Seeking greater flexibilities for waivers to address severe labour shortages

Early childhood education and care services continue to keep their doors open and operate despite the exacerbated labour shortages.

And particularly due to Regulations 126, 130, 131 and 272, services can be required by the NSW Regulatory Authority:

• to reduce the number of children being educated and cared for, or
  
• to have their service temporarily closed due to the lack of educators and teachers or their testing positive for COVID.

ACA NSW has made its latest submission to the NSW Department of Education proposing more flexibilities via temporary waivers of services' regulatory requirements.

NSW's long daycare services already have the highest staffing and qualification ratios than all other Australian states. Yet NSW is unable to demonstrate any systemic or substantive advantage for having such higher ratios.

This has also been confirmed by the NSW Productivity Commission's White Paper (Recommendations 4.6 to 4.15)  who has also called for a more fit-for-purpose regulatory framework.

In summary, ACA NSW's submission asks, at the very least, for:

1. the return to the National Standards for educators to children ratio of 1:11 instead of 1:10;
   
2. the return to the National Standards for early childhood teachers to preschool children ratios;
   
3. the allowance of waivers to be for a minimum of 2 years; and
   
4. a simplified requirement for information from the service upon waiver application. 

Should members require any further information/clarification, please contact the ACA NSW team via 1300 556 330 or nsw@childcarealliance.org.au. 

PUBLISHED: 1 SEPTEMBER 2022