Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the senator for his question. Indigenous children are under-represented in the current childcare system, and the government is committed to increasing their participation, just as we are committed to increasing school attendance and, of course, workforce participation in Indigenous communities. The current system of funding for Indigenous focused childcare centres is historical and outdated. It does not respond to changes in communities or the increasing number of children attending child care.

The majority of Indigenous children that do attend child care attend approved childcare services as part of the mainstream childcare services, but around a third of Indigenous children who attend child care do so through services funded via the Budget Based Funded Program, or BBF. This program is a capped and closed program, meaning that new services are unable to be established in regional or remote communities where there may be demand or need. Historical inequities in the funding base of this program also mean that funding is incredibly skewed within it. Some services receive as little as $35 support per child per year, while others get up to $54,000 support per child per year. Families using BBF services are not eligible for any government assistance, such as the childcare rebate or childcare benefit. But, importantly, under our proposed childcare reforms those families will become eligible for the new childcare subsidy. They will be for the first time able to receive assistance for their childcare costs and they will be additionally supported through the $178 million Additional Child Care Subsidy, which provides a 120 per cent subsidy for at-risk children or parents experiencing temporary financial hardship, or additional assistance to parents transitioning to work. Further, the services themselves will benefit through the $271 million Community Child Care Fund, which can assist those services, including Indigenous services, to provide quality child care to children in these regional and remote areas in particular. (Time expired)