Grandparents Possible Competitors For Childcare Subsidies, page-13

@Camelia

Parents are the first teachers of the child. Good child care centres recognise the importance of working in partnership with parents to achieve the best possible outcome for their children.
It's about finding the right balance for each family and for that family to be happy with choices they have made without fear of judgement. Your family are blessed to have a loving parent and grandparent, there are however many children who are not so lucky and are safer and best placed in quality early learning environments. The bonds of love and trust built between grandparents and their grandchildren are so very, very important in a young child's life. Imo it is also important for a child to experience formal childcare, form friendships outside the family, follow a structured routine and negotiate their own place within peer groups outside of the family setting.

There are also many other relatives, friends and neighbours who are also acting as informal child carers and for that reason I don't think the government will consider the subsidies for grandparents, who are not the primary carers of their grandchildren proposal.

The government firstly will need to monitor the effect the 2016 ratio changes will have on the out of pocket costs for parents and then work towards the recommendations of The Productivity Commission in July 2017.

Jenny Hutson's off handed comment, trivialising the impact of the effect of 2016 ratio changes on pricing IMO was irresponsible. Some corporate centres have increased their fees three times in the last eighteen months, if they increase further in 2016 occupancy levels will drop even lower.

Anyone got any thoughts on why G8 is three weeks overdue with a settlement update on eight centres?

IMO & DYOR