04 May 2017

One year extension of preschool funding welcome, but longer term solution needed

Australia’s largest non-government provider of preschool programs has welcomed today’s announcement of a one year extension of Federal Government preschool funding, while calling for a longer term commitment. Goodstart Early Learning, a not for profit that provides preschool programs for over 15,000 children in more than 600 early learning centres, said the funding would provide certainly for planning of quality programs for 2018. “Access to early learning makes a huge difference to children’s later learning performance and is an absolute no-brainer as the most cost effective tool at Government’s disposal to improve educational outcomes,” Goodstart Advocacy Manager John Cherry said.

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23 Mar 2017

Poor children across Australia were let down by the Senate tonight

Australia’s largest – not for profit – early learning and care provider tonight expressed dismay at the Government’s failure to support some of the poorest children in the nation. Goodstart Early Learning said experts and educators across the country made it clear to the Government and the cross bench that disadvantaged children need at least 15 hours of early learning to ensure they start school as well prepared as their peers. “Children from low income families should have at least 15 hours of early learning education and care, no matter who their parents are.

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22 Mar 2017

Child Care Package needs fixing to protect 100,000 low income families

Up to 100,000 low income families could be could be left worse off if the child care package passes the Senate without amendments to ensure all children can access at least two days of early learning. Goodstart Early Learning has this morning released modelling showing that the Government’s plan to cut the base entitlement to child care assistance for low income families from 24 hours a week to 12 hours a week would leave low income families up to $93 a week worse off. Goodstart Early Learning Advocacy Manager John Cherry called on

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19 Mar 2017

Parliament needs to urgently make child care more affordable

A new survey has found that most working families are finding child care less and less affordable and that this is impacting on their ability to participate in the workforce. The survey of 1566 families with young children commissioned by Goodstart Early Learning found that 60% of families rate child care as not very affordable, and just 8% rate it as very affordable. 61% of families, including 78% of non-working families, would look to work more hours or start work if child care became more affordable.

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13 Feb 2017

Child care reform will remove cap that locks parents into working part time

Proposed child care reforms will give parents more options about working more days or hours by removing the annual cap on child care assistance for most families, according to Australia’s largest child care provider. Goodstart Early Learning CEO Julia Davison said more than 120,000 families will hit the $7500 Child Care Rebate cap this year, with many reducing their work hours as a result. “The current rebate only supports three days of child care over a year at average fees, and even fewer days for families paying above average fees,” Ms Davison said.

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08 Feb 2017

Please, let’s just get on with childcare reforms

Australia’s largest, not for profit, childcare provider is urging Parliament to get on with childcare reform following the release of the Government’s omnibus bill. Goodstart Early Learning, which has childcare centres across the nation, says more than 70% of families are likely to be about $30 per week better off under the childcare changes and it was time they were voted into law.

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01 Feb 2017

Investing in child care and early learning central to jobs and growth – let’s get it done

Australia’s largest, not-for-profit childcare provider has welcomed the Prime Minister’s commitment today to make improving childcare assistance a priority when Parliament returns next week. “Investing in child care and early learning to make it more affordable for families will boost Australia’s long term productivity and growth,” Julia Davison, CEO of Goodstart Early Learning, said today. “Any Government wanting to make jobs and growth a priority must improve support for families who need to use childcare to get back to work.

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08 Nov 2016

Australian parents struggling as they run out of rebate support for childcare costs

Australian families say they are delaying having more children and postponing buying homes as increasing numbers hit the Child Care Rebate cap and have to pay the full cost of care. A survey of more than 2000 families, commissioned by Goodstart Early Learning, the nation’s largest, not for profit early learning and care organisation found 55 percent of respondents would do more work and study if the cap on the rebate was lifted.

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05 Nov 2016

Families need the PM to move on childcare affordability urgently

Australian families are facing a three-year wait for child care relief if the Turnbull Government cannot get its child care package through the Senate in the next few weeks. Goodstart Early Learning said today the legislation must be introduced urgently as more than 110,000 families are expected to exceed the childcare rebate cap this year, leaving many struggling to pay the full cost of childcare for months at a time.

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31 Oct 2016

Passing amended Child Care Package would help deliver 3 year old preschool

Goodstart Early Learning, the nation’s largest, not-for-profit early learning and childcare provider has joined researchers in supporting calls for all Australian children to have access to at least two years of preschool. Goodstart said a vital first step in this important improvement to early childhood education would be for the Federal Government to put its Jobs for Families child care reform package before the Senate in November. Goodstart Early Learning Advocacy Manager, John Cherry said a Mitchell Institute report released today highlighted the substantial benefits children receive from access to two years of early learning before school. “Currently 30% of Australian children are missing out on that valuable additional year of preschool,” Mr Cherry said.

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02 Sep 2016

Childcare Bill reintroduced

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31 Aug 2016

Time to pass the childcare legislation

Australia’s largest childcare and early learning provider, Goodstart Early Learning, has welcomed the Federal Government’s announcement that it will fast track the Jobs for Families Childcare Package into Parliament for debate to ensure families have access to affordable care.

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09 Jun 2016

Greens child care policy promises reform that is child-focused

Australia’s largest childcare and early learning provider has welcomed the Australian Greens’ commitment to support the proposed overhaul of Childcare Subsidies and their insistence that the reforms need to increase children’s access to early learning.

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05 Jun 2016

Labor child care policy delivers relief to families earlier

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04 May 2016

Budget childcare disappointment

Australia’s largest childcare and early learning provider has expressed ‘extreme disappointment’ that the Government has decided to delay by another year the implementation of reforms to make childcare more affordable.

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04 Apr 2016

Time to bring on childcare legislation

Australia’s largest childcare and early learning provider, Goodstart Early Learning, has called on the Federal Government to quickly bring its Jobs for Families Childcare Package to Parliament for debate to ensure families have access to affordable care.

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04 Feb 2016

Childcare reforms will boost the economy: report shows

Independent research has concluded the Federal Government’s childcare package, currently before the Senate, is estimated to add the equivalent of nearly 20,000 full time workers to the labour force and $3.1 billion to national GDP by 2020.

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03 Feb 2016

Childcare package needs to support both working parents and vulnerable children

Australia’s largest childcare provider has called on the Senate to enact minor amendments to the Government’s $3.1 billion childcare package to ensure the package supports both working parents and vulnerable children.

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21 Dec 2015

Prime Minister officially opens new Goodstart Early Learning Centre in Double Bay

The purpose-built Goodstart Early Learning centre will be officially opened today by the Federal Member for Wentworth and Prime Minister of Australia, Hon. Malcolm Turnbull.

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02 Dec 2015

A good package for working parents – could be a great package for children

Goodstart has welcomed the Jobs for Families childcare legislation introduced into Parliament today – but is urging the Government to do more to support children from disadvantaged and single income families.

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24 Jun 2015

The new Childcare package - How does it stack up?

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10 May 2015

Families package great for working families, needs to work for all children

Australia’s largest provider of childcare and early learning has welcomed the Families Package released today as great news for working families.

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08 May 2015

Childcare Safety Net a great investment, but must have no holes

Australia’s largest provider of childcare and early learning has welcomed the Abbott Government’s new Early Childhood Safety Net package as a significant step in ensuring all disadvantaged children get the best possible start in life.

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03 May 2015

Preschool funding, families package needs to deliver improved access to early learning for all child

Today’s announcement by the Prime Minister of a two year extension to preschool funding will be welcome news for Australian families and will help Australia secure the substantial long term productivity benefits that flow from improving access to early learning, according to Australia’s largest provider Goodstart Early Learning.

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16 Apr 2015

Abbott Government must not disappoint Australian families looking for help with child care costs

A national survey, conducted for the nation’s largest not-for-profit early learning and child care organisation, Goodstart Early Learning, has found Australian parents are desperate for help to make child care more affordable.

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03 Mar 2015

Federal Government must increase funding to child care - new poll

The Federal Government should channel funding slated for its deferred Paid Parental Leave into early learning and child care, a national opinion poll conducted for Australia’s largest, not-for-profit child care organisation has found.

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03 Mar 2015

More funding needed for Early Learning and Child Care

Goodstart Early Learning’s CEO Julia Davison said today the country’s largest child care provider looked forward to working with the Abbott Government as it continued to develop its families package in the wake of the release of the Productivity Commission report.

01 Mar 2015

Proposed childcare model will increase costs for thousands of families

Thousands of Australian families would face higher out of pocket costs for childcare if a new payment model proposed by the Productivity Commission was implemented, new modelling shows.

02 Feb 2015

Abbott Government’s commitment to childcare improvements welcomed

Goodstart Early Learning, Australia’s largest provider of early learning and care, welcomes the Federal Government’s commitment to make quality childcare and early learning more affordable.

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12 Nov 2014

G20 and the early years opportunity

Opinion piece by four leading early childhood experts:

Professor Linda Harrison, PhD, Charles Sturt University, NSW
Professor Frank Oberklaid, Founding Director of the Centre for Community Child Health at the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne and a Professor of Paediatrics at the University of Melbourne
Professor Edward C. Melhuish, PhD, University of Oxford, UK
Professor Charles E. Pascal, PhD, University of Toronto, Canada

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05 Sep 2014

Goodstart welcomes preschool funding

Goodstart has welcomed the Federal Government’s announcement that it will offer a twelve month extension of the National Partnership Agreement supporting Universal Access to 15 hours of preschool in the year before school.

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28 Aug 2014

Goodstart Early Learning is top of the class for childcare centre satisfaction

Goodstart Early Learning has taken out Canstar Blue’s Most Satisfied Customers Award 2014 for childcare. It’s the first time Canstar has included the childcare category with Goodstart coming out on top achieving five-star ratings for security and safety, quality of care provided, educational programs as well as overall satisfaction. 

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22 Jul 2014

The childcare debate in Australia continues

Australia’s largest early learning and childcare provider welcomes the Productivity Commission Draft Report into Childcare and Early Childhood Learning.

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16 Apr 2014

Long hours in care need to be high quality to benefit children

A new ANU study finding that the poor quality of childcare in Australia in 2007 meant children in care for more than 21 hours a week had poorer school results, supports the ongoing national reforms to improve quality, according to Australia’s largest provider of child care and early learning.

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06 Mar 2014

Early learning key to raising NAPLAN literacy and numeracy scores

Following the release of 2013 NAPLAN results this week on school children’s literacy and numeracy performance, parents have been urged to consider the quality and length of children’s participation in early learning as the key to improving later performance in literacy and numeracy in school.

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18 Feb 2014

Goodstart calls for big changes to childcare assistance payments

Australia’s largest early learning and childcare provider has called for big changes to childcare assistance, warning that the current system discourages parents from working and denies many children the opportunity to access quality early learning.

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20 Nov 2013

Invest in children to build Australia’s future – parliamentary breakfast told

Goodstart Early Learning and Early Childhood Australia hosted a breakfast in Canberra recently to discuss the upcoming Productivity Commission inquiry into childcare saying the Federal Government needs to do more to support affordable, accessible and high quality early learning for Australia’s children.

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30 Aug 2013

Parents back quality early learning and better trained educators

Parents have strongly backed improving the quality of early childhood education through better trained educators and higher educator to child ratios, a large new survey has found.

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29 Aug 2013

Goodstart supports Coalition Commitment to NQF

Goodstart Early Learning CEO Julia Davison welcomed the pre-election commitment from the Coalition supporting the National Quality Framework to improve the quality of early childhood education and care for Australian children.

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27 Aug 2013

Greens hit right targets in boosting child care for low income families

Goodstart has welcomed the proposals from the Greens to increase child care assistance for low income earners and for care of babies, and called on other political parties to bring forward policies to improve the affordability of quality early learning and care.

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27 May 2013

Goodstart Early Learning commits to developing Reconciliation Action Plan

Today Goodstart Early Learning formalised its commitment to contribute to Australia’s reconciliation journey with the signing of a ‘Statement of Commitment’ to develop Goodstart’s Reconciliation Action Plan.

20 Mar 2013

Wage rise welcome but more needs to be done

The Government's announcement of an additional wage subsidy for early childhood educators is good for Australia’s children but more investment in early education and care is needed to ensure affordability for Australia’s families, according to Goodstart Early Learning CEO Julia Davison.

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21 Feb 2013

Goodstart weighs into child care debate

Australia's largest early learning and care provider today weighed into the child care debate saying if we want the best possible outcomes for children then Australia needs to invest more in the early years.

16 Jan 2013

South Australia lags behind in early childhood stakes

Some of Australia’s leading early education and care experts today waded into the debate saying it was critical for South Australia to continue to implement the national quality reforms or risk falling even further behind the other states. Goodstart Early Learning CEO Julia Davison said higher staff‐to‐child ratios were a critical component of ensuring high quality early learning and one area where South Australia needs to significantly improve.

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22 May 2012

Goodstart Linden Park to receive 200th Start Right Eat Right award

The South Australian Minister for Health and Ageing, John Hill, will present the Start Right Eat Right (SRER), award, which recognises childcare centres that are leading the way in providing children with the best possible nutrition.

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01 May 2012

Goodstart welcomes early years services expert Naomi Eisenstadt to Australia

Leading early years expert Naomi Eisenstadt CB has begun her two-week visit to Australia, hosted by the country’s largest long day care provider, Goodstart Early Learning.

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16 Apr 2012

International childhood advocate Professor Carla Rinaldi begins residency

It was a full house at Professor Carla Rinaldi's lecture on Tuesday 27 March, as the renowned childhood learning professor was welcomed to Australia...

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15 Nov 2011

Realities of childcare ease guilt for Australian parents. Goodstart Early Learning launches national

Australian parents are unnecessarily dealing with feelings of negativity and guilt when it comes to placing their child in childcare, research commissioned by Goodstart Early Learning found today...