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    Early childhood services

    Facilitating long day care accessibility

    Early childhood education and care services can be hard to access for some families, particularly in regional and remote areas. Childcare deserts, where there is a lack of long day care options, can be a barrier to helping parents and carers return to work and a constraint on economic opportunities in these communities.

    The Government of South Australia is advocating for national efforts to help families facing gaps in coverage of long day care services. This includes strongly calling on the Australian Government to prioritise a better funding model to address childcare deserts, following the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Productivity Commission inquiries.

    The state government will continue to provide facilitation supports to regional communities with gaps in access to long day care, including advice and support for developing business cases.

    The Department for Education is supporting the establishment of family day care services in priority regional and rural communities.

    Checking in on your child’s development

    The best way is to keep track of your child’s development is to book them in for health and development checks with the Child and Family Health Service (CaFHS) at the recommended milestones:

    • 1 to 4 weeks
    • 8 weeks
    • 6 to 9 months
    • 12 months
    • 18 to 24 months
    • 3 years
    • 4 to 5 years

    Checks may be available at long day care or preschool, so be sure to check with your provider.

    For more information visit CaFHS website.

    Another useful resource is the Early Years SA app, which has information and age-relevant milestone lists for your child aged 0 to 5 years. If you have any concerns, you should contact CaFHS to schedule an appointment to discuss your child's development.  You can download the app on the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

    Child in jumper playing in a mud kitchen with a ladel and dirt-filled metal bowls

    Greater flexibility in government preschools

    A new model of wrap-around care, Kindy Care, is being trialled at 20 South Australian preschools from July 2024.

    Kindy Care is designed to provide greater flexibility, accessibility, and support for families, by increasing care outside of the regular preschool operating hours.

    Three operational models will be trialled in different communities and service settings. These are:

    • the Department for Education operating the service (similar to rural care)
    • third-party providers to provide the service
    • in-venue family day carer to provide the service.

    The trials will support children to maintain continuity, reduce transitions and engage in out of hours care appropriate to their developmental needs.

    It’s expected that the trials will also provide valuable feedback to determine a broader roll-out for Kindy Care in the future.