2026-03-02
Hard-fought wage increases for early educators take effect today. For families accessing in-home care, providers have indicated this will result in crippling fee increases of up to $250 per week per family.
In-home care is a specialised early education and care program for families who are unable to access centre-based services, including those in rural and remote areas, shift workers in non-standard hours, and families with complex health or social needs.
The current childcare subsidy is capped and does not cover the full cost of delivering in-home care meaning providers have little choice but to pass costs onto parents. Families using in-home care already pay up to four times more in fees than those accessing centre-based care. Multiple independent reviews have previously identified the program as underfunded.
Senator Hodgins-May raised the issue at the most recent Senate Estimates hearing. Minister Jess Walsh and the Department were unable to confirm that changes to the subsidy or an extension to the worker retention payment to include in-home care were being implemented.
We are in contact with families currently accessing in-home care who are available for comment.
Lines attributable to Senator Steph Hodgins-May, Australian Greens spokesperson for Early Childhood Education and Care:
“In-home care is a lifeline for farmers who feed us, shift and emergency workers who keep us safe, and families with complex needs who can’t use centre-based care.
“After years of underfunding, long-overdue wage rises are now pushing families into an impossible choice: earn a living or lose access to early education and care.
“I’ve been contacted by more than 30 families including nurses and doctors working shift hours, children facing cancer, autism and ADHD, and families on cattle ranches three hours away from the closest childcare centre.
“Labor has been warned time and time again that the broken childcare subsidy does not cover the real cost of in-home care.
“Families deserve a truly universal system that delivers high-quality care that’s affordable no matter their circumstances.
“The Prime Minister wants universal early education to define his legacy. Right now, that legacy is abandoning farmers, shift workers and vulnerable families.