Childcare Strategy

1
Childcare Strategy

• Don McGillivray
• Early Education and Childcare Division

2
Childcare Strategy

• Quality
• Accessibility
• Affordability

3
Quality

• Breaking inter-generational cycles of poverty
• Review of the Early Years and childcare workforce
• Regulation and Standards

4
Accessibility

• Continued growth in childcare places
• Increased focus on flexible options such as
  sitter services
• Extended school pilots
• Informal care
• Continuing challenges around non-standard hours,
  school holidays, 0-3 places, disabled children

5
Affordability

• Tax credits and supply side subsidies
• High cost of 0-3 care and sitter services rate
  of return
• Childcare will stay a paid service for the vast
  majority of parents

6
Lessons from Working for Families

• Childcare Mentor/Key Worker role
• Identifying childcare gaps
• Focus on people and not places
• Whole person approach

7
What Next

• Developments in tax credits/vouchers?
• More flexible pre-school services?
• Further investment in targeted 0-3 services?
• Filling gaps in out of school care?