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Pangerang Community House Occasional Childcare

Take a Break child care funding confusion

By Joseph Thomsen ABC Goulburn Murray

New federal government funding for occasional child care in Victoria fails to clarify future of Take a Break service.

Will the Take a Break occasional child care program be able continue its critical role in regional Victorian communities?

A dispute between the federal and state governments will end the program's funding from next month, with the Victorian state government refusing to inject any funds after the federal government announced it would no longer contribute approximately one million dollars per year to the program.

Then, after a passionate community outcry, Federal Minister for Children Kate Ellis recently announced new funding for up to 260 occasional child care places across Victoria.

So is this funding a lifeline for the Take a Break service or not?

Minister Ellis says Take a Break is eligible for the funding but each service will have to put in an application.
"All interested Take A Break services can apply to become approved occasional care services. That means that they will then administer child care benefit which they haven't previously, and the parents will be eligible for the child care rebate. That being said, we say that this is not a perfect substitute for Take A Break."

It appears that for all Take A Break services to continue the Victorian Government would have to more than match the Federal Government's contribution.

"I believe it's about $1.8 million at the moment, which is the combination of federal and state funding. So if some of those places move to approved occasional care, of they put in just over a million dollars, then we would see that there wouldn't be much change to Take a Break at all."

However the Victorian Minister for Children and Early Childhood Development Wendy Lovell says she will not re-fund the Take a Break service in the wake of this new federal funding, as the funding model has changed.

"So what she's just told us is that she's putting $2.2 million into funding occasional care places through approved providers, but she's withdrawing $1.1 million from the Take a Break service. So she's doubled the funding while providing less places. She could've just re-funded the Take a Break service ... and that is the model that we have said, if she re-funds it, we would happily continue to fund the state government share of that."

Please see the online article at ABC Goulburn Murray that include the full interviews with Wendy Lovell and Kate Ellis

Campaign Postcard

Some of the latest that have been used and sent out to ministers across the State and to Canberra

6 months of blame between State and Federal government has left many families feeling let down disappointed with what has clearly been seen as a political point scoring game by many. See politicians shouldnt play hardball with childcare in the Age for one example

Rural families feel especially concerned as they simply have no alternative in the local area

We have written to Kate Ellis who has told us to lobby Wendy Lovell and the Victorian Government - They are the only state to not pick up the bill for Take A Break.

Wendy Lovell has responded telling us childcare is a Federal issue and we should be lobbying Kate Ellis.

Now centres are closing and the children and families are the one's to suffer.

We have written, we have sent petitions, we have rallied in rural areas we have rallied at Parliament House TWICE!

STOP THE BLAME