Charlotte Varcoe
CHILDCARE waiting times continue to grow with pressure mounting on both families and facilities.
According to Care for Kids, within Mount Gambier only five out of 19 childcare services currently have vacancies with the average cost being $127.15 per day.
A State Government report into childcare stated the average cost for services was $10 per hour with South Australian families using the services an average of 25.2 hours per week.
Speaking with The Border Watch, director of Carmas Playhouse Mount Gambier Carolyn Rolley said the issue had been ongoing across the region since the beginning of last year.
With an average waiting time between 12 to 18 months for families, Ms Rolley said parents were now feeling obliged to take any available spot.
“The spots that are available may not be within the hours families need but it is what they can get,” Ms Rolley said.
“At the moment there seems to be no place anywhere for people to send their kids and the pressure can be relieved depending on which centre the parents choose.”
She said the centre had a number of families already on the waiting list which she would examine once a spot does open up.
“I usually have to speak with the families to see if the situation and availability here is relevant to their situation,” Ms Rolley said.
“Families are growing in size and so when we make connections with families we then try and make a spot available for their siblings because we know the families will need the place.”
She said long waiting times was mostly due to a large number of young families in the area which had contributed to the industry pressure.
To help alleviate this pressure, Ms Rolley suggested more community-based centres could be built within the region to help open up spaces for families.
“Over the years I have worked in child care, there were a lot of council-run childcare facilities available and that was really helpful to the families,” she said.
“It can be very disappointing telling families we do not have space for them here at the centre and when we do tell them we can hear the stress and disappointment in their voices.
“It becomes stressful for them because some don’t have family support available.”
SA Minister for Education Blair Boyer said the provision of child care was a shared responsibility between governments and local communities with the Federal Government regulating policies in relation to child care and funding provision through the Child Care Subsidy.
“I know that accessing childcare is an issue that is facing Mount Gambier and other communities in the South East,” Mr Boyer said.
“The Department for Education is building a function to support more community-led childcare solutions and I am committed to working closely with local communities and all levels of government to address this issue.
“I look forward to visiting the South East soon and hearing directly from locals about these and other issues the community is facing.”
