>.</p>
<p>The government’s <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/huge-expansion-of-tutoring-in-next-step-of-education-recovery">COVID recovery plan</a> for <a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-school-recovery-is-englands-1-4-billion-catch-up-plan-a-good-idea-162020">schools in England</a> includes £153 million for professional development for early-years practitioners. This is good news for a workforce that is chronically <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0950017009337057">underpaid and undervalued</a>. But the question is, will it be enough? </p>
<p>These early-years professionals have been forced to respond rapidly to uncertainty and change, which has only been exacerbated by <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/18/risky-vague-inconsistent-nursery-teachers-in-england-lament-covid-strategy">ambiguous and inadequate</a> official guidelines. The government was <a href="https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/news/article/coronavirus-dismay-as-early-years-staff-told-they-won-t-be-sent-testing-kits">slower</a>, for example, to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing to people working in private nurseries than in other parts of the education sector. </p>
<p>When schools closed to all but keyworkers’ children and vulnerable pupils, nursery workers <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/explainers-55545277">continued to work</a>. And they were <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-55546359">not prioritised</a> for the vaccine despite their daily risk of exposure to the virus. </p>
<p>COVID-related disruption and nursery closures affected the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2021/jan/18/fewer-uk-children-school-ready-after-covid-nursery-closures">development</a> and behaviour of young children. And research shows that quality education and care is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S027277570900106X">central</a> to addressing this.</p>
<h2>Recovery plan</h2>
<p>Observers fear the £153 million lump sum is only a fraction of what is needed to enable staff to address the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/oct/27/covid-toddlers-from-uks-poorest-families-hit-hardest-by-lockdown">widening</a> attainment gap for the most disadvantaged children. They also question whether it will ensure a healthy recovery for the early-years sector more broadly. </p>
<p>Professional development alone is not enough. Nursery workers are often paid little more than the minimum wage. Without improved salaries, this recovery package will only reinforce their perception that their skills and knowledge are <a href="https://cericleeds.wordpress.com/2021/01/26/invisible-keyworkers-why-responding-to-the-crisis-in-early-years-education-and-care-during-the-pandemic-must-address-working-conditions-for-early-years-workers/">not valued</a>. </p>
<p>Studies suggests that early-years education is “foundational” – an essential structure that underpins the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0958928716685689">economy</a> and <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev-soc-073018-022401">society</a>. <a href="https://childcare-during-covid.org/">Our ongoing research</a> into the impact of COVID on the sector lends weight to studies which indicate that the past year has placed <a href="https://ifs.org.uk/publications/14990">significant financial strain</a> on providers. </p>
<p>Meanwhile <a href="https://www.eyalliance.org.uk/news/2020/05/quarter-childcare-providers-fear-closure-within-year">a survey</a> conducted by the Early Years Alliance in May 2020, also found that one in four nurseries feared they would not reopen. While our research doesn’t indicate closures on this scale have or are taking place right now, the changes providers are making to adapt are likely to place greater strains on the workforce and threaten to undermine the quality of the education and care they provide. </p>
<p>Revenues plummeted when fewer children <a href="https://epi.org.uk/publications-and-research/the-covid-19-pandemic-and-the-early-years-december-2020/">attended nursery</a> due to the pandemic. The department of education’s subsequent decision to continue to provide funding at pre-pandemic levels did prevent many from falling into deficit. However, this measure was reversed in January 2021 and funding was altered to reflect actual attendance. </p>
<p>This is likely to have <a href="https://www.ceeda.co.uk/news/2019/early-years-sector-faces-a-quarter-of-a-billion-funding-cut-in-spring-term/">affected</a> those nurseries where attendance was lowest, which, our research suggests, will be those in areas of greatest deprivation. This will exacerbate the negative impact of the pandemic on the poorest families. </p>
<h2>Childcare crisis</h2>
<p>These pandemic-related losses have compounded <a href="https://theconversation.com/underpaid-and-undervalued-the-reality-of-childcare-work-in-the-uk-87413">long-standing</a> <a href="https://www.ceeda.co.uk/news/2019/time-for-a-sector-led-manifesto-for-early-years/">funding shortfalls</a> in early-years education. <a href="https://www.eyalliance.org.uk/news/2021/06/new-data-shows-ministers-knew-early-years-was-underfunded">New data</a> obtained by the Early Years Alliance through a freedom of information request shows that there is a shortfall of £2.60 per child for every hour that is funded through the government’s 30-hour so-called “<a href="https://theconversation.com/focusing-free-childcare-on-working-parents-is-short-sighted-44623">free</a>” childcare offer. </p>
<p>In response, nurseries and childminders are taking measures to compensate for their financial losses. Many are using their savings and taking on debt. More worryingly, others have also cut staffing hours. They are reducing hours, raising fees and increasing the child-to-staff ratios, which, research suggests, will <a href="https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/4642/1/RR320.pdf">lower the quality</a> of education and care. </p>
<p>The combination of these changes is likely to affect the <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/853358/CEYSP_2019_Report.pdf">affordability</a> of childcare. Importantly, it’s also likely to undermine the quality of the education and care the children receive. </p>
<p>For parents, accessible and affordable childcare is <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0958928718808421">essential</a> to both remaining in work and returning to work. We conducted a <a href="https://childcare-during-covid.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/LSSI_DWP_Impact-of-Covid-on-childcare_finalv2.pdf">survey</a> of 1,020 parents in England and Wales between January and February 2021. Of our respondents, 40% (344 parents) said that their ability to work was affected by childcare. Of these, one in ten had difficulty finding or securing a job because of problems accessing childcare during 2020. And almost one in five parents of the 344 said that a lack of childcare had an impact on their career progression.</p>
<p>Most parents who decided not to return to work after maternity or shared parental leave during the pandemic cited childcare and some, specifically the cost of childcare, as a significant factor. Research has shown that when childcare becomes more inaccessible and unaffordable, it is women who <a href="https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/business/documents/research/carrying-the-work-burden-of-covid-19/working-class-women-and-covid-final-report.pdf">disproportionately</a> pay the price in terms of their work and career progression. If this happens as a result of COVID, it will roll back decades of <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9780203978269/women-european-employment-colette-fagan-damian-grimshaw-jill-rubery-mark-smith">progress</a>. </p>
<p>The All Parties Parliamentary Group for Childcare and Early Education has <a href="https://connectpa.co.uk/early-years-catch-up-premium-needed/">called on</a> the chancellor Rishi Sunak and education secretary Gavin Williamson to fund a premium for the early-years of up to £3,000 per child. This echoes <a href="https://www.leeds.ac.uk/news/article/4827/call-for-extra-funding-for-early-years-care">the call</a> made by specialists at the University of Leeds, the University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University for early-years provision to be more thoroughly included in COVID recovery plans. Responding to these urgent calls must be a government priority.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/163342/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kate Hardy receives funding from UKRI/ESRC. The Childcare during Covid research project is funded by the UKRI/ESRC.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jennifer Tomlinson and Xanthe Whittaker do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>From nursery closures to families self-isolating, COVID has disrupted children’s access to pre-school care. This impacts their development, and their parents’ ability to workXanthe Whittaker, Research Fellow in Human Resource Management, University of LeedsJennifer Tomlinson, Professor of Gender and Employment Relations, University of LeedsKate Hardy, Associate Professor in Work and Employment Relations, University of LeedsLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1606102021-05-12T05:00:45Z2021-05-12T05:00:45Z‘Insulting’ and ‘degrading’: budget funding for childcare may help families but educators are still being paid pennies<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/400178/original/file-20210512-19-zg9rhm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/young-beautiful-teacher-toddlers-playing-building-1690362274">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The government has <a href="https://budget.gov.au/2021-22/content/essentials.htm#seven">committed an additional</a> A$1.7 billion over five years to reduce the cost of childcare for around 250,000 families with more than one child. Another $1.6 billion is going into ensuring each four-year-old child gets 15 hours of preschool a week. </p>
<p>But these budget announcements, framed in part as being a boost for women’s participation in the workforce, hold no good news for the early childhood workforce — <a href="https://education.nsw.gov.au/content/dam/main-education/early-childhood-education/working-in-early-childhood-education/media/documents/Workforce-Literature-Review.pdf">95% of whom are women</a>.</p>
<p>The increase in families using early childhood education and care relies on the stability of the workforce. At the moment, however, an <a href="https://theconversation.com/early-childhood-educators-are-leaving-in-droves-here-are-3-ways-to-keep-them-and-attract-more-153187">increasing number of educators</a> are leaving the profession due to low pay, feeling undervalued and too much time spent on paperwork.</p>
<h2>Problems for early childhood educators</h2>
<p>More than 150,000 educators and teachers <a href="https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-04/WorkforceStrategy-ConsultationPaper-2021.pdf">work in the early childhood education and care</a> sector. Most of the sector’s workforce are certificate III and diploma qualified educators, but an increasing proportion are degree-trained teachers. </p>
<p>In 2019, <a href="https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-04/WorkforceStrategy-ConsultationPaper-2021.pdf">workforce projections</a> for the five years to May 2024 suggested the sector would need an additional 30,000 educators (a 20% increase) and 7,000 teachers (a 16% increase). </p>
<p>These projections do not take account the impact of COVID-19 and may not reflect the current conditions. The beginning of the pandemic — when parents started taking their children out of early childhood education — saw an <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-10-22/qld-early-childhood-education-short-staffed-coronavirus/12743900">exodus of educators</a>. This was especially the case for casuals who weren’t eligible for JobKeeper.</p>
<p>Prior to the pandemic, the sector suffered from a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0022185618800351">turnover rate of up to 30%</a> per year. This is compared to an <a href="https://www.ahri.com.au/media/1222/turnover-and-retention-report_final.pdf">average turnover of around 18%</a> in the general workforce. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/early-childhood-educators-are-leaving-in-droves-here-are-3-ways-to-keep-them-and-attract-more-153187">Early childhood educators are leaving in droves. Here are 3 ways to keep them, and attract more</a>
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<p>The majority of early childhood educators <a href="http://snapshots.acecqa.gov.au/workforcedata/index.html">earn less than</a> the national average of $1,460 per week. The <a href="http://snapshots.acecqa.gov.au/workforcedata/index.html">average annual salary</a> for an educator is $49,556 per year.</p>
<p>Our <a href="https://womensagenda.com.au/latest/what-researchers-are-learning-about-the-health-of-early-childhood-educators/">research with more than 70 Australian early childhood educators</a> found 60% feel emotional exhaustion at least once a month, and 20% at least once a week. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Child's hands in front of a painted rainbow." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/400196/original/file-20210512-23-yx4uyx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=463&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The early childhood education and care sector needs an estimated additional 30,000 educators and 7,000 teachers by 2024.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-photo-childs-hands-touch-painting-1694662114">Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>We also found the rates of physical injuries, including stress on the body and falls and slips, were higher among early childhood educators than the national average.</p>
<p>Psychologically and physically unhealthy work environments, and a <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1836939120979064">lack of policy support</a>, play a key role in why childcare educators are leaving the sector.</p>
<h2>What we need to do</h2>
<p>These are all not new problems.</p>
<p>But responses to our <a href="https://www.facebook.com/EarlyChildhoodEducatorWellbeingProjectECEWP">recent online survey</a> show the additional pressures of COVID-19 have pushed the early childhood workforce to breaking point. One participant wrote:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Being deemed essential during COVID, yet completely dismissed in terms of our own needs has been incredibly demeaning. The fact that this country relies on childcare to keep everyone working, yet doing nothing to keep educators safe or financially compensated has been insulting and degrading […] This is a systemic problem and it is wearing us down.</p>
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<p>Another said:</p>
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<p>The well-being of early childhood educators during the COVID crisis didn’t even reach the lowest rung on the priority ladder. It highlighted for me how undervalued we are in society and has been an integral factor in my decision to leave the sector.</p>
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<p>The <a href="https://www.ilo.org/sector/Resources/codes-of-practice-and-guidelines/WCMS_236528/lang--en/index.html">International Labour Organization</a>, which brings together governments, workers and employers to set labour standards, notes early childhood educators are central to realising universal provision of quality childhood education and care. </p>
<p>Making the early childhood workforce strong and sustainable must be seen as essential to the national interest.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1392262870436515840"}"></div></p>
<p>Workforce well-being is one of the focus areas of the proposed early childhood education and care <a href="https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-04/WorkforceStrategy-ConsultationPaper-2021.pdf">National Workforce Strategy</a>. But the strategy only stresses increased supports once educators’ well-being is compromised, rather than helping to prevent it. </p>
<p>The strategy recognises service providers and management have clear responsibilities for educators’ well-being. But this also means every organisation must adhere to a consistent set of accountability measures.</p>
<p>To ensure all early childhood education workplaces support educators’ well-being, specific standards could be included in our existing <a href="https://www.acecqa.gov.au/national-quality-framework">National Quality Framework</a> for early childhood education and care. The quality of childcare centres themselves have improved due to having to meet certain standards in the framework. Educators’ well-being can be included as part of this overall quality.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/one-third-of-all-preschool-centres-could-be-without-a-trained-teacher-in-four-years-if-we-do-nothing-120099">One-third of all preschool centres could be without a trained teacher in four years, if we do nothing</a>
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<p>Making the <a href="https://publications.ieu.asn.au/2020-march-bedrock/articles2/assessing-yourwork-environment/">work environment safer</a> might also decrease the alarmingly high rates of injury in the sector. This could lead to lower workers’ compensation premiums for businesses. </p>
<p>Schemes could be established so savings are shared between employers and employees in the form of increased wages. At the end of the day, early childhood education is a <a href="https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_dialogue/---sector/documents/normativeinstrument/wcms_236528.pdf">public good</a>, so governments need to play a bigger role in finding solutions to these problems.</p>
<p>Implementing policy options such as these might mean cracks that are getting deeper might mend instead of completely giving way. If we really care about investing in the quality of early childhood education, we also need to invest in those who do the educating and caring.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/160610/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca Bull is currently (or has previously been) involved in research funded by the NSW Department of Education, the Department of Health (Commonwealth), and the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sandie Wong is a Board Member of Northside Community Services. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Laura McFarland and Tamara Cumming do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>If the government really wants to invest in early childhood education, it needs to back the workforce.Tamara Cumming, Senior Lecturer, Charles Sturt UniversityLaura McFarland, Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies, Charles Sturt UniversityRebecca Bull, Professor, Macquarie UniversitySandie Wong, Associate professor, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1502642020-11-17T04:56:56Z2020-11-17T04:56:56ZThe child-care sector needs an overhaul, not more tinkering with subsidies and tax deductions<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/369729/original/file-20201117-21-155tbr6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-photo-childs-hands-touch-painting-1694662114">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Recent reports <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/government-mps-put-tax-deductions-for-childcare-fees-on-the-table-20201115-p56epj.html">suggest several Liberal MPs</a> are calling for child-care costs to be tax-deductible. They argue allowing families who can’t access subsidies to claim child-care costs as a tax deduction would boost women’s workforce participation and productivity. </p>
<p>They also say it would give greater choice to families whose working hours aren’t suited to mainstream centre-based child care. </p>
<p>The proposal draws on <a href="https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/business-law/vital-signs-untaxing-childcare-bold-idea-seems-unfair-might-benefit-us-all">research and modelling by the UNSW New Economic Policy Initiative</a>. The policy report, published in November 2019, suggests <a href="https://theconversation.com/vital-signs-untaxing-childcare-is-a-bold-idea-that-seems-unfair-but-might-benefit-us-all-127430">families</a> be given a choice between continuing to receive their current child-care subsidy, or opting instead to pay fees up front and claim them as a tax deduction.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/vital-signs-untaxing-childcare-is-a-bold-idea-that-seems-unfair-but-might-benefit-us-all-127430">Vital Signs. Untaxing childcare is a bold idea that seems unfair, but might benefit us all</a>
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<p>Both Labor and the Coalition appear to be focused primarily on child-care affordability and encouraging parents to work more. But tinkering with subsidies risks making a complex system even more complicated, and detracting attention from quality, which matters to children.</p>
<h2>Tax deductions versus increasing subsidies</h2>
<p>The UNSW policy proposal aims to address concerns raised by the <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/childcare/report/childcare-volume1.pdf">Productivity Commission</a> in a 2014 report, which found:</p>
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<p>[…] tax deductions or rebates are not an effective means of support for lower and middle income families who, in the absence of ECEC [early childhood education and care] assistance, are likely to have the greatest difficulty affording care. </p>
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<p>In the policy, because families would choose what’s best for them — either a tax deduction or the use of a subsidy — the idea is no family would be worse off. </p>
<p>But the benefits of opting into tax-deductible child care still wouldn’t be evenly distributed if the Liberals adopted the policy. According to the <a href="https://b536ef95-d95a-41ab-8ea2-86d91525afdc.filesusr.com/ugd/d1755c_97605ce5b7544f689ea68a261859bd23.pdf">UNSW modelling</a>, households with the highest incomes would benefit most from the policy, saving around A$1,080 per year more compared with their current spending on child care. Families on lower incomes could save around $618 compared to what they’re currently spending.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/369719/original/file-20201117-21-iwtc57.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The figure above shows the annual benefit for (couple) households by quantile.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://b536ef95-d95a-41ab-8ea2-86d91525afdc.filesusr.com/ugd/d1755c_97605ce5b7544f689ea68a261859bd23.pdf">Source: (Un)Taxing Child-care: Boosting Choice and Labour Supply through Subsidised & Tax-Deductible Child-care in Australia, University of NSW. </a></span>
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<p>Families on lower incomes would be also be less likely to opt into the tax deduction. Even if they were to save as a result of it, they would be less able to pay full child-care fees up front.</p>
<p>On the other hand, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-10-09/labor-anthony-albanese-budget-families-child-care-plan/12746010">Labor’s proposal</a> for early childhood education and care focuses on low-income families first, by extending the subsidy. It <a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-childcare-plan-may-get-more-women-into-work-now-what-about-quality-and-educators-pay-147755">would increase</a> the maximum child-care subsidy from 85% to 90% for the lowest-income families in the short term, with a long-term plan of increasing the subsidy to that rate for all families.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-childcare-plan-may-get-more-women-into-work-now-what-about-quality-and-educators-pay-147755">Labor's childcare plan may get more women into work. Now what about quality and educators' pay?</a>
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<p>Labor would also scrap the annual $10,560 subsidy cap for households earning between $189,390 and $353,680 a year. Education Minister Tehan argued Labor’s plan would benefit higher-income families at the expense of the more disadvantaged. He said in the long run it <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/it-s-terrible-high-childcare-fees-are-keeping-mothers-out-of-work-20201011-p5640j.html">would result</a> in “a family in Townsville […] subsiding the child-care fees of a millionaire living in Sydney”.</p>
<p>This is because Labor’s plan would increase subsidies for all families, compared with the current system which is means-tested and requires families on the highest incomes to pay full child-care fees.</p>
<p>The UNSW report authors write:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>One potential objection to this two-pronged approach is that it would benefit high-income earners. There are, however, three important answers to this: first, it ignores the actual distribution of the likely benefits of the policy; second, it misconceives the nature of the policy (as welfare— rather than productivity-focused); and third, it ignores the significant gender equality and fairness arguments in favour of the policy.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The evidence actually suggests both policy options — an increase to the child-care subsidy and the policy some Liberal backbenchers are calling for – would likely pay for themselves. <a href="https://mckellinstitute.org.au/app/uploads/Child-Care-Subsidy-FINAL.pdf">Economic modelling of various options for down payments</a> towards a universal child-care subsidy indicates a return on investment of more than 100%. This is the same as <a href="https://newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/business-law/vital-signs-untaxing-childcare-bold-idea-seems-unfair-might-benefit-us-all">modelling of the combined child-care subsidy and tax-deduction system</a>.</p>
<h2>More ambitous, child-focused reform</h2>
<p>Whether the policy benefits high-income or low-income families matters, but it also misses the point — early childhood policies need to focus on what benefits children. </p>
<p>With over <a href="https://www.vu.edu.au/sites/default/files/educational-opportunity-in-australia-2020.pdf">one in five children still developmentally vulnerable</a> when they start school, Australia needs to be talking about how early childhood services can support children to learn and thrive. </p>
<p>This support needs to be available to all children, irrespective of their parents’ incomes. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.thefrontproject.org.au/images/downloads/ECO%20ANALYSIS%20Full%20Report.pdf">Research shows</a> that for every dollar invested in early childhood education, $2 is returned into the economy. Evidence also shows that while <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/ioe/research-projects/2020/sep/effective-pre-school-primary-and-secondary-education-project-eppse">all children benefit from early education,</a> children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds stand to gain the most. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/report-finds-every-1-australia-spends-on-preschool-will-return-2-but-this-wont-just-magically-happen-120217">Report finds every $1 Australia spends on preschool will return $2, but this won't just magically happen</a>
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<p>But these benefits are reliant on high-quality, play-based learning supported by skilled, warm and responsive educators. </p>
<p>Parental workforce participation is <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/news/why-cheaper-childcare-is-good-economics/">important for economic growth</a>, but the <a href="https://heckmanequation.org/resource/4-big-benefits-of-investing-in-early-childhood-development/">long-term benefits to children’s learning and development</a> can pay even greater dividends. </p>
<p>It’s great both parties are thinking about early childhood policy, but they need to start looking at the whole picture.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/150264/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kate Noble receives funding from the Minderoo Foundation as part of the Thrive by Five campaign, and funding from Early Childhood Australia.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sarah Pilcher receives funding from the Minderoo Foundation as part of the Thrive by Five campaign, and funding from Early Childhood Australia. </span></em></p>Whether the policy benefits high-income or low-income families matters, but it also misses the point — early childhood policies need to focus on what benefits children.Kate Noble, Education Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversitySarah Pilcher, Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1354392020-04-02T07:02:15Z2020-04-02T07:02:15ZFree child care to help nearly one million families, especially workers in essential services<p>The government will provide free child care in a move aimed at ensuring parents, especially in essential services, are able to keep working.</p>
<p>Without a rescue package large parts of the industry could have collapsed, leaving health and other workers finding it difficult or impossible to keep doing their jobs. </p>
<p>More than 945,000 families with 1.3 million children will benefit.</p>
<p>The new arrangement will scrap, after Sunday, the present funding system – including the means test and the activity test - and instead the government will pay half the sector’s revenue up to the existing hourly rate cap.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324860/original/file-20200402-74854-dadpx5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324860/original/file-20200402-74854-dadpx5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324860/original/file-20200402-74854-dadpx5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324860/original/file-20200402-74854-dadpx5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324860/original/file-20200402-74854-dadpx5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324860/original/file-20200402-74854-dadpx5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324860/original/file-20200402-74854-dadpx5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="attribution"><a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
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<p>The plan will cost the government $1.6 billion over three months - compared with $1.3 billion if current revenues and subsidies had continued, based on the existing system and the big reductions in enrolments that have taken place.</p>
<p>The funding will be paid direct to the centres, with the condition they remain open, so parents do not have the disruption of having to seek out another provider. There are some 13,000 childcare and early leaning services. The new arrangements will also extend to after school and school holiday services.</p>
<p>Priorities will be set for access, with the first in line being working parents, vulnerable and disadvantaged children, and parents with existing enrolments.</p>
<p>Centres should “re-engage with those parents who have taken their children out of care, to see whether they can be accommodated as necessary as well,” Education Minister Dan Tehan said.</p>
<p>“But there is a clear priority list that we want centres to take into account, and the most important of those are those essential workers and the vulnerable children.”</p>
<p>Scott Morrison said: “In this ‘new normal’ that we’re living in, it’s no longer about entitlement. It’s about need.</p>
<p>"And we’re calling on all Australians to think about what they need, and to think about the needs of their fellow Australians who may have a greater need when it comes to calling on the many things that are being provided.” </p>
<p>For parents who have removed their children from childcare, centres can waive the gap fee, dating back to March 23.</p>
<p>The payment to centres will start to be made in a week’s time, and will run initially for three months, after which it may be extended.</p>
<p>Morrison and Tehan said in a statement the plan would provide “planning certainty to early childhood education and care services at a time where enrolments and attendance are highly unpredictable”.</p>
<p>Childcare centres can also get assistance under the JobKeeper program announced this week and the cash and loan schemes also available for businesses.</p>
<p>The Australian Childcare Alliance, the peak body for early learning services, welcomed the announcement as “extraordinary”. It said an overnight survey it had done had shown 30% of providers “faced closure this week due to as massive, shock withdrawal of families - either from fear or unemployment – and another 25% were not sure they could ever recover, even once the virus crisis has passed”.</p>
<p>But with the new financial measures , plus the JobKeeper payment and other existing support mechanism the early learning sector should be able to continue to play its essential role, ACA said.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135439/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The government will provide free child care in a move aimed at ensuring parents, especially in essential services, are able to keep working. More than 945,000 families with 1.3 million children will benefit.Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1337682020-03-17T03:52:07Z2020-03-17T03:52:07ZCOVID-19: what closing schools and childcare centres would mean for parents and casual staff<p>Several schools in Australia <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/toorak-primary-school-closes-following-coronavirus-case-20200317-p54atp.html">have closed</a> after some students and teachers tested positive for COVID-19. Meanwhile, some independent schools have <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/private-schools-begin-sending-students-home-for-remote-learning-20200316-p54agn.html">sent all students home pre-emptively</a>, without any infections being detected. Classes will now be done online.</p>
<p>While the federal government has introduced a ban of public gatherings with more than 500 people, it is not, at this stage, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/16/why-australia-is-not-shutting-schools-to-help-control-the-spread-of-coronavirus">considering mass school closures</a>. Victoria’s Premier Dan Andrews has been more forthright, saying the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/11/coronavirus-mass-school-closures-and-industry-shutdown-on-the-cards-says-victorias-premier">time will come</a> for statewide closures of schools. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1239098741778309120"}"></div></p>
<p>Even with schools staying open, some <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/i-m-happy-to-be-a-small-drop-families-withdrawing-children-from-school-to-fight-coronavirus-20200314-p54a2p.html">families are keeping children home</a> to prevent them getting infected, or passing the virus on to more vulnerable family members. </p>
<p>There have been no reports of childcare centres closing across Australia, but some parents may also be keeping their pre-school children at home. Childcare centres <a href="https://ca.news.yahoo.com/alberta-schools-childcare-centres-closing-203000995.html">have been closed</a> in some Canadian provinces, and it’s possible we’ll see something similar happening in Australia as the pandemic progresses.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-schools-are-closing-because-of-coronavirus-but-should-they-be-133432">Australian schools are closing because of coronavirus, but should they be?</a>
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<p>Even without closures, the fewer numbers of students across Australia will impact on casual staff in both the childcare and school sectors. But if both were to close their doors, this may mean a massive loss to Australia’s workforce and economy.</p>
<h2>How many families would be affected?</h2>
<p>Millions of parents would be affected if schools and childcare centres were to close. Across Australia there are close to <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3101.0Jun%202019?OpenDocument">six million children</a> living in around four million families. </p>
<p>Around two thirds of these children are enrolled in Australian schools. In 2017, 2.2 million were <a href="https://www.acara.edu.au/docs/default-source/default-document-library/national-report-on-schooling-in-australia-20170de312404c94637ead88ff00003e0139.pdf?sfvrsn=0">primary school students</a> and 1.6 million were in secondary school. </p>
<p>Capital Economics senior economist Marcel Thieliant <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/second-stimulus-morrison-government-considers-billions-in-spending-20200316-p54aoi.html">told The Age</a> up to 1.85 million parents, or 14% of the workforce, would be required to stay home to care for their children if schools were closed. </p>
<p>He said a four-week school closure could knock off as much as an estimated 2% from quarterly GDP. And it is unclear how long schools would need to stay closed for to contain the outbreak.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1238618702368526336"}"></div></p>
<p>Nearly 1.6 million children are aged 0-4. More than half of them <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/cat/4402.0">attend early childhood education and care</a> or preschool.<br>
Economic analysis estimates subsidised early childhood education provides <a href="https://www.thefrontproject.org.au/initiatives/economic-analysis">more than 32 million additional hours</a> to the labour force. This means an additional A$1.4 billion in earnings, which then filters back to the government through taxes.</p>
<h2>How will closures affect staff?</h2>
<p>Part and full time teachers are likely to remain employed during any school closure, supporting children remotely. But schools are less likely to need casual teachers, which make up <a href="https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/research-evidence/spotlight/spotlight---professional-learning-for-relief-teachers.pdf">at least 12% of the workforce according to survey data</a>. </p>
<p>Casual staff in schools that have already closed may be feeling the pinch, and schools may also have less need for casual teachers if many students are staying home.</p>
<p>An <a href="https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/research-evidence/spotlight/spotlight---attrition.pdf?sfvrsn=40d1ed3c_0">estimated 25-50%</a> of teachers are leaving the profession at five years. If casual teachers are not paid to be in class, they may be prompted to leave the profession sooner.</p>
<p>But the situation is even worse for early childhood education.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-kids-and-school-closings-a-public-health-expert-answers-4-questions-133425">Coronavirus, kids and school closings: A public health expert answers 4 questions</a>
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<p>Government provides funding for schools based on their census enrolments. In private schools parents pay fees based on annual enrolments. But early childhood education funding is tied to both enrolment and attendance. It is <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Australian-Investment-in-Education-ECEC-report.pdf">estimated parents fund</a> around 40% of the cost of early learning, and the government around 60% through a subsidy tied to household income. </p>
<p>Families in isolation, can use their child care subsidy to pay for a certain amount of absences, but only if centres remain open and operating. If a centre closes it cannot levy parents for fees nor collect subsidies from the government. </p>
<p>Early childhood education services can spend up to <a href="https://childcarealliance.org.au/media-publications/aca-media-releases/112-occupancy-and-performance-report-early-childhood-education-and-care-sector-10-12-2018/file">80% of their revenue</a> on staff and rent. This means services may need to stand down their workforce of <a href="https://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/2016_ecec_nwc_national_report_sep_2017_0.pdf">200,000 staff</a>, and potentially dismiss casual staff, if they are forced to close. </p>
<p>We don’t have a clear indication of how many educators are casual, although certain types of care, such as holiday care, lend themselves to a casual workforce.</p>
<p>In 2019, we estimated the childhood workforce would be short of <a href="https://www.futuretracks.org.au/upskilling/upskilling-research">29,000 teachers by 2023</a>. With <a href="https://theconversation.com/one-in-five-early-childhood-educators-plan-to-leave-the-profession-61279">one in five educators</a> reporting they wish to leave the profession in the next 12 months, the effects of workers stepping away from the early childhood workforce due to centre closures could be dramatic. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/one-third-of-all-preschool-centres-could-be-without-a-trained-teacher-in-four-years-if-we-do-nothing-120099">One-third of all preschool centres could be without a trained teacher in four years, if we do nothing</a>
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<p>In recent days, the federal government <a href="https://ministers.education.gov.au/tehan/minimising-impact-covid-19-child-care">announced an assistance package</a> of A$14 million to help minimise the impact of COVID-19 on childcare centres. </p>
<p>But the Community Child Care Fund (CCCF) <a href="https://docs.education.gov.au/node/53362">Special Circumstances Grant Opportunity</a> is too small, and only available to some services. It is particularly designed for disadvantaged or vulnerable communities and can be used to pay expenses such as wages where services have fewer children attending or are forced to close due to COVID-19.</p>
<p>But staff would still be affected in more advantaged communities.</p>
<p>My analysis finds that if a service was to close for just one day, based on an average of 90 places and with an average daily fee of A$113.30 per child, it would lose more than <a href="https://education.govcms.gov.au/child-care-australia-report-september-quarter-2019">$10,000 dollars</a> per day. Multiply this by the nearly <a href="https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/NQFSnapshot_Q32019.pdf">8,000 centres</a> and tens of millions of dollars would be foregone every day centres are closed – more if you consider other forms of care, such as out-of-school-hours care, would also close. </p>
<p>Many services are small or not for profit, and will not have the cash reserves to withstand extended unpaid closures. An extended closure could see services close for good and educators leave the workforce.</p>
<h2>So, what more can the government do?</h2>
<p>The early childhood sector already faces uncertainty around the <a href="https://www.themandarin.com.au/122765-its-time-to-commit-to-universal-access-to-preschools-and-funding-certainty-children-families-business-and-government-all-benefit/">time limited nature</a> of pre-school funding, which expires at the end of this year. It is vital the government retain funding in the education system to support educators in the event of a shutdown.</p>
<p>Educators can be actively engaged if services close. Remote education can be trialled, even for little learners, given the importance of early brain development. Governments should support schools to develop lessons and provide resources to help deliver education in new ways. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/8-tips-on-what-to-tell-your-kids-about-coronavirus-133346">8 tips on what to tell your kids about coronavirus</a>
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<p>With these measures, we can minimise the economic effects of closures, keep our skilled workforce, and ensure parents can return to work and children return to learning settings as soon as possible.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133768/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Megan O'Connell is Research and Policy Manager for Community Early Learning Australia (CELA), which is the peak body for Australia’s early and middle childhood education sector.</span></em></p>If schools and childcare centres shut without the necessary support, Australia may permanently lose valuable teachers and early childhood educators.Megan O'Connell, Honorary Senior Fellow, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1135292019-07-10T19:35:11Z2019-07-10T19:35:11ZMexican president López Obrador has a woman problem<p>After the leftist firebrand Andrés Manuel López Obrador <a href="https://theconversation.com/mexico-elects-a-leftist-president-who-welcomes-migrants-99204">won the Mexican presidency in a landslide</a> last year, he <a href="https://theconversation.com/andres-manuel-lopez-obrador-was-elected-to-transform-mexico-can-he-do-it-99176">vowed</a> to “govern for all, starting with the poor.”</p>
<p>In Mexico, “the poor” includes many women, who <a href="https://www.conapred.org.mx/documentos_cedoc/Discriminacionestructural%20accs.pdf">earn 34% less than men for doing the same job</a>. Women in Mexico also face incessant <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2015/02/10/384994475/stop-telling-women-to-smile-denouncing-jackals-and-catcalling-in-mexico">catcalling</a> and extremely high rates of violence. With <a href="https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/estados/cada-dos-horas-y-media-matan-una-mujer-en-mexico">1,199 women</a> murdered in Mexico between January and April this year – about 10 a day – Mexico is Latin America’s <a href="https://oig.cepal.org/en/indicators/femicide-or-feminicide">second-most dangerous country for women</a>, after Brazil, according to the United Nations.</p>
<p>As a presidential candidate, López Obrador <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nbUQIKMYO2NuALDOFC3BEwAGy-QOs9dx/view">spoke about the challenges</a> facing women in Mexico. His campaign even acknowledged that domestic abuse and poverty are <a href="https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CEDAW%2fC%2fMEX%2fCO%2f9&Lang=en">particularly prevalent</a> among indigenous women, and pledged to help them, too.</p>
<p>López Obrador’s administration has not, however, made women’s rights a priority. Instead, it has been rolling back some the few federal policies designed to protect and empower Mexican women.</p>
<h2>Women in the workplace</h2>
<p>Under austerity measures meant to curb public spending, López Obrador in February <a href="https://lopezobrador.org.mx/2019/02/07/version-estenografica-de-la-conferencia-de-prensa-matutina-del-presidente-andres-manuel-lopez-obrador-40/">ended</a> an <a href="http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un-dpadm/unpan049524.pdf">internationally lauded</a> daycare program that allowed low-income families to sign up for <a href="https://cadenanoticias.com/nacional/2019/02/como-opera-el-programa-de-estancias-infantiles">government-subsidized</a> childcare close to their workplace or home. </p>
<p>Rather than pay subsidies to this network of private daycare facilities, the Mexican government will now give <a href="https://noticieros.televisa.com/ultimas-noticias/amlo-cuanto-dinero-recibiran-mamas-padres-sin-estancias-infantiles/">vouchers worth about US$80</a> every two months directly to families. </p>
<p>The new policy will give parents more choice in their childcare, the Mexican government says. Each family may now decide whether to send their children to daycare or pay “a sister, an aunt or a grandma,” López Obrador said in a <a href="https://lopezobrador.org.mx/2019/02/07/version-estenografica-de-la-conferencia-de-prensa-matutina-del-presidente-andres-manuel-lopez-obrador-40/">Feb. 7 press conference</a>.</p>
<p>López Obrador, who remains <a href="https://www.as-coa.org/articles/approval-tracker-mexicos-president-amlo">popular</a> six months into his six-year term, additionally explained his decision to end government-subsidized daycare by saying the program was <a href="https://www.eleconomista.com.mx/politica/AMLO-anuncia-como-se-repartiran-los-fondos-para-el-bienestar-20190207-0050.html">corrupt</a>. </p>
<p>Several private daycare centers that benefit from government subsidies have been involved in high-profile <a href="https://www.excelsior.com.mx/nacional/2017/11/16/1201699">child abuse scandals</a> or shown to have unsafe facilities. In 2009 ABC Daycare in Hermosillo, Sonora state, caught fire, <a href="https://www.eleconomista.com.mx/politica/Tragedia-en-guarderia-ABC-cumple-ocho-anos---20170604-0144.html">killing 49 children</a>. </p>
<p>Lopez Obrador blamed these problems on <a href="https://lopezobrador.org.mx/2019/02/15/version-estenografica-de-la-conferencia-de-prensa-matutina-del-presidente-andres-manuel-lopez-obrador-46/">corruption among government and private-sector middlemen</a>, who pocketed cash meant to serve children. He says that by removing the intermediaries to give money directly to families, the opportunity for corruption is eliminated.</p>
<p>Public corruption is <a href="https://theconversation.com/governors-gone-wild-mexico-faces-a-lost-generation-of-corrupt-leaders-76858">rampant in Mexico</a>. But there’s no evidence that the childcare program suffered particularly from abuse of public funds. </p>
<p>In fact, Mexico’s subsidized childcare network, which has served <a href="https://www.coneval.org.mx/Evaluacion/Documents/EVALUACIONES/FMyE_2017_2018/FMyE_20_S174.pdf">2 million children</a> since it was <a href="http://calderon.presidencia.gob.mx/2007/05/el-presidente-calderon-en-el-anuncio-del-sistema-nacional-de-guarderias-y-estancias-infantiles/">established in 2007</a>, has been quite successful in enabling more women to work outside the home. </p>
<p>According to a <a href="https://www.coneval.org.mx/Evaluacion/Documents/EVALUACIONES/FMyE_2017_2018/FMyE_20_S174.pdf">2017 government evaluation</a>, the daycare network had relieved 1,825,394 parents of childcare duties for 34 hours a week over the past decade. A significant percentage of the communities served by the daycare network were either <a href="http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un-dpadm/unpan049524.pdf">very poor or home to a predominately indigenous population</a>, according to the U.N., and women were the primary beneficiaries.</p>
<h2>Unequal domestic labors</h2>
<p>Women’s groups and <a href="http://www.cndh.org.mx/sites/all/doc/Recomendaciones/2019/Rec_2019_029.pdf">human rights organizations</a> in Mexico responded to the termination of the daycare program – and to the president’s suggestion that female relatives could care for Mexico’s children – with outrage.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.animalpolitico.com/2019/02/recorte-estancias-infantiles-refuerza-estereotipos-desigualdad-genero-organizaciones/">joint statement released Feb. 11</a>, 17 civil society organizations said the new policy would “strengthen gender streotypes” and “promote discrimination and gender inequality.” The groups reminded the president that women do 70% of all domestic work in Mexico and that grandmothers already care for 50% of all young children not in their parents’ care.</p>
<p>Mothers who used government subsidized daycare were 18% more likely to have gotten a job between 2007 and 2017 compared to those who did not receive government-subsidized childcare, according to a government <a href="https://www.coneval.org.mx/Evaluacion/Documents/EVALUACIONES/FMyE_2017_2018/FMyE_20_S174.pdf">program evaluation</a>.</p>
<p>Even so, Mexico still has the second-lowest female participation in the workforce among developed countries, behind Turkey. Only <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/%7E/media/mckinsey/featured%20insights/americas/one%20aspiration%20two%20realities%20promoting%20gender%20equality%20in%20mexico/one-aspiration-two-realities-promoting-gender-equality-in-mexico.ashx">four out of 10 women are employed outside the home</a>.</p>
<p>The López Obrador administration has responded to this criticism with indignance.</p>
<p>After Mexico’s National Human Rights Commission <a href="https://www.animalpolitico.com/2019/06/recomendacion-cndh-estancias-infantiles/">ruled</a> that ending the daycare program violated the constitutional rights of Mexican women and children, a government official sought to <a href="https://www.gob.mx/cms/uploads/attachment/file/471407/2094980_SSDSH_Recomendacio_n_29.2019.pdf">discredit</a> the independent government agency as a partisan entity. </p>
<p>Deputy Secretary of Human Development Ariadna Montiel Reyes called the organization’s position an “unacceptable aberration” orchestrated by López Obrador’s political opponents and accused the commission of complicity with “atrocities” committed by previous administrations. </p>
<p>This is the <a href="https://www.elfinanciero.com.mx/opinion/pablo-hiriart/ahora-van-contra-la-cndh">first time</a> the Mexican federal government has challenged the legitimacy of the human rights commission since its creation as a government watchdog in 1992.</p>
<h2>Taking out the middleman</h2>
<p>The elimination of public daycare was infuriating to López Obrador supporters who expected the president to promote a more <a href="https://twitter.com/sembrarlapaz/status/1002320976061829122">progressive gender agenda</a>. </p>
<p>So when the president announced in March that his administration would additionally <a href="https://elpais.com/internacional/2019/03/03/mexico/1551648283_893550.html">slash funding</a> for women’s shelters and instead <a href="https://www.eluniversal.com.mx/nacion/politica/gobierno-dara-recursos-directamente-mujeres-victimas-de-violencia-amlo">give the money directly to victims of domestic violence</a>, the <a href="https://www.animalpolitico.com/2019/03/refugios-amlo-mujeres-confusion-incertidumbre/">backlash was immediate and fierce</a>.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/282289/original/file-20190702-126391-1h4k1gl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/282289/original/file-20190702-126391-1h4k1gl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282289/original/file-20190702-126391-1h4k1gl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282289/original/file-20190702-126391-1h4k1gl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282289/original/file-20190702-126391-1h4k1gl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282289/original/file-20190702-126391-1h4k1gl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/282289/original/file-20190702-126391-1h4k1gl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador remains popular. On July 1, 2019, he celebrated the one-year anniversary of his landslide win with a rally in Mexico City attended by several thousand people.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Mexico-Obrador-Anniversary/ab4b89982bbc446c868087943c4dc423/32/0">AP Photo/Fernando Llano</a></span>
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<p>Worldwide, women are most likely to be murdered by a male partner and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/27/world/female-homicide-gender-violence.html">may be unsafe in their own homes</a>, making shelters a vital sanctuary. </p>
<p>The number of Mexican women stabbed or strangled at home <a href="https://www.gob.mx/cms/uploads/attachment/file/293666/violenciaFeminicidaMx_07dic_web.pdf">rose 54%</a> between 2012 and 2016. In March 2019, the same month the cuts were announced, Mexican police received <a href="https://www.excelsior.com.mx/nacional/preocupa-este-repunte-de-la-violencia-familiar-en-el-pais/1312639">56,590 reports</a> of domestic violence – a 16% increase over February 2019.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.animalpolitico.com/punto-gire/cien-dias-de-austeridad-machista/">Advocates</a> for victims of domestic violence <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/05/mexico-funding-cuts-womens-shelters-domestic-violence">warned</a> that cutting funding to domestic violence shelters would expose women and children to even more danger. </p>
<p>Public uproar forced the Mexican government to <a href="https://www.jornada.com.mx/ultimas/2019/03/07/los-refugios-para-mujeres-maltratadas-seguiran-amlo-8054.html">retreat on its plan to stop funding women’s shelters</a> and give cash payments to women instead. </p>
<p>But, a few months later, in May, news reports revealed that women’s shelters would <a href="https://www.cimacnoticias.com.mx/noticia/aprueban-recursos-para-refugios-de-mujeres-en-situaci-n-de-violencia">see substantial budget cuts</a> under the government’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/lopez-obrador-clashes-with-courts-after-vowing-poverty-for-mexican-government-109357">austerity measures</a>. <a href="https://almomento.mx/solicitan-que-entreguen-los-recursos-asignados-a-los-refugios/">Twenty-nine percent</a> of Mexico’s 81 publicly funded domestic violence shelters have received no federal funding for the second half of the year.</p>
<h2>Women’s rights ‘not a priority’</h2>
<p>To quell criticism that it doesn’t care about women, the Mexican government in late May announced the launch of a European Union and United Nations program in Mexico to eliminate violence against women. </p>
<p>The €7 million investment, called <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/news-and-events/violence-against-women-and-girls-eu-and-un-launch-spotlight-initiative-mexico_en">Spotlight Initiative</a>, will target <a href="http://spotlightinitiative.org/news/ni-una-mas-mothers-call-justice">three Mexican states with high rates of violence against women</a>: Mexico state, Chihuahua and Guerrero.</p>
<p>Its goals, according to the EU, are to design public spaces that are safer for women, facilitate women’s access to justice and protection services and to “fundamentally change the perception of women within their families and in society.”</p>
<p>López Obrador wasn’t always sure that Mexico needed the help. </p>
<p>A spokesperson for the European Union <a href="https://elpais.com/internacional/2019/05/29/mexico/1559160578_800202.html">told</a> the Spanish newspaper El País that López Obrador initially rejected this initiative because, for his government, gender “was not a priority.”</p>
<p>As Mexican women have made clear, they disagree.</p>
<p>[ <em>You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=youresmart">You can read us daily by subscribing to our newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/113529/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Mexico is the second most dangerous country for women in Latin America. Yet the new government is slashing funding for programs meant to protect and empower women.Luis Gómez Romero, Senior Lecturer in Human Rights, Constitutional Law and Legal Theory, University of WollongongMaría de la Macarena Iribarne González, Lecturer, School of Law, University of WollongongLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1170972019-05-14T20:16:16Z2019-05-14T20:16:16ZBeyond the dollars: what are the major parties really promising on education?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274302/original/file-20190514-60554-kfqfg5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">How do the major parties’ education commitments stack up?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>As voters head to the polls, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-04-29/poll-reveals-76-per-cent-of-voters-picked-a-side-before-campaign/11056140">around one-quarter will decide who to vote for on the day</a>. Analysis shows <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-04-17/vote-compass-election-most-important-issues/11003192">climate change and the economy</a> are foremost in voters’ minds.</p>
<p>But education remains a key issue, as evidenced by <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-07/federal-election-labor-coalition-education-policy-explained/10880502">a flurry of education-related announcements</a> in the final stretch of the campaign.</p>
<p>Here’s what you need to know about the major parties’ education commitments, and what the millions and billions here and there really mean.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-has-education-policy-changed-under-the-coalition-government-113921">How has education policy changed under the Coalition government?</a>
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<h2>Early childhood education and care</h2>
<p>Two years of high-quality, play-based learning at preschool can have a <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Two-Years-are-Better-than-One.pdf">significant impact</a> on children’s development. It can put them <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Two-Years-are-Better-than-One.pdf">close to eight months ahead</a> in literacy by the time they start school. The benefits are <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/getmedia/321201fc-ca0c-4c20-9582-7c3dc5c9d1b9/19438.pdf.aspx?inline=true">greatest for children from disadvantaged backgrounds</a>, which makes preschool a valuable tool for reducing inequality.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/both-major-parties-are-finally-talking-about-the-importance-of-preschool-heres-why-it-matters-114974">Both major parties are finally talking about the importance of preschool – here's why it matters</a>
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<p>Labor has promised to make childcare free for most low-income households and to provide up to an 85% subsidy for households under $175,000. It has committed to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/oct/04/bill-shorten-reveals-17bn-plan-to-fund-access-to-preschool-or-kindergarten">funding an extra year of preschool</a> for three-year-olds. This is <a href="https://www.education.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/1159357/Lifting-Our-Game-Final-Report.pdf">evidence-based</a> and builds on commitments by several states to support two years of preschool.</p>
<p>Labor has also pledged to <a href="https://www.alp.org.au/media/1878/2019_labor_fiscal_plan.pdf">increase wages for some early childhood educators</a>, to be rolled out over a decade, and to reinstate funding for the National Quality Agenda, which lapsed in 2018. This reflects the <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/papers/quality-key-early-childhood-education-australia/">importance of quality</a> in early childhood services, to improve outcomes for children.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/274303/original/file-20190514-60567-16s1axn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Both the Coalition and Labor are taking early childhood education and care seriously this election.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">from shutterstock.com</span></span>
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<p>The Coalition is taking a more cautious approach to spending on the early childhood sector. <a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/review-of-preschool-funding-a-concern/news-story/9a750093c75df2cf750d6ead8e57cfc1">It has pledged funding for four-year-old preschool</a>, but only for another year, and it has not renewed funding for the National Quality Agenda.</p>
<p>The Coalition will likely retain the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-01/child-care-subsidy-changes-what-you-need-to-know/9924950">means-tested subsidy</a> introduced as part of its major childcare reforms in 2018. While these reforms benefited an estimated one million lower-income families, the means test also left around 280,000 families worse off, <a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-childcare-plan-parents-children-and-educators-stand-to-benefit-but-questions-remain-116143">including families</a> with neither parent in work.</p>
<p>Advocates argue <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/funding-for-preschool-places-will-shape-australia-s-future-20181011-p50905.html">preschool should be seen as an integral component of the education system</a> and a fundamental right for all children, and all parties should take a cross-partisan approach and <a href="https://www.education.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/1159357/Lifting-Our-Game-Final-Report.pdf">commit to long-term funding</a>. The major parties are certainly not at that point yet, but there are indications they’re heading in the right direction.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/labors-childcare-plan-parents-children-and-educators-stand-to-benefit-but-questions-remain-116143">Labor's childcare plan: parents, children, and educators stand to benefit, but questions remain</a>
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<h2>Schools</h2>
<p>Given states and territories are largely responsible for schools, federal investment should be targeted where it can make the most difference. Two key areas are <a href="https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/opinion/topic/2019/04/13/the-funding-gap-education/15550776007987">needs-based funding</a>, to ensure additional support is available to students who need it the most, and central investment in research and evidence-based practice. </p>
<p>Both major parties have promised a <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/am/evidence-institute-measure-effectiveness-australian-education/9933872">national evidence institute</a>. <a href="http://www.tanyaplibersek.com/world_class_schools_national_press_club_address_wednesday_20_february_2019">Labor</a> has allocated funds for it, with the <a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-be-fooled-billions-for-schools-in-budget-2019-arent-new-and-what-happened-to-the-national-evidence-institute-114193">Coalition</a> yet to do so. This initiative reflects the urgent need to ensure evidence helps to shape the education system. The <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/education-evidence/report/education-evidence-overview.pdf">Productivity Commission</a> has recommended such an institute, to connect educators and policymakers with the latest research on teaching and learning.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/three-things-australias-next-education-minister-must-prioritise-to-improve-schools-115223">Three things Australia's next education minister must prioritise to improve schools</a>
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<p>On funding, the Coalition wants us to judge it on its reforms to the <a href="https://theconversation.com/turnbull-announces-schools-funding-and-a-new-gonski-review-77011">schools funding package</a>, which is now mostly modelled on the needs-based funding approach outlined in the Gonski Review. But funding has still not reached the recommended levels. The Coalition has supported the <a href="https://www.education.gov.au/national-school-resourcing-board">National School Resourcing Board</a> to review these funding arrangements and develop a fairer model for all schools.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1057399107398946816"}"></div></p>
<p>Labor has promised to increase funding for schools. <a href="https://www.alp.org.au/policies/fair-funding-for-australian-schools/">Labor’s offer</a> would bring schools closer to meeting the levels of funding recommended by Gonski. </p>
<p>Funding isn’t a magic bullet, but it <a href="https://www.nber.org/papers/w25368.pdf">plays an important role in improving outcomes for all students.</a>.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-the-next-government-needs-to-do-to-tackle-unfairness-in-school-funding-110879">What the next government needs to do to tackle unfairness in school funding</a>
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<h2>Tertiary education</h2>
<p>Vocational Education and Training (VET) has experienced a series of unsuccessful reforms over the past decade. <a href="https://www.vu.edu.au/about-vu/news-events/news/dual-sector-vcs-call-for-more-connection-between-two-systems">VET plays an important role in the tertiary sector</a>, so it’s good to see both major parties addressing this in their platforms. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.education.gov.au/skills-and-training-budget-overview-2019-20">The Coalition’s plan</a> comes out of <a href="https://www.pmc.gov.au/news-centre/domestic-policy/vet-review-completed-and-final-report-delivered-government">a major recent review of the VET sector</a> and includes more money for apprentices and rural programs; the establishment of a National Skills Commission and a National Careers Institute; and simplifying systems for employers.</p>
<p>Labor has pledged to fund up to <a href="https://www.alp.org.au/policies/fee-free-tafe/">100,000 TAFE places</a>. It has also promised a major <a href="https://www.afr.com/news/politics/labor-proposes-once-in-a-generation-university-and-tafe-inquiry-20180222-h0whln">inquiry into tertiary education</a>, looking at VET and universities side by side. This could potentially move us towards a fairer system that puts <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/presentations/reconceptualising-tertiary-education/">VET and universities on an even footing</a> and better caters to the varied needs of students and employers.</p>
<p>Both <a href="https://www.alp.org.au/media/1710/190404_skills_and_training_fact_sheet.pdf">Labor</a> and the <a href="https://www.liberal.org.au/our-plan-delivering-high-quality-skills-and-vocational-education">Coalition</a> have committed to increased support for apprenticeships, through financial incentives for employers. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1127392671540973568"}"></div></p>
<p>For universities, Labor says it will bring back <a href="http://www.tanyaplibersek.com/speech_address_to_the_universities_australia_conference_canberra_thursday_28_february_2019">demand-driven funding</a>, which existed between 2012 and 2017, where universities are paid for every student studying and there is no limit on the number of students that can be admitted to courses. <a href="https://theconversation.com/labor-wants-to-restore-demand-driven-funding-to-universities-what-does-this-mean-116060">Evidence suggests</a> this has been effective in boosting studies in areas where there are skills shortages, such as health, and also appears to have improved access to education for disadvantaged groups. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/demand-driven-funding-for-universities-is-frozen-what-does-this-mean-and-should-the-policy-be-restored-116060">Demand-driven funding for universities is frozen. What does this mean and should the policy be restored?</a>
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<p>Due to costs, the Coalition has moved to a <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/opinion/bold-and-successful-experiment-comes-to-premature-end-with-22-billion-university-funding-cut-20171220-h07tfa.html">funding model based on population</a> and <a href="https://docs.education.gov.au/node/52006">university performance</a>. It has also promised <a href="https://www.liberal.org.au/our-plan-quality-education">extra support</a> for regional students and universities. This could help address the <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1228&context=research_conference">large gaps</a> in university participation between young people from major cities, and rural and regional Australia.</p>
<h2>Making an informed choice</h2>
<p>When casting our votes, we would do well to look past the dollar signs, and think about how each party is shaping an education system that will deliver quality learning for all Australians, from all kinds of backgrounds, from childhood through to adulthood.</p>
<p>The Coalition has delivered needs-based funding for schools and promises a greater focus on regional and rural students in all sectors. But there are some apparent gaps in early learning and tertiary policy and funding.</p>
<p>Labor has pledged more funding in all sectors. It has made a prominent commitment to early childhood education and care. However, <a href="https://theconversation.com/compare-the-pair-key-policy-offerings-from-labor-and-the-coalition-in-the-2019-federal-election-116898">Labor’s policies are expensive</a> and would need to be implemented effectively to make sure they achieve the intended outcomes for students and deliver the <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/reports/costs-of-lost-opportunity/">financial benefit to the economy</a> in the long-term.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/compare-the-pair-key-policy-offerings-from-labor-and-the-coalition-in-the-2019-federal-election-116898">Compare the pair: key policy offerings from Labor and the Coalition in the 2019 federal election</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/117097/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kate Noble does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>If you’re confused about all the millions and billions thrown around for education by the two major parties, here’s the low-down on what the policies actually mean.Kate Noble, Education Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1168982019-05-13T20:18:37Z2019-05-13T20:18:37ZCompare the pair: key policy offerings from Labor and the Coalition in the 2019 federal election<p><em>With the election less than a week away, here is a quick guide to the major policy announcements and promises from the two major parties.</em></p>
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What are the key policy issues on which the 2019 federal election will be fought?Emil Jeyaratnam, Data + Interactives Editor, The ConversationAndrew Donegan, Data + Interactives Editorial Intern, The ConversationLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1161432019-04-28T20:17:20Z2019-04-28T20:17:20ZLabor’s childcare plan: parents, children, and educators stand to benefit, but questions remain<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/271261/original/file-20190428-194616-rzox.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Hundreds of thousands of Australians parents would be in work if childcare was more affordable.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Labor’s proposed <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/federal-election-2019/labor-plans-4-billion-childcare-overhaul-20190427-p51hrw.html?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1556400029">A$4 billion reform to the childcare subsidy</a> on Sunday confirms that <a href="https://theconversation.com/both-major-parties-are-finally-talking-about-the-importance-of-preschool-heres-why-it-matters-114974">early childhood is a key policy issue</a> this election. This is on top of Labor’s previous announcement of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/oct/04/bill-shorten-reveals-17bn-plan-to-fund-access-to-preschool-or-kindergarten">15 hours of funded preschool</a> for every Australian three-year-old.</p>
<p>The latest announcement will no doubt be welcomed by <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/federal-election-2019/it-s-not-viable-for-me-to-work-ninety-per-cent-tax-for-a-day-s-work-20190419-p51fq4.html">families balancing the costs of childcare against the benefits of participation in paid work</a>. In 2015, the Productivity Commission estimated <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/childcare/report/childcare-overview.pdf">around 165,000 Australian parents would like to work more</a>, but were prevented due to poor accessibility or affordability of suitable childcare. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/shorten-promises-4-billion-for-child-care-benefitting-887-000-families-116128">Shorten promises $4 billion for child care, benefitting 887,000 families</a>
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<p>Under <a href="https://theconversation.com/bill-shorten-promises-4-billion-for-child-care-benefitting-887-000-families-116128">Labor’s proposal</a>, families on incomes up to A$174,000 with children under five would be better off on average by A$26 a week, or A$1,200 a year per child. Most families earning up to A$69,000 would get their childcare free. Currently, they <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-01/child-care-subsidy-changes-what-you-need-to-know/9924950">receive a subsidy</a> of 85%. Labor’s proposal would save them up to A$2,100 annually per child.</p>
<p>The current subsidy gradually tapers down as earnings increase. The lowest subsidy available is 20% for the highest-earning families, before it cuts out at A$351,258.
Families on incomes above A$174,000, under Labor’s plan, would continue to receive the same level of support as under current arrangements.</p>
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<p>The current subsidy was introduced as part of the Coalition’s <a href="https://www.education.gov.au/child-care-subsidy-0">major childcare reforms</a> (worth A$3.5 billion) in 2018, which included a means-tested subsidy and removal of annual caps. The reforms <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-07-01/child-care-subsidy-changes-what-you-need-to-know/9924950">benefitted an estimated one million lower-income families</a> – but also left around 280,000 families worse off, including <a href="https://theconversation.com/childcare-funding-changes-leave-disadvantaged-children-with-fewer-hours-of-early-education-51488">families with neither parent in work</a>. </p>
<p><a href="http://csrm.cass.anu.edu.au/sites/default/files/rsss/Childcare_reforms.pdf">ANU modelling</a> had predicted that while the reforms would benefit low-income families, the <a href="https://www.education.gov.au/child-care-subsidy-activity-test">activity test</a> would mean families not working or studying would be at risk of missing out.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/childcare-funding-changes-leave-disadvantaged-children-with-fewer-hours-of-early-education-51488">Childcare funding changes leave disadvantaged children with fewer hours of early education</a>
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<p>This is where early childhood policy gets complicated. Policies can be motivated by different goals. The Coalition reforms were aimed at encouraging parental workforce participation. Labor’s proposal for the childcare subsidy seem similarly motivated.</p>
<p>But parents are not the only beneficiaries of childcare subsidies. Quality childcare also benefits children’s learning. Many childcare programs for four-year- olds (and increasingly, three-year-olds), <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Two-Years-are-Better-than-One.pdf">incorporate preschool</a>. For children of all ages, Australian childcare providers must provide a play-based learning program, guided by the <a href="https://www.education.gov.au/early-years-learning-framework-0">national framework</a>. </p>
<p>That’s why childcare and preschool services are all known as <a href="https://research.acer.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1009&context=resdev">early childhood education and care</a>: whenever children are being cared for, they are also learning. Even a <a href="http://files.acecqa.gov.au/files/QualityInformationSheets/QualityArea2/EffectiveToiletingandNappyChangingProcedure.pdf">nappy change</a> offers opportunities to support children’s learning, as skilled educators use <a href="https://www.ecrh.edu.au/docs/default-source/resources/ipsp/policies-in-practice-interactions-with-children.pdf?sfvrsn=6">playful, caring interactions</a> to help young children develop skills like communication, trust and well-being. </p>
<p>Educators can also help families recognise these opportunities, so learning continues at home. Children in low-income households often have <a href="https://www.aracy.org.au/publications-resources/command/download_file/id/146/filename/The_implications_of_poverty_on_Children">fewer opportunities to learn</a>, due to factors such as stress and limited resources for investment. </p>
<p>By supporting access to quality early childhood services, governments can help families learn everyday ways to enhance their children’s learning.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/both-major-parties-are-finally-talking-about-the-importance-of-preschool-heres-why-it-matters-114974">Both major parties are finally talking about the importance of preschool – here's why it matters</a>
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<p>To maximise benefits for children, all early childhood services need <a href="https://www.education.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/1159357/Lifting-Our-Game-Final-Report.pdf">skilled, professional staff</a>. Labor’s promised <a href="https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6093569/labors-7b-splash-on-dentist-bills-childcare-and-wages/">wage increase of 20% over eight years</a> for early childhood educators addresses an issue that has been in the too-hard basket for too long. </p>
<p>Research has shown many Australian early childhood educators are <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/life/culture/article/2018/03/27/surviving-childcare-workers-wage">paid so little</a> they are <a href="https://eprints.qut.edu.au/101622/1/Brief_report_ECEC_Workforce_Development_Policy_Workshop_final.pdf">financially dependent on others in their households</a> — ironically while enabling financial independence for other working women.</p>
<p>Low wages place downward pressure on the quality of early childhood programs. <a href="http://vuir.vu.edu.au/37853/">Educators’ qualifications are lowest in low-income communities</a>, where families cannot afford to meet the costs of higher wages. Government subsidies can help to break the link between educators’ wages and families’ ability to pay fees, so the best educators can reach the children who most need them.</p>
<p>Of course, the devil is in the detail when it comes to policy implementation. Labor has <a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/federal-election-2019-campaign-day-18-coalition-to-cap-refugees-alp-in-childcare-pledge/news-story/339c874c089542bc3a1e1667c25f2b98">not specified how the wage increases will be delivered</a>, instead committing to further consultation with the sector. Big questions remain about how government subsidies – to parents or educators – will be absorbed into a sector with <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-05-12/30784">for-profit and not-for-profit providers</a>. </p>
<p>Close monitoring of the impact on childcare costs will be essential. <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/federal-election-2019/labor-plans-4-billion-childcare-overhaul-20190427-p51hrw.html?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1556400029">Labor’s plan</a> includes asking the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to investigate “excessive” childcare fees. But can support for families be increased without stimulating an increase in fees? Can educators be supported to earn a fair wage, while keeping prices fair for families?</p>
<p>There is much to be gained by engaging with these questions. When parents are working, the <a href="https://womensworkforceparticipation.pmc.gov.au/sites/default/files/towards-2025-strategy.pdf">economy benefits</a>. When children are learning, everyone benefits, as the impact of early learning lasts <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/351499/RB354_-_Students__educational_and_developmental_outcomes_at_age_16_Brief.pdf">throughout school and beyond</a>. Countries like <a href="https://www.oecd.org/education/school/2479039.pdf">Sweden</a> and <a href="http://www.oecd.org/finland/2476019.pdf">Finland</a> show what may be possible when parents’ and children’s needs are prioritised equally. </p>
<p>We owe it to Australia’s children to keep these issues on the election agenda.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/116143/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jen Jackson has previously received funding from the Australian Research Council for research on the Australian early childhood workforce.</span></em></p>Labor is promising to help hundreds of thousands of families have access to more affordable childcare. This is an important investment but the details of how it will work must be given priority.Jen Jackson, Education Policy Lead, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/967702018-05-30T10:00:56Z2018-05-30T10:00:56ZBusiness of childcare will fail so long as toddlers are the cash-cows<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/220817/original/file-20180529-80620-1timulw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Supermarket staples.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Halfpoint/Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Most of us are used to seeing crazy bargains when we go into the local supermarket, with items such as baked beans, bananas or milk being sold at a price that seems far below what they must cost to grow/make and sell. It’s a <a href="https://pubsonline.informs.org/doi/abs/10.1287/mksc.6.4.358">well-tried method</a> – “loss leaders” are used to draw us into shops where we are also enticed to buy non-discounted items. So, unless we only plan to eat baked beans, our shopping basket usually gives the retailer an overall profit by the time we get to the checkout.</p>
<p>So, what’s this got to do with childcare? Most childcare providers in the UK, such as day nurseries and childminders, are private businesses that need to make a profit for their owners. But the need to protect children and maintain minimum standards of quality mean that they operate in a highly regulated environment. In particular, the number of staff they employ depends on the number of children they care for, and their ages. </p>
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<span class="caption">Spilling the beans.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/beans-tin-can-53816476?src=9S_jPAQDDbun7He-5zx3_g-1-76">Jiri Hera/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>For three- and four-year-olds, <a href="https://careinspectorate.wales/regulations">UK laws state</a> that one member of staff is needed for every eight children. But for children under a year old, one member of staff is needed for every three babies. So it’s easy to work out that with staff being the biggest expense in running a childcare business, the cost of looking after babies is easily more than double the cost of looking after three-year-olds – yet few nurseries pass this higher cost on to parents in full. Why? Because babies are their loss leaders.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01411920500240700">Choosing childcare</a> is a complex trade off for parents between emotional and rational factors – including price, access and availability. But, having chosen, parents are usually reluctant to alter their arrangements. By rarely passing on the true cost of a place for babies, childcare is made to seem more affordable and attractive to new customers. As the babies grow up, and staffing ratios and costs go down, toddlers become profitable while three- and four-year-olds become the nursery cash cows.</p>
<h2>Free for a price</h2>
<p>This business model for childcare has held true for many years, but the introduction of <a href="https://www.gov.uk/help-with-childcare-costs/free-childcare-and-education-for-2-to-4-year-olds">30 “free” hours of childcare</a> for three- and four-year-olds in parts of the UK is creating real problems for the sector. The “free” hours are funded by local authorities at a rate <a href="http://www.frontier-economics.com/documents/2017/01/seed-the-cost-and-funding-of-early-education.pdf">calculated</a> from the costs associated with childcare for the age group, but not taking into account the way that baby places are cross-subsidised.</p>
<p>This means that parents will either end up paying more for babies, or as has been seen across England, childcare businesses are making up the shortfall in other ways, such as <a href="https://fullfact.org/education/parents-paying-free-nursery-places/">charging for “extras”</a> like nappies, meals, trips or registration fees. Some day nurseries and childminders <a href="https://www.aboutearlyyears.co.uk/media/1136/ceeda-aey-autumn-2017-snapshot_release_v1.pdf">have indicated</a> that they may stop accepting children under the free childcare offer, while others are doubtful that they will be able to stay in business as a result.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/underpaid-and-undervalued-the-reality-of-childcare-work-in-the-uk-87413">Underpaid and undervalued: the reality of childcare work in the UK</a>
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<p>In Wales, the plan to offer <a href="https://gov.wales/topics/people-and-communities/people/children-and-young-people/childcare/talk-childcare/?lang=en">30 hours free childcare</a> is problematic because almost <a href="http://record.assembly.wales/WrittenQuestion/76441">90% of Welsh three-year-olds</a> are in school for at least ten hours per week where they receive free early education. Few schools in Wales provide any kind of childcare that “<a href="https://www.pacey.org.uk/getattachment/Partnerships/Cwlwm-Wales/Cwlwm-Guide-to-Wraparound-Childcare-English.pdf">wraps around</a>” the part-time early education place making it hard for working parents. It also makes it tough for childcare businesses to make a reasonable profit from providing care just for babies and toddlers. As a result, there is limited choice of childcare in Wales, and it is often <a href="https://gov.wales/statistics-and-research/childcare-capacity-wales/?lang=en">difficult for parents to access</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/may/14/parents-carillion-childcare-collapse-nursery-provider">Some have argued</a> that these problems are inevitable when childcare is delivered by the market rather than being a public service, but the current problem lies in it being neither a true market, nor fully publicly funded. In total, there are <a href="https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmtreasy/757/757.pdf">nine different UK government schemes</a> that can reduce the cost of childcare – some of which can be claimed at the same time as each other, while others cannot – yet UK childcare can still be the <a href="https://inews.co.uk/news/uk/cost-childcare-uk-world-explained/">most expensive in the world</a>. Meanwhile, childcare businesses are expected to provide services in an environment that fixes the amount of income they get and regulates how they can spend it. </p>
<p>A recent <a href="https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmtreasy/757/757.pdf">parliamentary report</a> said the system of UK childcare contained “fundamental design flaws”, and that commendable public initiatives are failing against perfectly reasonable commercial imperatives. Further tinkering around the edges is likely to make matters worse. </p>
<p>As growing <a href="http://www.oecd.org/education/starting-strong-2017-9789264276116-en.htm">international evidence</a> makes clear, the best outcomes for parents and children are from universal, state-funded systems. This means quality care and early education that is available and affordable to all, from when parental leave ends to when compulsory schooling begins. Babies are too important to all our futures to be treated like baked beans.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/96770/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Dallimore does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Free childcare schemes aren’t working and babies are too important to be left on the shelf.David Dallimore, WISERD Researcher, Bangor UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/947162018-04-26T22:16:04Z2018-04-26T22:16:04ZWhy free preschool makes the most sense for families<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/216575/original/file-20180426-175054-2dl6hz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Making preschool free will dramatically improve affordability for families across Ontario, Canada, and lead to a predicted increase of 40,000 parents in full-time employment. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="http://www.childcarecanada.org/documents/child-care-news/18/03/more-child-care-more-choice-providing-free-preschool-child-care-chil">The Ontario Liberals recently announced</a> a plan to offer free child care for preschoolers — from the age of 2.5 years until they start kindergarten — to every family that wants it by 2020.</p>
<p><a href="https://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2018/04/more-than-3100-new-child-care-spaces-for-families-across-ontario.html">Premier Kathleen Wynne also announced Thursday funding for new licensed child-care spaces in community locations</a> — such as community centres, places of worship and Indigenous friendship centres — in support of this goal.</p>
<p>Many people find this approach surprising because child care for infants and toddlers is much more expensive than care for preschoolers. They question how tackling preschool spaces first makes sense as the best way to improve child-care affordability. </p>
<p>Indeed, <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2018/04/02/ndp-vows-to-do-better-on-child-care-than-free-preschool-care.html">Ontario’s NDP has vowed they will “do better” and make child care affordable and accessible to children of all ages, all at once</a>. </p>
<p>I am an economist at the University of Toronto who has <a href="http://www.childcarepolicy.net/publications/">researched child-care policy</a> for the last 30 years. As the main author of the new study, <a href="http://www.childcarepolicy.net/">“Affordable For All: Making Licensed Child Care Affordable in Ontario,”</a> which was commissioned by the government of Ontario, let me try to explain why free preschool really does make the most economic and social sense.</p>
<h2>A burden on mothers</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.childcarecanada.org/documents/research-policy-practice/17/12/time-out-child-care-fees-canada-2017">Child care is very expensive</a> across Canada. A typical Ontario family could expect to pay at least $15,000 annually for an infant’s care, $13,000 for a toddler and $10,000 for a preschooler. If the family lives in Toronto or some other cities, fees can be considerably higher. </p>
<p>Our study, which the Ontario Liberals’ plan is based upon, found that more than 80 per cent of Ontario families with children of up to four years of age cannot afford the cost of licensed child care. </p>
<p>Many of those who can currently afford it are lower-income families lucky enough to obtain scarce subsidized spots. </p>
<p>On average, Ontario families spend over 23 per cent of their after-tax household income on licensed child-care services. On average, it amounts to 67 per cent of a mother’s take-home pay. </p>
<p>This is enough of a barrier to keep many mothers out of the labour force, and to compel others to cobble together part-time work or self-employment with unpaid care arrangements. </p>
<p>In other words, the child-care affordability crisis puts a real burden on families, especially on mothers. </p>
<h2>Helping more families</h2>
<p>Since nearly all families cannot afford child care, the solutions need to be comprehensive, not targeted. </p>
<p>It’s not enough to provide assistance only to low-income families; Ontario already has a child-care subsidy system that does that, and it only helps a small minority of families. </p>
<p>If the government puts money into preschool child care, it improves affordability for a very large number of Ontario families. </p>
<p>There are more than 100,000 Ontario children currently using preschool child care. There are another 60,000 to 100,000 likely to use it when it is made free. Licensed child care is very well accepted as <a href="https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1968100">positive for children and families once children reach 2.5 or three years of age</a>. And far fewer families use infant or toddler care. </p>
<p>So if you want to make child care affordable for the maximum number of Ontario families, starting with children at preschool age is the way to go. </p>
<p>Think of it as moving the child-care affordability finish line. Right now, a child has to reach kindergarten before the crushing affordability burden diminishes. Making preschool child care free moves the finish line back to 2.5 years. For every child in Ontario.</p>
<h2>Avoiding Quebec’s mistakes</h2>
<p>Another key factor stems from the experience in Quebec. Quebec started its child-care reforms in the 1990s with great plans to build a high-quality system, with most children using high-quality community-based child-care centres called CPEs (Centres de la petite enfance) at $5 per day. </p>
<p>But the province made the mistake of offering these widely affordable child-care services before they had capacity to serve the explosion of demand. </p>
<p>The Quebec government then had to allow <a href="http://childcarecanada.org/documents/research-policy-practice/17/04/twelve-flawed-statements-fraser-institute-quebec%E2%80%99s-childcar">lower-quality, for-profit child-care centres</a> to provide many services. They also had to dramatically expand home child care, a sector that often uses caregivers with little training or supervision. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.stat.gouv.qc.ca/statistiques/education/milieu-garde/qualite-cpe-milieu-familial_an.pdf">Research studies found this child care to be of relatively low quality</a>. This created several problems for children and families. On top of all this, middle- and higher-income families got a disproportionate share of the good quality CPE places.</p>
<p>So child care is very affordable in Quebec, but not of great quality. And the highest quality services are not fairly distributed among income groups. </p>
<p>It’s crucial for Ontario to avoid these missteps. </p>
<h2>More parents in employment</h2>
<p>At present, Ontario has only 14,000 infant spaces, about 45,000 toddler spaces and 110,000 preschool spaces. In other words, there is only capacity for about seven per cent of Ontario’s infants and about 32 per cent of toddlers but as much as 67 per cent of preschoolers. </p>
<p>If infant and toddler child care were made affordable tomorrow, there would be an instant Quebec-style crisis of too much demand and too little supply. </p>
<p>By channelling the new funding towards preschool-age children, Ontario has a much better chance of building a well-managed, publicly funded system of child-care services. </p>
<p>Making preschool child care free will dramatically improve affordability for Ontario families. </p>
<p>It will lead to a predicted increase of 40,000 parents in full-time employment. And it will increase net tax revenues and economic well-being.</p>
<p>There will still be child-care affordability problems at infant and toddler ages. However, as licensed capacity is built for preschoolers, the government can require complementary increases in infant and toddler capacity. As this capacity increases, additional improvements to affordability should be made.</p>
<p><em>This story has been updated to clarify that the author’s report — “Affordable For All: Making Licensed Child Care Affordable in Ontario” — was commissioned by the government of Ontario.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/94716/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gordon Cleveland has received funding from the Ontario Ministry of Education.</span></em></p>It is vital that Ontario’s child-care reforms reach all families, and that the province learns from mistakes made in Quebec.Gordon Cleveland, Associate Professor Emeritus, Economics, University of TorontoLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/874132018-04-20T08:50:24Z2018-04-20T08:50:24ZUnderpaid and undervalued: the reality of childcare work in the UK<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/215436/original/file-20180418-163975-1uf1xef.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/success?src=JKqcTL2H4CmPtqxwWaEtTA-1-1">shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Despite the important job they do, wages for people working in childcare <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0958928717719196">tend to be low</a>. These workers earn less than the average wage across all UK employment sectors and barely half that of <a href="https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/nursery-world/news/1159248/early-years-pay-and-conditions-survey-2016">qualified teachers</a>. </p>
<p>In the latest <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/childcare-and-early-years-providers-survey-2016">government provider survey</a>, it was found almost 20% of day nursery workers in England earn less than the national living wage – including 10% of those aged 25 and over. </p>
<p>In contrast, qualified teachers working in state nursery schools, children’s centres or state primary nursery classes <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-teachers-pay-and-conditions">receive nationally agreed pay</a> and employment conditions. </p>
<p>This is partly because, since 1998 and the introduction of universal <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/social-policy-and-society/article/div-classtitlethe-interface-between-childcare-family-support-and-child-poverty-strategies-under-new-labour-tensions-and-contradictionsdiv/561079E5D07DAD0B3EFAE6A278E463EA#">entitlement to early education</a> for all three- and four-year-olds, early education is no longer required to be delivered by graduate teachers – except in state nursery schools and nursery classes attached to state primaries. </p>
<p>Instead, working with children in private sector settings – such as day nurseries, preschools and playgroups – are early childhood practitioners with a range of childcare qualifications, or none. Some may be graduates, some may be school leavers.</p>
<h2>Low pay, low status</h2>
<p>This matters because <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1476718X10387900">research</a> into childcare quality shows a direct link between workers’ qualification levels, <a href="http://www.nesse.fr/nesse/activities/reports/ecec-report-pdf">their pay and conditions</a> and service quality. In other words, the more qualified and better paid the workers, the better the educational and care experience children receive.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/215432/original/file-20180418-164001-19th9no.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/215432/original/file-20180418-164001-19th9no.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215432/original/file-20180418-164001-19th9no.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215432/original/file-20180418-164001-19th9no.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215432/original/file-20180418-164001-19th9no.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215432/original/file-20180418-164001-19th9no.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215432/original/file-20180418-164001-19th9no.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Time spent at nursery has the potential to be hugely influential.</span>
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<p>Research has shown what matters to those working with young children <a href="https://www.eurofound.europa.eu/sites/default/files/ef_publication/field_ef_document/ef1469en.pdf">includes competitive wages</a> and benefits. As well as reasonable workloads, competent and supportive managers and opportunities for development. Research has also shown that a supportive environment for nursery workers can have a positive impact on <a href="http://ecec-care.org/fileadmin/careproject/Publications/reports/CARE_WP3_D3_2_Professional_Development_and_its_Impact_on_Children.pdf">children’s development and childcare quality</a>.</p>
<p>All of these factors also increase the likelihood of staff retention and motivation for quality interactions with children. Yet despite this, these aspects of childcare provision are not regulated by the government and are left to be determined by the industry itself.</p>
<h2>Woman’s work?</h2>
<p>One of the reasons for this is the gender imbalance within the workforce. Childcare is still seen as woman’s work, and <a href="https://www.jrf.org.uk/report/reducing-gender-inequalities-create-sustainable-care-system">is often undervalued</a>. Men form only 3% of the <a href="http://www.seepro.eu/English/Projekt.htm">UK childcare workforce</a>. </p>
<p>Attempts to change this dynamic – by emphasising the educational dimension – have done little so far to raise <a href="https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/jped.2017.8.issue-1/jped-2017-0001/jped-2017-0001.xml?format=INT">the status of English childcare practitioners</a>. This is despite the fact that childcare workforce qualification levels have been <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/593646/SFR09_2017_Main_Text.pdf">steadily rising</a> and an <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/175463/Nutbrown-Review.pdf">independent review</a> recommended that graduate childcare practitioners should have the opportunity to become qualified teachers. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/215431/original/file-20180418-163991-1sy0h9f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/215431/original/file-20180418-163991-1sy0h9f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215431/original/file-20180418-163991-1sy0h9f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215431/original/file-20180418-163991-1sy0h9f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215431/original/file-20180418-163991-1sy0h9f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215431/original/file-20180418-163991-1sy0h9f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215431/original/file-20180418-163991-1sy0h9f.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Many nursery school workers are poorly paid.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/success?src=fvwl9ZqhtzD2GWYDh37eMQ-1-68">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Instead, the government has offered graduates interested in working with young children various training pathways. But these don’t offer the same packages that qualified teachers get – such as better pay and conditions, as well as <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/596884/Workforce_strategy_02-03-2017.pdf">improved career prospects</a>. Unsurprisingly, enthusiasm for such <a href="https://epi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/EPI_-Early-Years-Workforce.pdf">training routes</a> has proved limited and <a href="https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/nursery-world/news/1160816/report-calls-for-qts-for-devalued-early-years-teachers%20and%20qualification%20levels%20are%20now%20falling">many courses have closed</a>. </p>
<h2>International perspectives</h2>
<p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1350293X.2013.814321">Nordic countries</a>, on the other hand, have much smaller pay differentials within their early years workforce and the job is much more respected. Statistics from a <a href="http://www.seepro.eu/English/Projekt.htm">2017 report</a> show that Denmark has achieved the best gender balance within its early years workforce. Here, 13% of staff are male. </p>
<p>Across the age range, well paid early years teachers in Denmark work alongside assistants – whose training differs from schoolteachers. As early childhood is viewed as a distinct life stage, the childcare system is also <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/feb/18/britain-learn-denmark-childcare-model">completely separate from the school system</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/215435/original/file-20180418-163971-eq6y0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/215435/original/file-20180418-163971-eq6y0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215435/original/file-20180418-163971-eq6y0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215435/original/file-20180418-163971-eq6y0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215435/original/file-20180418-163971-eq6y0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215435/original/file-20180418-163971-eq6y0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/215435/original/file-20180418-163971-eq6y0x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In other countries, early years education is seen as highly important.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/success?src=fvwl9ZqhtzD2GWYDh37eMQ-1-59">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://www.oecd.org/edu/school/ECECDCN-Germany.pdf">Similarly in Germany</a>, the early years workforce is much less of a hierarchy. Most of those working with children under six have a three-year post-secondary qualification – only 4% are qualified to degree level. And in France, even childminders have their basic <a href="https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/nursery-world/analysis/1097583/frances-childcare-french-lessons">pay and conditions regulated by government</a>.</p>
<h2>Affordable childcare</h2>
<p>In other EU countries, parents’ fees for nursery are income related, or waived for the poorest. Price capping is also used to <a href="http://www.cwrc.ac.uk/documents/CostsofchildcareJuly2013.pdf">keep childcare affordable</a>.</p>
<p>In Finland, the state still provides completely free childcare. And in many countries, governments cover more than 80% of the direct costs. Compare this with early years spending in the UK which is more than 20% lower – and considerably <a href="http://www.oecd.org/edu/education-at-a-glance-19991487.htm">lower than even the OECD average</a>. In fact, the UK and Japan are the only OECD member states where 50% of early years spending comes from private sources – such as parental income. </p>
<p>In the UK, funding for early education is paid directly by the government to state schools, academies and private childcare businesses. Parents then have to pay all additional childcare costs upfront. For a child under two spending 25 hours a week in a day nursery, <a href="https://www.familyandchildcaretrust.org/childcare-survey-2017">parents can pay anything</a> from £100 up to £154.</p>
<p>Although some parents can then claim part of these costs back – through the benefits or tax credit systems – this forms a huge barrier. Particularly so for <a href="https://www.familyandchildcaretrust.org/childcare-survey-2017">parents in irregular or self-employment</a>. It also deters childcare businesses from raising fees further to invest in their workers. </p>
<h2>Baby steps</h2>
<p>A recent government report said this was a “fundamental design flaw” and one that was in <a href="https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmtreasy/757/757.pdf">urgent need of rectification</a>. It was hoped that the recent roll-out of the 30 hours of free childcare for three- and four-year-olds of <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/30-hours-free-childcare-launches">working parents</a> would help to change matters – and make childcare more accessible and affordable. </p>
<p>But given that the free childcare initiative requires a significant expansion of the early years workforce, this may be tricky. Without improving training, pay and employment conditions, the chances of creating a high quality, equitable and sustainable childcare system seem remote.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/87413/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Eva Lloyd has carried out research for the Department for Education and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. </span></em></p>Why does childcare work have such a status problem in Britain?Eva Lloyd, Professor of Early Childhood, Cass School of Education and Communities, University of East LondonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/846362017-09-27T14:55:02Z2017-09-27T14:55:02ZA family affair: how close relatives can push new mums to work longer<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187768/original/file-20170927-24188-1gfkdt3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=594%2C14%2C2712%2C1784&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/successful-woman-going-work-baby-her-715635484?src=9XKbRhWBefJJD2iAS6CAcQ-1-27">Kaspars Grinvalds/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>How much should new mothers work? It turns out the example set within families and friendship groups has a major role in deciding the hours women will consider after returning from maternity leave. Policy makers should take note. </p>
<p>We are all used to the idea that, almost subconsciously, family and friends establish precedents in our lives. We find ourselves repeating the admonishments of our parents to our own children; we fall into step with the fashions of our social groups. It is now clearer how dramatic this effect can be on those mothers planning for a post-baby job.</p>
<p>The findings from <a href="http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/119251/1/Accepted_Manuscript_Nicoletti_Salvanes_Tominey_2017.pdf">our new research</a> mean that any measures designed by government to make it easier to go back to work would have an effect not just on the woman targeted by the policy but also on their entire family. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187761/original/file-20170927-24193-15oli88.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Passing it on.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/happy-family-walking-park-on-sunny-695082259?src=5TTPBhWbJxfGw2RiCIYleQ-1-28">Nataliia Budianska/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Balancing act</h2>
<p>With colleagues from The University of York and the Norwegian School of Economics, we analysed data from more than 45,000 new mothers in Norway between 1997 and 2002. This allowed an examination of how new mothers decide the number of hours to work in the first seven years after having a child. </p>
<p>The biggest effect is in the pre-school years. During that time, an increase of one hour in the time worked per week by a woman’s sisters and female cousins after childbirth corresponds to an increase of up to 30 minutes in the weekly hours that a new mother will work. </p>
<p>Take two women who have the same work experience, have children at the same time and the same education. If their sisters work very similar hours after having children, then they are likely to choose the same number of hours to work after returning from maternity leave. However, if a policy increases the hours worked by one mother’s sister by, say 10 hours. Then this mother will work up to five hours more than the other, through the peer effect alone.</p>
<p>Before children are at school, <a href="http://www.nyinorge.no/en/Ny-i-Norge-velg-sprak/New-in-Norway/Children--Schools/The-school-system/">which in Norway</a> is at the age of six, the mother faces a balancing act: work to earn money, but use sometimes expensive childcare (depending on how deep the government’s pockets are at that moment) or save on childcare and spend time with her child. Once the child starts school this trade-off is less important because earning income can coincide with the school day, and this is what the results show.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=516&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=516&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187762/original/file-20170927-24167-xdxcib.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=516&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Learning curve.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/kids-kindergartner-group-preschool-playing-attention-720987811?src=SziQZMn3i_ROO13a356TYA-1-4">Iam_Anupong/Shutterstock</a></span>
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<p>So how does her family influence a mother’s decisions? First, she might simply conform to the established family norms. Second, new mothers may find in their family a fantastic resource for information about what might be best for them and their child. </p>
<p>In particular, mums may seek reassurances about the effect that returning to work will have on their children from close relatives who have already been through something similar. That might be anything from practical knowledge about childcare availability, to understanding how well children cope with the mum’s absence.</p>
<p>The research also asked why a mother might be swayed by her family’s choices of working hours in the years soon after having children. The findings are that the <em>hours</em> worked by her family influence the mother right from the end of eligibility for maternity leave, up to the final pre-school years. Mothers start to be motivated by the <em>money</em> their family earns only from age four onwards. </p>
<h2>Multiplier</h2>
<p>Why is this? <a href="https://ideas.repec.org/a/oup/restud/v81y2014i1p137-185.html">Previous research</a> <a href="https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/jep.22.3.23">has shown</a> that the time mums spend with their children is highest for newborns and falls as children age, while the money spent on children starts off quite low and increases as they grow up. </p>
<p>And so the money earned by the family starts to influence decisions during the later pre-school years when more is spent on their children. Of course, it may be that mothers are interested in the earnings of their family simply in order to keep pace with established patterns of spending. If her family goes on a holiday, the mother might choose to work more hours to buy a holiday herself. </p>
<p>All developed countries have seen <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.3982/ECTA8803/abstract">well-documented increases</a> in the number of mothers returning to work after having children. Recently, there has been an increase in hours worked. In our paper, we show that in Norway between 1986 and 2010, the proportion of mothers working full-time rose from 60% to 76% for mothers with a degree and from 42% to 60% for mothers who went through compulsory schooling. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/187764/original/file-20170927-24162-xr8wup.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Virtuous circle?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/girls-working-their-laptops-521305987?src=_wpaLnHgZ-dJKfHjCxqF3g-1-17">Ollyy/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This may be due to availability of childcare or there may be cultural changes involved. But what is clear from the new research is that public policy changes can create a social multiplier effect. </p>
<p>This means that any policy aimed at raising participation of mothers in the workforce by a single hour per week will actually raise labour supply of not just the targeted mothers but also of her family. That effect we have shown, where one hour extra translates into an extra 30 minutes for fellow women in that family creates a cascade effect. </p>
<p>Other groups can create a supplementary effect too. Our research finds that choices made by neighbourhood friends will influence mothers, even if it is to a lesser degree. An increase of an hour a week worked by neighbours will lead to an increase in the mother’s hours by between two and 17 minutes in the three to five years after having a child.</p>
<p>We can argue over whether our developed economies are best served by quickly pushing new mothers back to work, but what is clear is that a government which uses public policy to encourage new precedents to be established in families will end up reaping more than they thought they had sown.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/84636/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emma Tominey receives funding from the British Academy. Cheti Nicoletti receives funding from the Economic and Social Research Council and Kjell Salvanes receives funding from the Norwegian research Council.</span></em></p>Policymakers can get more for their money when planing incentives for mothers to work.Emma Tominey, Senior Lecturer of Economics, University of YorkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/750462017-03-27T05:21:51Z2017-03-27T05:21:51ZPolicyCheck: the government’s new child care plan<p>The government’s new child care plan has <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-03-23/governments-childcare-reforms-passed-the-senate/8381908">passed the Senate</a>, subject to last minute amendments passed by independent Senator Derryn Hinch. The bill, known officially as the <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_LEGislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r5696">Family Assistance Legislation Amendment (Jobs for Families Child Care Package) Bill 2016</a>, will now return to the lower house. It is expected to pass, and implementation to begin in July 2018. </p>
<p>This new law will change the way that families are given assistance with paying for child care.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.education.gov.au/jobsforfamilies">main changes</a> include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Replacing the Child Care Benefit and Child Care Rebate with a new Child Care Subsidy. The new subsidy will have eligibility rules and be subject to means testing. Total Child Care Subsidy payments will be capped at A$10,000 for wealthy families and there will be zero subsidies for families earning more than A$350,000.</p></li>
<li><p>Introducing an hourly fee cap on the subsidies that governments will pay in an attempt to control child care price increases.</p></li>
<li><p>A new activity test, meaning that families will be eligible for either 36, 72 or 100 hours of subsidised care per fortnight depending upon the combined hours of work, training, study or other recognised activity undertaken. Both parents must work or study at least eight hours a fortnight to receive the new subsidy.</p></li>
<li><p>A new A$1 billion Child Care Safety Net aimed at helping families on less than A$65,710 who do not meet the activity test. These families will be able to get up to 24 hours per fortnight of subsidised care.</p></li>
</ul>
<h2>Before: two complicated payments</h2>
<p>Families in Australia currently receive two types of support for child care: the Child Care Benefit and the Child Care Rebate (originally called the <a href="http://guides.dss.gov.au/family-assistance-guide/1/2/7">Child Care Tax Rebate</a>). </p>
<p>The Child Care Rebate covers 50% of families’ out-of-pocket costs of childcare up to A$7,500 per child – after you hit the A$7,500 threshold, you don’t get any more rebate.</p>
<p>The Child Care rebate is not means tested but the Child Care Benefit is.</p>
<p>How much Child Care Benefit you get depends on whether children are school-aged or pre-school aged, on the family’s current year income, the number of children in care and on the hours of care used.</p>
<p>Child care providers typically charge anywhere between around A$100 and around A$150 per day per child.</p>
<h2>Now: a single payment</h2>
<p>Under the new plan, the old Child Care Rebate and Child Care Subsidy will be rolled into a single new payment called the Child Care Subsidy.</p>
<p>Instead of a flat 50% rebate rate on what they pay, families with a household income of up to A$65,710 will get up to 85% of what they pay. The rate tapers down from there.</p>
<p>Families receiving more than A$185,710 in household income will also be subject to a cap of $10,000 on total Child Care Subsidy payments.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=202&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=202&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=202&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=254&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=254&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162587/original/image-20170327-3283-994gq6.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=254&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/a3_overview_16_feb_2017_1.pdf">Department of Education and Training</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=248&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=248&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=248&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/162589/original/image-20170327-3308-9oycmo.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=311&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/a3_overview_16_feb_2017_1.pdf">Department of Education and Training</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>New hourly fee cap</h2>
<p>An additional layer of complexity is added by the new policy’s fee caps – an attempt by the government to prevent higher subsidies from leading directly to increased prices.</p>
<p>The new child care subsidy rate will not apply to what families actually pay but rather to the new hourly fee caps. The fee caps will be indexed to the consumer price index (CPI). Over the last 12 years, child care prices have <a href="https://theconversation.com/factcheck-what-are-the-facts-on-rising-child-care-prices-71014">grown much more rapidly</a> than inflation. That’s due mainly to increased demand and the <a href="http://www.acecqa.gov.au/national-quality-framework">National Quality Framework</a>, which meant higher-skilled staff and smaller classes.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152955/original/image-20170117-9029-6gdz2w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/152955/original/image-20170117-9029-6gdz2w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=284&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152955/original/image-20170117-9029-6gdz2w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=284&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152955/original/image-20170117-9029-6gdz2w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=284&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152955/original/image-20170117-9029-6gdz2w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=357&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152955/original/image-20170117-9029-6gdz2w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=357&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/152955/original/image-20170117-9029-6gdz2w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=357&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Chart by the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods, using Australian Bureau of Statistics data.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It is very hard for governments to control prices in any market. These hourly price caps, given the price increases associated with quality improvements in child care, may end up creating a two-tiered market, with high-end providers charging what the market will bear and low-end providers tying themselves to the subsidy rate. </p>
<p>This two-tiered system of high- and low-priced childcare centres already exists to some extent in most urban areas in Australia. The gap between these may be exacerbated by the attempt to control prices.</p>
<p>As many child care providers currently charge <em>daily</em> rates, and have the power to determine how many hours of care are provided in any given day, it’s unclear how the new system of <em>hourly</em> fee caps will work in practice.</p>
<h2>Which families will get more and which will get less?</h2>
<p>It is clear that wealthy families will receive less money. Those earning over A$350,000 – who, under the old scheme, could get as much as A$7,500 per child – will now receive nothing. This increases the effective marginal tax rates on second earners in wealthy households.</p>
<p>The policy effect on other income groups depends on household income, whether the hourly price of the care they currently use is more expensive than the fee cap, and whether they are affected by the new activity test.</p>
<p>Most, though not all, families earning over A$250,000 will be negatively affected. Those that will be better off are those who work long hours and use relatively inexpensive childcare and are near the A$250,000 threshold.</p>
<p>A substantial fraction of households earning less than the A$65,710 will be worse off, mostly because they will fail to meet the activity test.</p>
<h2>How might the new plan affect workforce participation and productivity?</h2>
<p>It’s not clear what effect all this will have on workforce participation. On average, women from the wealthiest families will work less.</p>
<p>On average, women from less well-off families may end up working more in response to the new policy.</p>
<p>One might expect an overall positive impact on total female labour force participation but this depends greatly upon the economy’s ability to deliver jobs. This will vary greatly by geographic region.</p>
<p>Female labour force participation is already widespread, so this policy will not generate a huge new pool of workers. It will have small positive effects on willingness to work and working hours, but these will be small compared to macro-economic effects such as global commodity prices or the performance of the Chinese economy.</p>
<p>Long-term productivity should be higher because <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/early-childhood-education-3187">experts</a> think better and more early childhood education and care will produce better long term outcomes.</p>
<p>Overall, the policy seems tilted towards less expensive child care for families, which is good. However, it may work against improving <a href="http://www.acecqa.gov.au/national-quality-framework">quality child care</a>, which is expensive. </p>
<p>Policymakers have to decide whether there are more productivity gains to be had in increasing women’s workforce participation or, in the longer term, in investing in higher quality child care.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/75046/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Breunig does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Here’s how the government’s new childcare plan will change the way families are given assistance with paying for child care.Robert Breunig, Professor of Economics, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/684592016-11-14T16:10:28Z2016-11-14T16:10:28ZWhat Britain can learn from Scandinavia when it comes to childcare<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/145830/original/image-20161114-5069-143ziyb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Nordic childcare model has been shown to be the best for economic and social wellbeing.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Danes do it, the Swedes do it, and even the Norwegians do it, but when it comes to accessible and affordable childcare, Britain lags far behind its northerly neighbours.</p>
<p>In Scandinavia, access to childcare for young children is considered a formal right – with restrictions on the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/may/31/costs-childcare-britain-sweden-compare">maximum fee</a> level parents have to pay set by the government. As a result <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/social/BlobServlet?docId=2803&langId=en">in 2012</a>, 67% of children under three in Denmark were in nursery – and 52% in Sweden – with the majority of them spending more than 30 hours a week there. </p>
<p>The UK, on the other hand, has one of the most expensive childcare models in the <a href="http://www.oecd.org/els/family/47701096.pdf">developed world</a>, costing on average £218 a week for a full-time care – increasing to more than £300 in London. This cost has increased much more rapidly compared to wages or inflation. And yet despite the high costs involved, parents in the UK still often <a href="http://www.familyandchildcaretrust.org/sites/default/files/Childcare%20cost%20survey%202016%20FINAL%20VERSION.pdf">struggle to find a place</a> for their child at a local nursery.</p>
<p>Then there is also the issue of the <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/mother-tongue/11431743/Childcare-in-UKs-real-problem-Lack-of-educated-staff.html">quality of the care</a> being provided, especially regarding the skill and education levels of workers – which is primarily down to the low wages in the sector.</p>
<h2>Public support</h2>
<p>Although many reports and articles talk about how the British childcare system fails to meet the standard of its northern neighbours, what is rarely spoken about is what people actually want governments to do in terms of providing childcare. And with this in mind, <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14616696.2016.1235218">in our recent research</a> my colleague <a href="http://www.kuleuven.be/wieiswie/en/person/00041613">Bart Meuleman</a> and I compared parents’ attitude towards publicly-provided childcare services across Europe.</p>
<p>Unsurprisingly, the results showed that British people had one of the lowest levels of support for publicly-provided childcare – with only the Dutch and Slovakians scoring lower out of the 23 countries surveyed. On the other hand, the golden child of childcare provision, Denmark, ranked as one of the highest supporters of publicly-provided childcare. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/145833/original/image-20161114-5084-4j63os.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/145833/original/image-20161114-5084-4j63os.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145833/original/image-20161114-5084-4j63os.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145833/original/image-20161114-5084-4j63os.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145833/original/image-20161114-5084-4j63os.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145833/original/image-20161114-5084-4j63os.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145833/original/image-20161114-5084-4j63os.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Child’s play.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our research also showed that countries with a greater public provision of childcare – such as the Scandinavians – and where in general people believe that the current level of childcare is good, parents were much more in favour of government’s involvement in childcare.</p>
<p>So let’s take Denmark for example. Here there is good public provision of childcare and parents believe that the country’s childcare system is great – so they strongly believe that government should be responsible for providing this kind of care. Compare this to the Brits, where provision is minimal, and the population believes that the system isn’t great, making it no surprise that people generally aren’t very supportive of government’s involvement in childcare.</p>
<p>Although this all sounds pretty logical, it is hard to know what comes first, the support, or the policy – the age old chicken and egg question. And looking to Norway as an example, <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-social-policy/article/closing-the-childcare-gap-the-interaction-of-childcare-provision-and-mothers-agency-in-norway/3FA24AFE344B4193DAFB84C4C14144D5">studies have shown</a> how initially when public childcare provision was introduced, the support for it was low. But once lots of people started using it, the support for it grew significantly. So it could be that the same thing could happen in the UK.</p>
<h2>The 30 free hours</h2>
<p>Childcare is an investment. And it can help to increase the intellectual capacities of children – especially from <a href="http://media.nao.org.uk/uploads/2004/02/268_literaturereview.pdf">lower income backgrounds</a>. It is with this in mind that the UK government has promised to extend <a href="http://www.madeformums.com/news-and-gossip/30-hours-of-free-childcare---will-my-child-get-it/38143.html">free childcare for three to four-year-olds</a>, from the current 15 hours a week, to 30 hours a week – for 38 weeks of the year, equivalent to school term times. </p>
<p>As more people experience and benefit from a larger provision, it could be that support for and attitudes towards publicly provided childcare begin to improve. Yet there <a href="https://theconversation.com/increasing-free-childcare-wont-be-as-easy-as-a-b-c-42837">are concerns</a> that this promise of more hours without a significant increase in government budget will lead to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2016/sep/03/free-childcare-may-leave-nurseries-struggling">an increase in costs</a> – particularly for those parents with children under three, who generally aren’t entitled to free childcare. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/145835/original/image-20161114-5091-1ru6cit.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/145835/original/image-20161114-5091-1ru6cit.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145835/original/image-20161114-5091-1ru6cit.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145835/original/image-20161114-5091-1ru6cit.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145835/original/image-20161114-5091-1ru6cit.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145835/original/image-20161114-5091-1ru6cit.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/145835/original/image-20161114-5091-1ru6cit.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Can a Scandinavian model work in the UK?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There are also fears that a <a href="https://theconversation.com/promising-more-free-nursery-care-is-one-thing-delivering-it-is-quite-another-41105">decrease in the quality</a> of care may be on the cards – due to possible decline in the hourly wages of staff to makeup for the loss in fees. It may well be that working parents with very young children could struggle to find nursery places thanks to a surge in demand for already limited places. All of which can drive down parent’s perception of childcare service provision, which as our research shows is one of the most important factors for support. </p>
<p>Only time will tell how this change in childcare arrangements will impact support for government provided childcare in the UK. But what is clear is that affordable and accessible childcare <a href="http://www.economist.com/news/britain/21652357-new-subsidy-may-make-it-even-harder-get-place-nursery-holding-baby">allows mothers</a> to take a more active part in the labour market. So if we learn anything from our Nordic neighbours, surely how we treat our youngest members of society, along with gender equality for working women are two pretty good places to start.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/68459/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Heejung Chung receives funding from the ESRC for the project "Working-time flexibiilty and work-life balance" (Grant ref: ES/K009699/1)</span></em></p>Will an increase in free nursery hours lead to greater support for publicly-provided childcare?Heejung Chung, Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Social Policy, University of KentLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/610092016-06-20T06:40:12Z2016-06-20T06:40:12ZElection FactCheck Q&A: does the government spend more on negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts than on child care or higher education?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/127081/original/image-20160617-11135-1gqbwfi.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Was Bill Shorten right about federal government spending on negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Q&A</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><strong>The Conversation is fact-checking claims made on Q&A, broadcast Mondays on the ABC at 9:35pm. Thank you to everyone who sent us quotes for checking via <a href="http://www.twitter.com/conversationEDU">Twitter</a> using hashtags #FactCheck and #QandA, on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/conversationEDU">Facebook</a> or by <a href="mailto:checkit@theconversation.edu.au">email</a>.</strong></p>
<hr>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N2qF9b0VqN0?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Excerpt from Q&A, June 13, 2016.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<blockquote>
<p>… This nation, when you look at what we give in the form of tax concession, tax subsidy on negative gearing and capital gains tax discount, is spending more at the Commonwealth level on negative gearing and CGT discount than we are on child care or higher education. <strong>– Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/tv/qanda/txt/s4454321.htm">speaking</a> on Q&A, June 13, 2016.</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>Opposition Leader Bill Shorten told Q&A viewers (watch from 6:26 in the clip above) that the federal government spends more on negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts than it does on child care or higher education.</p>
<p>Is that right?</p>
<h2>Checking the source</h2>
<p>When asked for sources to support Shorten’s statement, an ALP spokesperson said the <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/time-to-fix-australias-unaffordable-capital-gains-tax-and-negative-gearing-policies/">Grattan Institute has estimated</a> the cost of the capital gains tax and negative gearing concessions at $11.7 billion per year.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The Treasury’s tax expenditure <a href="http://www.treasury.gov.au/%7E/media/Treasury/Publications%20and%20Media/Publications/2016/Tax%20Expenditures%20Statement%202015/Downloads/PDF/2015_TES.ashx">statement</a> (TES) lists the cost of the capital gains tax discount as $6.15b for 2015-16. The TES does not list the cost of negative gearing, but using Grattan’s total figure and subtracting the value of the capital gains tax discount, this shows that the cost of negative gearing is around $5.5 billion… this cost exceeds the cost of child care assistance or university education as per the budget papers.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>You can read the longer response <a href="http://theconversation.com/full-response-from-labor-spokesperson-61201">here</a>. </p>
<p>So, does federal government spending on child care or higher education outstrip the cost of revenue forgone due to negative gearing and capital gains tax (CGT)?</p>
<h2>How much does the government spend on child care subsidies?</h2>
<p>This year’s budget showed the federal government is estimated to spend about $8.2 billion on child care fee assistance in 2016-17. That’s comprised of about $4.2 billion for the child care benefit and about $3.9 billion for the child care rebate. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=392&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126455/original/image-20160614-17209-1gramrh.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=492&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.budget.gov.au/2016-17/content/bp1/download/bp1.pdf">Budget Paper 1, 2016-17 Federal Budget.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Here’s a graph produced by the Parliamentary Budget Office showing how the cost of child care subsidies is projected to change over time.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=349&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126458/original/image-20160614-29225-1v45yz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Budget_Office/Chart_packs">Parliamentary Budget Office</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How much does the government spend on higher education?</h2>
<p>This year’s budget shows that the federal government is estimated to spend about $9.5 billion on higher education in 2016-17, an amount which is fairly stable over the forward estimates period. It is projected to be about $9.4 billion by 2019-20.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=231&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=231&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=231&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=290&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=290&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126647/original/image-20160615-22416-5uy7q4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=290&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.budget.gov.au/2016-17/content/bp1/download/bp1.pdf">Budget paper 1, 2016-17 federal budget.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Here’s a graph produced by the Parliamentary Budget Office showing how the cost of higher education expenses is projected to change over time.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=334&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=334&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=334&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126648/original/image-20160615-22411-1qzpsjt.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=420&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.aph.gov.au/~/media/05%20About%20Parliament/54%20Parliamentary%20Depts/548%20Parliamentary%20Budget%20Office/Reports/Research%20reports/Chart%20packs/2016-17%20Budget%20-%20charts/201617%20Budget%20%20charts%20PDF.pdf?la=en">Parliamentary Budget Office</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How much do negative gearing and capital gains tax concessions cost the government in revenue forgone?</h2>
<p><strong>Capital gains tax:</strong> As Labor’s spokesperson says, the Treasury’s 2015 tax expenditure <a href="http://www.treasury.gov.au/%7E/media/Treasury/Publications%20and%20Media/Publications/2016/Tax%20Expenditures%20Statement%202015/Downloads/PDF/2015_TES.ashx">statement</a> (TES) lists the cost of the capital gains tax discount as $6.15 billion for 2015-16.</p>
<p>According to Treasury’s estimates of tax expenditures, the “cost” associated with the capital gains tax discount for individuals and trusts is estimated to be $6.8 billion in 2016-17, rising to $9.09 billion in 2019-20. Note that this estimate does not include any estimate for the concessional treatment of owner-occupied housing.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=341&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/126660/original/image-20160615-22398-cw74xm.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.budget.gov.au/2016-17/content/bp1/download/bp1.pdf">Budget Paper 1, 2016-17 federal budget.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong>Negative gearing:</strong> This is where it gets tricky. Treasury does not regard negative gearing as a “tax expenditure” and thus does not provide any estimates for the “revenue foregone” as a result of it. So we have to look at other sources for estimates.</p>
<p>Labor has inferred from the Grattan Institute’s <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/time-to-fix-australias-unaffordable-capital-gains-tax-and-negative-gearing-policies/">report</a> that the cost of negative gearing is around $5.5 billion ($11.7 billion minus the $6.15 billion cost of the CGT discount).</p>
<p>Labor did not provide The Conversation with any Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) estimates on the cost of negative gearing to The Conversation. Labor’s spokesman said only that the PBO estimated Labor’s plan to restrict negative gearing to new property and to halve the capital gains tax discount could raise $565 million over the forward estimates.</p>
<p>The Greens put the cost of negative gearing at somewhere around <a href="http://greens.org.au/news/wa/budget-abandons-housing-affordability">$4 billion a year</a>.</p>
<p>A 2015 <a href="http://www.tai.org.au/sites/defualt/files/Top%20Gears%20-%20How%20Negative%20Gearing%20and%20CGT%20benefits%20top%2010%20per%20cent.pdf">report</a> by The Australia Institute said that modelling by National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM) estimated that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>negative gearing of residential investment property is currently reducing tax revenue by $3.7 billion per year.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Ben Phillips, Associate Professor at the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods (who previously conducted the NATSEM modelling quoted by The Australia Institute), <a href="http://rsss.anu.edu.au/sites/default/files/Distributional_Modelling%20_Negative_Gearing_and_Capital_Gains.pdf">reported</a> in February 2016 that: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>We estimate that in 2017-18 the total tax savings from negatively gearing properties is $4.3 billion.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>And I have previously <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/DocumentStore.ashx?id=99cfa3f6-858f-467d-91a9-31e384534a5e&subId=31798">estimated</a> that negative gearing costs more than $5 billion per annum in revenue forgone – although that estimate was for the 2010-11 financial year when interest rates were considerably higher than they are today. It was also a “gross” figure that did not allow for the impact of interest expenses being carried forward to be offset against future capital gains tax liabilities. </p>
<p>So what’s the combined cost of negative gearing and CGT? Nobody knows for sure. It could be as high as $11.7 billion, as the Grattan Institute has <a href="http://grattan.edu.au/report/hot-property/">said</a>. It could also be lower.</p>
<h2>So does CGT and negative gearing cost more than child care or higher education?</h2>
<p>This year’s budget showed the federal government is estimated to spend about $8.2 billion on child care fee assistance and about $9.5 billion on higher education in 2016-17.</p>
<p>Using the estimates outlined above, the combined annual effective cost of negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts to the public purse in revenue foregone is somewhere between about $9 billion and $11.7 billion (although no-one knows for sure because of differing opinions on the cost of negative gearing).</p>
<p>So Shorten’s statement that Australia is “spending more at the Commonwealth level on negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts than we are on child care or higher education” is likely to be somewhere in the ball park – but it’s impossible to say conclusively. </p>
<h2>A word of caution</h2>
<p>It’s worth remembering that none of the major parties are advocating scrapping negative gearing altogether. </p>
<p>And finally, it is worth drawing attention to Treasury’s <a href="http://www.budget.gov.au/2016-17/content/bp1/html/bp1_bs4-04.htm">caution</a> that its estimates of tax expenditures such as the capital gains tax discount assume that taxpayer behaviour is unaffected by the existence of the concessional tax treatment. That assumption that may not be valid in practice, so that these estimates: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>do not indicate the revenue gain to the budget if specific tax expenditures were to be abolished…. care needs to be taken when comparing tax expenditures with direct expenditures as they may measure different things.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Verdict</h2>
<p>Is Australia “spending more at the Commonwealth level on negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts than we are on child care or higher education”?</p>
<p>Nobody knows for sure, because of the difficulty in measuring exactly how much negative gearing tax breaks cost the federal government every year in revenue foregone. (Treasury cautions against comparing tax expenditures with direct expenditures as they may measure different things.)</p>
<p>Using available estimates, however, Bill Shorten’s statement is probably in the ballpark. <strong>– Saul Eslake</strong></p>
<hr>
<h2>Review</h2>
<p>I agree with this assessment of the statement. There are official estimates on the projected spending on childcare, education and the revenue foregone in relation to the capital gains tax discount, although as Treasury notes these figures may not be directly comparable. It is more difficult to estimate the foregone revenue in relation to negative gearing as there are no official estimates. Each model will come up with a different estimate based on the parameters used for the estimate.</p>
<p>I would also caution that the statement by Bill Shorten should be read in conjunction with proposed ALP policies in these areas. In particular, tax concessions on negative gearing and the CGT discount will be pared back but negative gearing will still be available to taxpayers currently holding investment properties, and the CGT discount will be halved but not removed. </p>
<p>Given the difficulties in identifying the cost of negative gearing and the problems inherent in comparing data measured differently, the statement is within reasonable estimates. <strong>– Helen Hodgson</strong></p>
<hr>
<p><div class="callout"> Have you ever seen a “fact” worth checking? The Conversation’s FactCheck asks academic experts to test claims and see how true they are. We then ask a second academic to review an anonymous copy of the article. You can request a check at checkit@theconversation.edu.au. Please include the statement you would like us to check, the date it was made, and a link if possible.</div></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/61009/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Helen Hodgson receives funding from AHURI. Helen is a member of the Tax Advisory Panel for ACOSS and the Social Polcy Committee of the National Foundation for Australian Women. She was a member of the Legislative Council in Perth from 1997 to 2001, elected as an Australian Democrat. She is not currently a member of any polictical party.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Saul Eslake does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said that Australia spends more at a Commonwealth level on negative gearing and capital gains tax discounts than it does on child care or higher education. Is he right?Saul Eslake, Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow, University of TasmaniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/605352016-06-06T07:04:52Z2016-06-06T07:04:52ZHigh-quality, affordable education at the heart of Labor’s new early years policy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/125311/original/image-20160606-25999-1pz1r8v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Labor aims to make quality early education and care more affordable for families.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">from www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>For too long, early years education policy has <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-is-childcare-such-a-hard-sell-in-the-federal-election-59815">focused on the money</a>, pigeonholed into a debate about “child care” and “mums getting back to work”, rather than a long-term investment in children’s development. </p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/labor-would-boost-childcare-rebate-cap-to-10-000-60526">Labor’s latest early childhood policy</a>, which includes, among others things, boosting the Child Care Rebate cap to A$10,000, tries to marry both sides of the debate. </p>
<p>It focuses on the need for high-quality, affordable early education and care to support children’s development and to allow families to engage in the workforce.</p>
<p>Under this policy, current payments and rebates remain in place, but will <a href="https://theconversation.com/policycheck-labors-3-billion-child-care-plan-60523">be more generous</a>, in the hope of making child care more affordable for families. </p>
<h2>A new direction</h2>
<p>The most exciting and different thing about Labor’s policy was the positive shift in direction signalled by the policy’s name – “Investing in Early Education and Care” – and the focus on “making quality early education and care more affordable”.</p>
<p>With this policy, Labor has put quality and the benefits of early education front and centre. </p>
<p>This recognises that:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Investment in quality early education is one of the <a href="https://www.oecd.org/education/school/48980282.pdf">best investments governments can make</a> to enhance learning and life outcomes, and to reduce inequality. </p></li>
<li><p><a href="http://aihw.gov.au/workarea/downloadasset.aspx?id=60129552948">Quality is central</a> – poor-quality early education and care can be harmful, but high quality leads to strong returns on investment. </p></li>
<li><p>Early childhood education is a <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Quality-Early-Education-for-All-FINAL.pdf">vital part of the education system</a> – leaving learning interventions for schools can sometimes be too late. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>This emphasis on quality and education is well supported by the <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Quality-Early-Education-for-All-FINAL.pdf">evidence</a>, and directly responds to findings that the most difficult <a href="http://acecqa.gov.au/national-quality-framework/introducing-the-national-quality-framework">National Quality Standard</a> (NQS) for services to meet was “<a href="http://files.acecqa.gov.au/files/Reports/2015/Occasional%20Paper%201%20-%20Educational%20Program%20and%20Practice.pdf">education program and practice</a>”. </p>
<h2>Emphasis on quality</h2>
<p>Labor’s policy includes a A$150 million “Educator Professional Development Program” to be designed in consultation with early childhood development experts, educators and the sector, to build educator capacity and support implementation of best-practice early learning programs. </p>
<p>This has the potential to reduce the stark <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Quality-Early-Education-for-All-FINAL.pdf">variation in quality</a> among services. </p>
<p>Two key factors influencing quality are:</p>
<ul>
<li><p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10409289.2015.1076674#.V1UBI7h9670">location</a> – poorer areas have fewer services meeting or exceeding the NQS – and </p></li>
<li><p><a href="http://files.acecqa.gov.au/files/Reports/2015/NQF%20Snapshot%20Q4%202015.pdf">service type</a> – private providers of long day care and family daycare providers tend to score lower in quality assessments. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>Family day care has come in for extra attention in Labor’s policy given that almost half of family day care services assessed <a href="http://files.acecqa.gov.au/files/Reports/2015/NQF%20Snapshot%20Q4%202015.pdf">do not meet the NQS</a>.</p>
<p>Being able to attract and retain skilled teachers is central to providing high-quality service, yet it is also the greatest challenge for providers.</p>
<p>Labor has said it will urgently develop an Early Years Workforce Strategy, in consultation with experts, to support increased professionalisation and esteem. It will also support higher wages through the Fair Work Commission.</p>
<p>Labor’s policy maintains direct funding for services that will not be viable under the mainstream funding models. These services, mainly focused on Indigenous children, are vital for improving outcomes but need to be supported to meet the NQS.</p>
<h2>Policy does not sufficiently address the quality of services</h2>
<p>Labor’s policy unfortunately does nothing to address the slow pace of NQS assessments. </p>
<p>A quarter of services are <a href="http://www.mitchellinstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Quality-Early-Education-for-All-FINAL.pdf">yet to be assessed</a>. At current rates, it will be around two more years before all services are assessed.</p>
<p>Only a fraction of services have been <a href="http://files.acecqa.gov.au/files/Reports/2015/NQF%20Snapshot%20Q4%202015.pdf">rated more than once</a> in the four years since this process began. </p>
<p>The pace and frequency of quality assessments should increase – while maintaining rigour in the process. </p>
<h2>Further reform is mooted, and needed</h2>
<p>Early years policy in Australia can and should go much further.</p>
<p>Under Labor’s policy, the current system will remain in place while consulting with experts and the sector on the next stage of reform. </p>
<p>Disappointingly, Labor’s policy is silent on the <a href="http://www.federalfinancialrelations.gov.au/content/npa/education/universal_access/UAECE_2016_2017.pdf">National Partnership Agreement on Universal Access to Early Childhood Education</a>. This is the agreement between the Commonwealth and states and territories that provides for universal access to preschool in the year before school. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1314/QG/ChildhoodEducatAccess">National Partnership Agreement</a> aims to ensure all four-year-olds receive the recommended 15 hours per week of quality early education.</p>
<p>Short-term agreements (like the recent 2016-17 extension), rather than permanent commitment and sustained funding, create significant challenges for preschool providers and <a href="http://www.audit.nsw.gov.au/publications/latest-reports/early-childhood-education">state and territory governments</a>.</p>
<p>Despite its great rhetoric about the importance of early education for all children, Labor’s policy fails to commit to ongoing funding for the National Partnership Agreement.</p>
<p>Neither party addresses this issue.</p>
<p>Labor’s policy is a good start, and the focus on quality and early education is welcome. However, further reform is needed to ensure all children have access to high-quality early learning and receive the best start in life.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/60535/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Labor’s policy does, however, fail to commit to long-term funding for universal access to preschool education.Megan O'Connell, Policy Program Director, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityBronwyn Hinz, Policy Fellow at the Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityStacey Fox, Policy Fellow, Mitchell Institute, Victoria UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/605232016-06-06T02:48:09Z2016-06-06T02:48:09ZPolicyCheck: Labor’s $3 billion child care plan<p>Labor has unveiled a $3 billion child care <a href="http://www.100positivepolicies.org.au/investing_in_early_education_care">policy</a>, proposing to lift the annual cap on the <a href="https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/child-care-rebate">Child Care Rebate</a> from $7,500 to <a href="https://theconversation.com/labor-would-boost-childcare-rebate-cap-to-10-000-60526">$10,000 per child</a> and increase the <a href="https://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/child-care-benefit">Child Care Benefit</a> by 15% starting January 1, 2017.</p>
<p>Many economists see child care policy as an important part of boosting economic growth due to the effect it has on female workforce participation. Daily rates for child care can be <a href="http://www.natsem.canberra.edu.au/storage/AMP_NATSEM_35.pdf">up to $170 a day</a> per child.</p>
<p>The Coalition is not expected to implement its own roughly $3 billion <a href="http://www.budget.gov.au/2015-16/content/glossy/families/html/families-02.htm">child care</a> <a href="https://theconversation.com/childcare-package-neither-bold-or-sustainable-41082">package</a> until <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2016/labor-unveils-3-billion-childcare-plan-to-win-over-families-20160604-gpbtz5.html">2018</a> at the earliest.</p>
<h2>What has Labor proposed?</h2>
<p>In a <a href="http://www.billshorten.com.au/labor_will_deliver_fairer_and_faster_child_care_help">media release</a> issued on June 5, the ALP said that under its <a href="http://www.100positivepolicies.org.au/investing_in_early_education_care">plan</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<ul>
<li>Low and middle income families will benefit from an increase to the Child Care Benefit of 15%.</li>
<li>Every one of the 813,000 families that rely on the Child Care Benefit will be better off – an increase up to $31 per child per week, or up to $1,627 per year, will provide much needed relief for the family budget.</li>
<li>The annual cap on the Child Care Rebate will be increased from $7,500 to $10,000 per child, leaving families up to $2,500 per child per year better off.</li>
<li>107,800 families who would otherwise reach the Child Care Rebate cap this financial year won’t have to choose between paying double fees, or dropping out of the workforce.</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<p>Labor said that <a href="https://theconversation.com/factcheck-has-there-been-a-massive-increase-in-child-care-costs-under-the-coalition-government-55931">child care fees have increased by over 20%</a> over the last three years, and out-of-pocket costs have gone up.</p>
<p>Labor said its plan would include:</p>
<ul>
<li>New transparency and accountability standards, and extra powers to investigate price gouging.</li>
<li>An additional $50 million for the family day care system.</li>
<li>Better services for Indigenous children and children in remote areas; increasing support for children in <a href="https://www.education.gov.au/budget-based-funded-programme">Budget-Based Funded Program</a> services by 15%.</li>
<li>$150 million for development of the early education workforce.</li>
<li>Cutting the Baby Bonus payment, $1.2 billion over the next ten years.</li>
</ul>
<p>In its media release, the ALP referenced independent <a href="http://rsss.anu.edu.au/node/238">research</a> I conducted (commissioned by Early Childhood Australia) showing that the Coalition’s policy would leave one in three families worse off. </p>
<h2>How is this different to what Coalition proposes?</h2>
<p>The Labor policy is largely an increase in the subsidies provided in the existing child care policy. The Coalition’s policy is a redesigned policy, with a single payment replacing the existing Child Care Rebate and Child Care Benefit payments. </p>
<p>The two policies are roughly the same in terms of funding over the forward estimates, but there are some important differences in their design. </p>
<p>The Coalition policy has a subsidy that is income-dependent (as is the existing Child Care Benefit payment). It starts at 85% for low-income families and eventually lowers to just 20% for very high-income families ($340,000). The government estimates its new policy to be around 15% more generous than the existing policy.</p>
<p>Labor’s proposed 15% increase in Child Care Benefit and 33% increase in Child Care Rebate cap will, for most low- and middle-income families, roughly match the Coalition subsidy.</p>
<p>The new Coalition policy also has a cap on the prices that the subsidy rate can apply, with formal child care subsidy prices applying to only the first $11.55 per hour for long day care. The Coalition also proposes a cap per child of $10,000 for incomes above $185,000 and a tougher work test than the existing policy (or Labor’s proposed policy).</p>
<p>The existing (and new Labor policy) is arguably more complicated than the Coalition policy, although both remain complicated enough that few parents will understand either.</p>
<p>Both policies are more generous for most families than existing policy. The Labor policy is likely to be at least as generous for most families as Coalition policy.</p>
<p>The Coalition policy will be less generous for very high-income families compared to the new Labor policy. </p>
<p>We <a href="http://rsss.anu.edu.au/sites/default/files/Childcare_reforms.pdf">estimate</a> that the Coalition activity test (meaning the number of work or study hours required before child care subsidies are made available) could leave up to 149,000 families worse off compared to the government’s own <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/childcare-changes-45000-families-to-lose-out-because-of-high-childcare-fees-20160210-gmr0fn.html">estimate</a> of just 37,000.</p>
<p>The ANU modelling is based on ABS survey data, which the government claims overstates the activity test impacts. The government modelling is based on administration data. This has limited information on the hours worked of parents, which makes modelling the activity test difficult. </p>
<h2>How will this affect child care prices and work patterns?</h2>
<p>The risk is that child care providers will eventually increase prices to match the extra spending power of parents who are receiving more subsidy money from the government. </p>
<p>The price cap of the Coalition policy may assist in removing some inflation from inner-city areas and higher-income suburbs. The uncapped total subsidy of the Coalition policy for most families may work against that aim. </p>
<p>The end game for policy here is female workforce participation. Both policies will, in the short run, improve affordability. With the existing rebate capped at $7,500 per year per child, child care is financially possible for most families up to three days but is marginal beyond that. Both proposed policies from the Coalition and Labor are likely to change that equation, at least in the short term, to closer to four days.</p>
<h2>A history of rising child care costs</h2>
<p>The major problem with child care in Australia over the past 15 years has been the exceptional growth in fees. Since 2000, fee increases averaged around 10% per year, or about 7.5% in real terms. </p>
<p>Thanks to large increases in subsidies last decade, the cost to parents has increased at a similar rate to the general price level and at less than income growth.</p>
<p>There have been no real increase in subsidies since 2008 and actual prices have continued to increase in real terms at around 6% per year. So there is again great pressure on government to increase subsidies. With demand for child care services growing strongly and very strong price increases across the sector, child care subsidy spending is one of the fastest-growing expenditure items in the federal budget. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/125238/original/image-20160605-11593-7fyleh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/125238/original/image-20160605-11593-7fyleh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=323&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125238/original/image-20160605-11593-7fyleh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=323&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125238/original/image-20160605-11593-7fyleh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=323&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125238/original/image-20160605-11593-7fyleh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125238/original/image-20160605-11593-7fyleh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/125238/original/image-20160605-11593-7fyleh.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=406&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What are the potential pitfalls?</h2>
<p>For most parents using formal child care, both policies of the major parties are not substantially different in terms of the out-of-pocket costs. </p>
<p>A problem for both policies is the issue of increasing subsidies leading to ever-higher prices. The Coalition policy is less generous to the very highest income earners, which could be an issue for the ALP pushing a “fairness” agenda. However, this negative may be offset by the Coalition policy’s tough activity test, which may result in some children no longer attending formal child care (and potentially missing out on some of the benefits of formal early childhood education).</p>
<p>Either way, most families with children in child care will receive generous fee relief, at least in the short term. No family is worse off under the Labor policy, whereas some families are worse off under the Coalition policy. </p>
<p>Both policies would be expected to encourage some women to lift their hours worked, but both policies in the longer term continue to put upward pressure on child care fees.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/60523/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods has undertaken economic consulting work for a number of child care industry organisations in Australia.</span></em></p>Labor has unveiled a $3 billion child care policy it will take to the polls on July 2. What has the party proposed and how is it different?Ben Phillips, Principal Research Fellow, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/559312016-03-17T23:05:56Z2016-03-17T23:05:56ZFactCheck: has there been a massive increase in child care costs under the Coalition government?<blockquote>
<p>The Liberals went to the election promising more affordable child care, but the government’s own figures released today show a massive increase in the cost of child care for millions of families since the 2013 election. – <strong>Shadow minister for early education, Kate Ellis, <a href="http://www.kateellis.com.au/child_care_costs_rocket_under_liberal_government">media release</a>, March 6, 2016.</strong></p>
</blockquote>
<p>The cost of child care is not just an issue for parents – it can affect the whole economy because expensive child care can dissuade parents from working and paying tax when they’d otherwise like to.</p>
<p>Labor’s shadow minister for early education, Kate Ellis, said there’s been a “massive increase” in child care costs since the 2013 election of the Coalition government.</p>
<p>Is it fair to link rising child care costs with the election of the Coalition government in 2013?</p>
<h2>Checking the source</h2>
<p>When asked for data to support her assertion, a spokeswoman for Ellis directed The Conversation to compare the latest data from the <a href="https://docs.education.gov.au/node/39481">March 2015 Early Childhood and Child Care in Summary report</a> with the <a href="https://docs.education.gov.au/node/39601">March 2013 Early Childhood and Child Care in Summary report</a>.</p>
<p>The spokeswoman said that comparing the data from March 2015 (when the Coalition was in government) with March 2013 (when Labor was in government) showed:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>… a marked difference in the out-of-pocket percentages at all income brackets, which results in a significant out-of-pocket difference for the time period.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>You can read the spokeswoman’s full response <a href="http://theconversation.com/full-response-from-a-spokeswoman-for-kate-ellis-56210">here</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114905/original/image-20160314-11267-13u7vos.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=467&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Provided by spokeswoman for Kate Ellis</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It’s true a basic comparison of the data does show a rise in child care costs under the Coalition government. However, the trend was underway before the Coalition came to power.</p>
<h2>The long history of rising child care costs</h2>
<p>In fact, child care costs have been outpacing the rise in the <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/webfaq.nsf/home/Consumer+Price+Index+FAQs#Anchor1">consumer price index</a> since at least 2009. </p>
<p>To calculate the consumer price index (CPI), the Australian Bureau of Statistics examines price changes over time for a hypothetical “basket of goods and services” typically bought by Australian households. Child care is one of the services in that imaginary basket.</p>
<p>The ABS has been tracking child care costs every quarter since March 1982, and that index is expressed in chart form below. Remember, this chart doesn’t show the <em>dollar cost</em> but rather an [<em>index</em>](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Index_(economics) – a statistical measure of change.</p>
<iframe src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/EkY6P/2/" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>As you can see, the underlying trend of rising costs has not been greatly affected by government policy. The general trend in price increases looking back to early 2009 is roughly unchanged. </p>
<p>See those two big dips in the line chart? Those two significant periods of decrease in the out-of-pocket (net) price paid by parents coincide with the <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/binaries/library/pubs/rn/2005-06/06rn03.pdf">introduction of the child care tax rebate in 2005 under the Howard government</a>, and its <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/news/federalelection2007news/rudds-childcare-plan/2007/10/21/1192301128547.html">expansion in 2008 under the Rudd government</a>.</p>
<p>Data compiled by the University of Canberra’s National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM) for the <a href="http://phx.corporate-ir.net/External.File?item=UGFyZW50SUQ9MjM5ODkzfENoaWxkSUQ9LTF8VHlwZT0z&t=1">2014 AMP-NATSEM Child Care Affordability in Australia report</a> showed the rise in child care prices has outpaced inflation since before the last federal election in 2013.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=293&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/115052/original/image-20160315-17738-17vql9h.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=368&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cost of child care in Australia compared with CPI and household income.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://phx.corporate-ir.net/External.File?item=UGFyZW50SUQ9MjM5ODkzfENoaWxkSUQ9LTF8VHlwZT0z&t=1">AMP-NATSEM Child care affordability in Australia report 2014. Chart uses data from ABS Consumer Price Index, NATSEM Household Budget Report. Note: This is an index and offers a base point of comparison, rather than a dollar figure.</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In other words, while it’s true costs have risen since the last federal election, that trend was underway long before the current government took power in 2013.</p>
<h2>What’s driving rising child care costs?</h2>
<p>Firstly, demand is high and supply is low. <a href="https://theconversation.com/more-women-than-ever-are-in-the-workforce-but-progress-has-been-glacial-54893">Female participation in the workforce has been growing</a>, which is driving up demand for child care.</p>
<p>There seems little prospect of falling demand on the horizon, and that keeps prices high.</p>
<p>Child care is an expensive business because it’s labour intensive. Labour costs make up the vast majority of costs for child care centres.</p>
<p>Since 2012, the <a href="https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwj7uLjYpsTLAhUCtJQKHZshBloQFggfMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.acecqa.gov.au%2Fnational-quality-framework&usg=AFQjCNFvzprK4_RpgMeK_Lig8UDiA2esYg">National Quality Framework</a> has also placed additional cost pressures on child care centres. The national framework required more physical space per child, more staff per child, a higher presence of qualified early childhood teachers, and more qualified (and more expensive) staff.</p>
<p>All of this requires child care centres to spend more dollars per child and increases costs for parents.</p>
<p>The evidence is that the general trend in child care prices and costs has followed the same trajectory from 2013 to 2015 (under the Coalition government) that it was on from 2009 to 2012 (under the Labor government).</p>
<h2>What can be done?</h2>
<p>There are two basic policy options to drive down child care costs: increase assistance to families or intervene in the market to stop rising prices.</p>
<p>Both come with big costs.</p>
<p>Increasing subsidies would lower the cost of child care for families. The two big drops in the net child care cost in 2005 and 2008 show the large effect that increasing assistance to families can have.</p>
<p>But these subsidies are very expensive for the taxpayer. Alongside the drops in net child care price in 2005 and 2008, there were continuing increases in the gross price of child care. Subsidies go up; child care providers raise the price.</p>
<p>Secondly, although increased assistance to families brings some increase in employment, the increases are small. </p>
<p>For married and partnered women – the group whose working behaviour is most sensitive to changes in the cost of child care – we estimate that <a href="http://ftp.iza.org/dp6606.pdf">to achieve a 1% increase in hours worked</a>, government needs to <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-4932.2012.00797.x/abstract">reduce the price of child care</a> by between 5% and 10%.</p>
<p>Some may argue that additional child care subsidies lead to improved outcomes for children, better options for families, and a commitment to a range of policies that enhance and support gender equality. </p>
<p>The government could take over the provision of child care as it does primary education, or impose some kind of price control on child care. Both currently seem unlikely.</p>
<p>The Coalition government’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/government-predicts-substantial-participation-boost-from-big-child-care-spend-41578">current proposal is to link child care payments to a benchmark price</a>. This is presumably to impose some downward pressure on prices. It remains to be seen how this benchmark price would be adjusted every year, and whether or not this would lead to an increasing gap between subsidies and actual costs to families.</p>
<p>Finally, removing quality restrictions on child care centres could reduce price pressures. This, however, runs contrary to the early childhood education objectives and demand from parents for higher quality child care.</p>
<h2>Verdict</h2>
<p>It’s true there’s been an increase in the cost of child care under the Coalition government. However, Kate Ellis’ description of a “massive increase in the cost of child care for millions of families since the 2013 election” obscures the fact that the trend was underway for years before the current Coalition government came to power. <strong>– Robert Breunig</strong></p>
<hr>
<h2>Review</h2>
<p>This is a sound analysis. The author has provided evidence that clearly demonstrates the rising costs of childcare to families and that costs are rising at a rate faster than inflation. </p>
<p>The author’s conclusion that this trajectory began prior to the Coalition assuming government in 2013 is accurate and justified.</p>
<p>These rises are related to an increasing mismatch between supply and demand, along with improvements in the quality of the early childhood programs being offered as a result of the <a href="https://www.coag.gov.au/early_childhood">Quality Reform Agenda</a> instigated by the ALP and agreed by all governments through the Council of Australian Governments in 2009.</p>
<p>However, it is important to note that the implementation of the reforms in early childhood were not primarily in response to parental demand. The reforms were based on extensive international research evidence, including <a href="http://www.oecd.org/edu/school/startingstrongiiearlychildhoodeducationandcare.htm">a major OECD 20-country review</a>. To consider winding quality reforms back as one option for reducing costs would, in my opinion, be detrimental to the national interest. <strong>– Susan Krieg</strong></p>
<hr>
<p><div class="callout"> Have you ever seen a “fact” worth checking? The Conversation’s FactCheck asks academic experts to test claims and see how true they are. We then ask a second academic to review an anonymous copy of the article. You can request a check at checkit@theconversation.edu.au. Please include the statement you would like us to check, the date it was made, and a link if possible.</div></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55931/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Breunig receives funding from the Australian Research Council for his research on child care.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Susan Krieg receives funding from the Channel 7 Children’s Research Foundation.
</span></em></p>Labor’s shadow minister for early education, Kate Ellis, said there has been a massive increase in child care costs under the Coalition government. Is that an accurate reflection of the data?Robert Breunig, Professor of Economics, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/552312016-03-15T19:09:44Z2016-03-15T19:09:44ZGender neutral policies are a myth: why we need a women’s budget<p>Most government policies these days look gender neutral. But in substance, government policy often has a different impact on women and men, in distributing benefits and burdens of taxes and spending. How can we ensure that taxing and spending supports women’s equality?</p>
<p>The federal budget, expected in early May, is where the rubber hits the road when it comes to taxing and spending. Understanding the gender impact of the budget is also important to ensure that tax, spending and social programs aimed at improving economic growth and our society actually work. </p>
<p>Government policies are less effective, or may not succeed at all, if the different impact on women and men is not taken into account. </p>
<h2>Australia was a leader but has fallen behind</h2>
<p>Australia was a <a href="http://apo.org.au/resource/case-study-gender-responsive-budgeting-australia">pioneer in gender budget analysis</a>. From 1983 to 2013, the federal government produced a Women’s Budget Statement, while state and territory governments were also among the first in the world to <a href="https://taxpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/sites/default/files/events/attachments/2015-11/r_sharp_et_al_principles_of_gender_impact_analysis_gender_equality_wrkshp_nov_2015.pdf">scrutinise annual budgets for their impact on women and girls</a>. </p>
<p>But in recent years we have fallen behind. In a 2014 OECD study, the <a href="https://uweboard.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/women-government-and-policymaking.pdf">Australian Government compared poorly</a> on gender analysis. The study found that, apart from the occasional specific programs, Australia had no systematic process to assess the impact on women and men of taxing, spending or government programs, either before or after the government enacts legislation, appropriates funds or initiates policy. </p>
<p>A decade ago, Julie Bishop, then Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women’s Issues, emphasised Australia’s commitment to gender equality including budget analysis; in 2006 the Office for Women released <a href="http://www.cpahq.org/cpahq/cpadocs/Australia%20committment%20to%20gender%20equality.pdf">Women ’06: 2006-07 Budget Information</a>. The Tony Abbott-Joe Hockey government stopped this long standing commitment and the government did not release any women’s or gender analysis in either 2014 or 2015 - while at the same time debating crucial policy for women, including <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-01-15/coleman-the-biggest-losers-in-paid-parental-leave-cuts/7091366">paid parental leave</a> and <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-12/coleman-what's-the-true-cost-of-the-budget's-child-care-plan/6462030">childcare policy</a>.</p>
<h2>What would a women’s budget statement do?</h2>
<p>The need to understand the impact of public policy on women and men is reasonably well understood for some issues – think of health or family violence. It’s less obvious – but no less important - in other areas of government. Government policies aimed at increasing workforce participation, early childhood development, supporting particular industries or regions, sport, or caring for the disabled or aged, all have gender implications.</p>
<p>A women’s budget statement could be comprehensive, covering all spending and taxing and containing detailed modelling about the distributional, social and economic impact of government policy. Perhaps better for today’s times, it could target an issue that is a current focus of government policy and analyse all aspects of government taxes, spending and programs to understand the impact on that policy goal.</p>
<p>For example, the government <a href="https://www.dpmc.gov.au/office-women/economic-empowerment-and-opportunity/economic-security-women">has committed to the G20 to significantly increase female labour force participation</a>. </p>
<p>What are the impediments? The gender pay gap is clearly <a href="https://www.wgea.gov.au/">recognised in data</a>. At May 2015, the gender pay gap was 17.9%. On average women earn $284.20 per week less than men. Government wage, employer regulation and discrimination policies are all relevant here but it is not clear that the pay gap is stopping women working - just that it is unfair.</p>
<p>Other policies do seem to affect women’s work choices. While women’s paid work has increased significantly since the 1970s, the chart below shows that this increase is in part-time not full-time work - and trend
lines are flat not increasing. Australia’s current combination of tax, family payment and childcare policies means that women face significant costs if they want to increase their work hours.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114564/original/image-20160310-31859-1cvw0o4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114564/original/image-20160310-31859-1cvw0o4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=371&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114564/original/image-20160310-31859-1cvw0o4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=371&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114564/original/image-20160310-31859-1cvw0o4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=371&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114564/original/image-20160310-31859-1cvw0o4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114564/original/image-20160310-31859-1cvw0o4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114564/original/image-20160310-31859-1cvw0o4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=466&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Source: TTPI, Stocktake Report (2015), Chart 2.4 from ABS (2014) Labour Force Survey, Cat. No. 6202, Canberra.</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A progressive income tax with marginal rates that rise as income rises, is important for women’s equality because women earn less than men. Progressive income tax also supports workforce participation by women because it lessens the cost imposed on women going to work as “second earners” in couple households. Thus, it supports work participation and is positive for economic growth as well as women’s incomes and superannuation savings. </p>
<p>We need to consider taxes and other policies together. The chart below from the Productivity Commission illustrates that for a woman in a couple even earning a good salary, with two children, moving from three to four days of work a week does not bring home much cash after taxes and losing benefits. She faces a 100% effective tax rate - twice that of top earners at 47%.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114805/original/image-20160311-11261-1cuoydb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114805/original/image-20160311-11261-1cuoydb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=24&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114805/original/image-20160311-11261-1cuoydb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=24&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114805/original/image-20160311-11261-1cuoydb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=24&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114805/original/image-20160311-11261-1cuoydb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=30&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114805/original/image-20160311-11261-1cuoydb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=30&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114805/original/image-20160311-11261-1cuoydb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=30&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114800/original/image-20160311-11295-19ls050.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/114800/original/image-20160311-11295-19ls050.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114800/original/image-20160311-11295-19ls050.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114800/original/image-20160311-11295-19ls050.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114800/original/image-20160311-11295-19ls050.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=668&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114800/original/image-20160311-11295-19ls050.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=668&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/114800/original/image-20160311-11295-19ls050.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=668&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Productivity Commission Childcare and Early Childhood Education report (2014) Appendix E, Box E4.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Productivity Commission Productivity Commission (2014), Appendix E Box E4</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The lack of a comprehensive gender analysis leads to conflicting policies. The Government last year announced the intention to extend a <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/mar/01/tax-changes-dubbed-baby-bonus-bribe-to-cost-14bn-over-decade">Baby Bonus</a> that is tested on joint or family income. This would increase the costs experienced by mothers returning to work and is directly contradictory to the stated workforce policy goals.</p>
<h2>External scrutiny is important – but government action needed</h2>
<p>When the Women’s Budget Statement was stopped, the <a href="http://www.nfaw.org/?s=gender+lens">National Foundation for Women</a> stepped in and produced a report that placed a “gender lens” over the budget for 2014 and 2015. In the UK, the <a href="http://wbg.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/WBG_AFS_CSR_2015_report_2015_12_07_final3.pdf">Women’s Budget Group</a> does gender analysis. It concluded that the UK 2015 Autumn Statement fails to invest in women’s economic security and the cost of care keeps being pushed onto women. This work is important but it cannot replace proper government analysis.</p>
<h2>Better gender data</h2>
<p>The Australian Bureau of Statistics has released in February 2016 the latest <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4125.0?OpenDocument">Gender Indicators</a>. The gender indicators making interesting reading - but they need to be better linked into budget processes. </p>
<p>And we need new data especially on how women and men spend time in care and paid work. The last Time Use survey in Australia was in 2006 and the scheduled 2013 survey was cancelled. A decade ago, men spent twice as long as women on paid work activities, while women spent twice as long as men on unpaid work in the home including childcare and house work. How have things changed - if at all? Anecdotal evidence suggests that women <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/07/why-women-still-cant-have-it-all/309020/">“can’t have it all”</a> and hit a wall because of continuing family and home responsibilities. </p>
<h2>Renewing gender budget analysis in Australia</h2>
<p>The Australian Government <a href="https://www.dpmc.gov.au/office-women/about-office-women">states</a> that it “is committed to strengthening the provision of gender analysis, advice and mainstreaming across Government”. I congratulate the Government for moving the Office for Women back into the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, where it can connect gender policy across the whole of government. To do this properly, it needs a gender analysis of tax and expenditure budget policy. </p>
<p>A Women’s Budget Statement is not a panacea for gender equality, and statements over the years varied considerably in detail and coverage. But Australian women deserve that public commitment and accountability - and all Australians would benefit.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Miranda will be on hand for an Author Q&A between 3:30 and 4:30pm AEDT on Wednesday, March 16, 2016. Post your questions in the comments section below.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/55231/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Miranda Stewart has received funding from the Australian Research Council and Academy of Social Sciences of Australia.</span></em></p>Australia was a pioneer in gender budget analysis, but in recent years we’ve fallen behind. We need it back.Miranda Stewart, Professor and Director, Tax and Transfer Policy Institute, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.