Additional financial support for child care providers
The Prime Minister and the Minister for Education and Youth recently announced new support measures for child care providers that are impacted by extended COVID-19 lockdowns.
Child care services in Commonwealth-declared hotspots will be eligible for new fortnightly payments of 25% of their pre-lockdown revenue, and outside school hours care (OSHC) services will be eligible for fortnightly payments of 40% of pre-lockdown revenue.
This measure will apply to services seven days after the hotspot is declared, where state and territory governments have directed families to keep their children at home. Where children are still allowed to attend child care, the supports will kick in four weeks after the hotspot declaration.
The new payments will immediately benefit services in affected areas of Sydney, the ACT and Melbourne. Other services will become eligible after seven days of lockdown, with payments backdated to 23 August. The support will then be available for services that meet the criteria in any future extended lockdowns.
Payments are made available directly to providers. Families in affected areas are not required to do anything.