Council
2 April, 2025
Shire adopts 10-year childcare plan
CORANGAMITE Shire Council set out its plan for its early years’ education and care services for the next decade at last month’s Ordinary Meeting of Council.
The Corangamite Shire Early Years Plan 2025-2035 was unanimously adopted by councillors and will guide council through meeting the State Government’s Best Start Best Life reforms while also meeting community needs.
Council currently operates six stand-alone kindergartens, two after kinder care programs, three long day care programs and three mobile childcare programs.
Manager community services Katie Hearn said council also oversees a small family day care program of four part-time educators, which is supported by Commonwealth Government Sustainability funding until June 2026.
“Current supply of childcare places is not meeting community demand for long day care and childcare places,” she said.
“Limited childcare options and facilities capable of accommodating long day care programs have led to waitlists for services across the shire and region, particularly for birth to three-year olds in context of availability of places, as well as days and hours offered.
“The Early Years Plan includes a point in time overview of infrastructure requirements, service modelling, workforce needs and recommendations for council to enable the delivery of high-quality education and care programs in contemporary learning environments.
“A study of the demographic trends for the area shows that Corangamite Shire zero-four age range will remain relatively stable with a slight decrease of five per cent between 2021 and 2036.”
The plan identifies four priority areas to support outcomes for children and families, covering:
Infrastructure and access to education and care – all children across the municipality should have the opportunity to participate in education and care;
Early childhood workforce – the shire requires expansion of its highly skilled workforce capable of delivering high-quality education and care programs;
High-quality education and care and maternal and child health (MCH) services – services need to encompass a comprehensive approach to education, care, and maternal and child health services, prioritising inclusion, safety, wellbeing, and educational outcomes, and
Health, wellbeing and connection – children and their families should have access to the health and family support services they need, as well as have opportunities to connect and be active participants in their community.
Cr Jo Beard spoke passionately about the report, saying it was “great” to get the plan on the table.
“This plan wasn’t mandated – this is how we value our early years that this council saw fit to put a budget line item into getting a plan we can look to futuristically and help align when we have requests around how we have to be flexible around infrastructure requests or whether it’s the government does the whole reform with childcare and things like that,” she said.
“This plan has been put together with all that in mind and will help in giving us some guidance over the next 10 years.
“One of the lines that really stood out to me in the beginning of the plan was that the plan is to support children in reaching their full potential.
“It is vital to take a holistic approach to their development, considering their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing as well as their overall sense of identity and belonging.
“That really rang true to me because we don’t often get that sense of identity and that until we’re a lot older, so the fact that we’re investing in it at a young age is only going to make it a better fit for the whole of our community.”
Cr Beard said, while council will continue to support the older generation in the community, the Early Years Plan will set the groundwork of supporting identity and residents from the beginning.
“The early years plan has four priority areas which will enhance the outcomes for the kids, but it’s also about their families and the commitment they have to the early years of their child,” she said.
“Whether it be infrastructure, workforce, maternal child and health, and then of course wellbeing, health and the connection.
“There’s 20 strategies that we now have to align to those priorities and help guide our budget process.”
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