As of Saturday July 1, Cheaper Child Care changes will cut the cost of early childhood education for around 1.2 million families across the country.
From Monday, July 10, in the west including those in Maribyrnong and Hobsons Bay, according to the government nearly 9,900 families will be better off due to the increase to the Child Care Subsidy.
With one of the highest birth rates in Australia, the west community will be one of the biggest beneficiaries of cheaper childcare under the government.
For families on a combined income of $80,000 or less, the Child Care Subsidy rate will lift to 90 per cent.
Despite some child care centres having recently increased their fees, the Cheaper Child Care reforms mean the out-of-pocket costs for most families will still decrease.
There are already hourly rate caps in place, which are putting a downward pressure on fees, as well as the government tasking the ACCC to investigate the factors that drive up cost.
The family income limit to get Child Care Subsidy is increasing from $356,756 to $530,000 per annum.
The maximum amount of Child Care Subsidy is increasing from 85 per cent to 90 per cent.
This means families earning $80,000 or less will get a Child Care Subsidy rate of 90 per cent.
For families earning over $80,000 , they may get a Child Care Subsidy rate starting from 90 per cent.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children can get at least 36 subsidised hours of early childhood education and care per fortnight, regardless of their family’s activity level.
Families earning over $80,000 may get a Child Care Subsidy rate starting from 90 per cent.
This will go down by 1 per cent for each $5,000 of income they earn above $80,000.
