Submission to the Department of Education and Communities on Review of NSW Government Funding for Early Childhood Education

Federation welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the Review of NSW Government funding for early childhood education as a means to highlight:

• Australian government underfunding of preschool education compared to other countries in the OECD;
• the inadequacy of New South Wales government funding of preschool education and of public school preschool classes in particular and the need for greater government investment in free preschool classes in public schools;
• research conducted by Professor Tony Vinson on the benefits of free preschool classes in public schools and the inadequacy of current provision;
• the inequity of the O’Farrell government’s decision to impose fees on preschools in free public schools given the majority of preschool classes are in public schools that receive additional equity funding from the state and/or federal governments;
• the incompatibility of the O’Farrell government’s decision to impose fees on preschools in free public schools with the COAG agenda of increasing the affordability of and access to preschool particularly for children from disadvantaged backgrounds; 
• support for a new national partnership on early childhood education with the New South Wales government committing to more free preschool classes in public schools, with a priority for preschool classes in public schools in receipt of equity funding; and
• support for greater government investment in preschool education in not for profit community preschools.