Page 4838 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 25 October 2011
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MS HUNTER (Ginninderra—Parliamentary Leader, ACT Greens) (10.29): The Greens will be supporting the bill, and we have one amendment. The central point to this debate and the single most important factor for anyone wishing to evaluate the merits of this bill is the quality of childcare and early education outcomes. The most important question to ask is: are we giving our kids the best start in life and ensuring that they are receiving high quality childcare and beginning their education in the best way possible so that they have the best chance at success in life? I have no doubts that this bill will ultimately lead to a better standard of childcare, and it is primarily on this basis that we are happy to pass this bill today.
I have spoken a bit before about the importance of the reforms. Constituents have approached me to say, “Could you please ensure that this does go through, because there is nothing more important than ensuring the quality of childcare for our children,” and a number of those people have worked in the childcare industry.
I think the key parts of the bill will be the child to staff ratios and also the ongoing evaluation provisions for centres to demonstrate how well they are performing against the benchmarks. Introducing the seven quality areas is a good thing. It is not an end in itself, of course, but it is an effective means of evaluating what is being provided to our children. The seven quality areas ensure that children are getting quality programs in a safe and positive environment. The carer programs add value to what parents provide to their children in a way that they can be involved in their child’s learning and confident that they are being cared for by qualified staff in a well-run centre.
The seven areas are educational program and practice, children’s health and safety, physical environment, staffing arrangements, relationships with children, collaborative partnerships with families and communities, and leadership and service management. The Greens support use of these measures and look forward to the ongoing evaluation mechanism assisting centres to continually improve their practices.
In regard to workforce issues, which have been raised this morning, the Greens appreciate that there is a workforce shortage and that we need to develop strategies to attract and maintain staff. Some have been put in place, and that is waiving of fees for those who want to go to CIT to do their childcare qualifications. The big steps campaign supports the change as part of the move to better recognition of the work of those who work in childcare centres. Thousands of children and parents value the skills and dedication shown by so many childcare workers. There is an issue that, despite improving their qualifications, the salary remains low.
People working in the childcare sector should be fairly remunerated for the work they do. Proper remuneration would go quite some way towards attracting and retaining staff. This needs an ongoing look at how we improve the wages and conditions for staff. We have more and more children coming into childcare, and we need to make sure we have the dedicated and qualified workforce to provide that care.
In regard to improving child to staff ratios, the issue of what this will cost parents has been the subject of some concern. My understanding is that these changes will involve only a modest cost and that the ultimate return will be through better learning and
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