Make the switch to new child care and early learning system

Barker families are being urged to sign on and start their changeover to the Turnbull Government’s new child care and early learning system which kicks off in less than three months.

Member for Barker Tony Pasin said with almost 4,000 families in Barker set to benefit from the Turnbull Government’s new package it was time for them to “make the switch” to the overhauled system starting on 2 July.

“The online transition portal we’ve set up is live and it’s time for people to take action,” Mr Pasin said.

“Our new child care package will provide the greatest hours of support to the families who work the longest hours, and the greatest subsidy and financial support to the families who earn the least.

“With more support for more Barker families just around the corner, families should visit www.education.gov.au/childcare and make the switchover as soon as they can so they’re ready for the new system from day one.”

Minister for Education and Training Simon Birmingham said the child care changes are focused on helping the families that need it most.

“The Turnbull Government’s overhaul of child care and early learning subsidies and extra $2.5 billion investment in the system will introduce hourly rate caps to put downward pressure on fee increases and abolish the annual rebate cap for most families,” Minister Birmingham said.

“Overall it will mean around one million families benefit and it’s estimated the package will encourage more than 230,000 families to increase their workforce participation.

“The biggest winners will be families working, studying or volunteering that earn less than $250,000 a year and even if your family has a higher income, you’ll still stand to gain from our change to lift the annual rebate cap to around $10,000.”

Recent changes to the Consumer Price Index have also seen hourly rate caps and annual caps increase and will mean under the Turnbull Government’s child care and early learning package:

• More than 370,000 families earning around $66 958 or less a year will have their base subsidy increase from 72 per cent to 85 per cent

• Families earning up to $186 958, will no longer be limited by an annual $7,613 cap on the amount of child care they can access – that’s more than 85 per cent of families using child care and early learning and means families won’t run out of subsidy mid-year as happens now.

• Families earning between $186,958 and $351,248 will benefit from an increased annual rebate cap of $10,190 per child

• Hourly rate caps will rise from $11.55 to $11.77 for Centre Based Day Care, $10.70 to $10.90 for Family Day Care, whilst families with children in Outside School Hours Care will also see their hourly rate cap rise from $10.10 to $10.29.

Contact: 8531 2466