Peak Industry Body Claims Lane Cove has an Over Supply of Child Care Centres

By
ITC1
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The Australian Childcare Alliance (ACA)  has claimed, in a submission to NSW Planning, that there is an excessive number of childcare places in suburbs across Sydney and in particular Lane Cove.

Research undertaken by ACA claims that in Lane Cove the number of childcare places, already approved and in the planning process, far exceeds the projected demand for the next 14 years.

The ACA has called for tighter control of child care centres and would like them regulated in the same way that newsagents and chemists are regulated (ie only a certain number of child care centres are permitted in a suburb).

The peak body argues that childcare oversupply could lead to unstable businesses.

ACA Recommendations

The ACA recommends:

  • the reinstatement of proximity requirements for new childcare services;
  • the reinstatement of the requirement to provide demonstrated need or demand for childcare services;
  • the request for research to be commissioned into the impact of the size of childcare services and their consequential impact on the quality of early childhood education and care standards and outcomes;
  • the disallowance of site amalgamations in low-medium density residential zones for the purposes of creating “mega” childcare services;
  • the disallowance of complying development applications of large childcare services from using private certifiers and oblige such applications to be subject to normal public scrutiny;
  • to reduce the periodic review of the proposed SEPP to 3 years instead of 5 years after commencement of the SEPP, or in coordination with the National Quality Framework’s periodic mandated review;
  • the consideration of planning and regulatory incentives for development applications as well as service applications for childcare whereby such services can be located in projected population growth areas instead of letting natural market forces to gravitate them by default to only high demand areas;
  • the removal of family daycare services to be included as centre-based childcare services under the proposed SEPP; and
  • the assurance for all childcare service related development applications be made to provide traffic and pedestrian safety measures so as to protect children and their parents/guardians from motor vehicle accidents.

ACA Submission

You can read ACA’s submission here.

Copyright: ACA
Copyright: ACA

Lane Cove Child Care Centres

Type Number
Occasional Care 1
Long Day Care (some long day care centres have a pre school programme) 17 (and one being built in the old Mandalay Function Centre)
Pre School (finish at 3 or 4pm) 5
Home Based Childcare
Family Day Care is a flexible child care service, which allows registered educators to look after babies and children in the educator’s home.		 Numbers not known

Looking for a Child Care Centre/Pre School?

If you are looking for child care operators in Lane Cove – please see our business directory.  The businesses in this directory are supporting ITC’s community work and we thank them.  Many of them do have vacancies.
Find out more about First Learning Child Care Centre here (they also have an OOSH component);
Find out more about Birrahlee Pre- School here.
Find our more about Greenwood Early Learning Centre here.

What is your experience?  Have you had trouble arranging child care in Lane Cove? Do you have trouble arranging OOSH placements?  Should more money be put into before school and after school care?

Do you have a local issue you would like help with? ITC is here to help just email us at [email protected]