The long wait for a daycare spot in rural Gippsland

Amanda Hobson, director of Goodstart Early Learning in Morwell, says any parent looking to place a two-year-old into daycare at the centre could be waiting more than a year for a vacancy.

“There are just no places available at the moment,” Hobson told the Gippsland Monitor. “If families are able to enrol early it’s easier to get a spot, but as soon as they hit the age of two and older it becomes harder and harder.”

In Traralgon, between 2.52 and 3.99 children compete for each childcare place, depending on the neighbourhood, according to a report by the Mitchell Institute at Victoria University.

On Monday the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) called for all sides of politics to back a $1 billion government program to build more childcare centres.

Prosperity in farming towns relied on access to childcare and early education, NFF President  David Jochinke said: "It’s no exaggeration to say a lack of childcare is holding entire communities back.”

Research released in September 2024 by advocacy group The Parenthood told of mothers in rural Australia quitting their jobs at schools and hospitals due to a dearth of childcare, or even re-training in early education to fill the gap themselves.

One rural family faced a five-year waiting list for childcare, while another had a 130km drive to the closest centre. Many others were relying on grandparents for help.

The Parenthood polled 855 regional, rural and remote parents. Eighty-six percent struggled to access care and said the lack of access caused financial stress.

The Isolated Children's Parents' Association (ICPA) has also called on commitments from all sides of politics.

The organisation, which represents more than 2500 families, often in remote mining and farming regions with no services, is lobbying for mobile childcare services, along with an allowance for children attending pre-school programs by distance education.

"We cannot allow geography to determine a child’s future," ICPA’s VP Julia Broad said. 

Jochinke said the Parenthood report showed “the needs of regional, rural and remote communities are often neglected”.

“Digital access and inclusion rates decline with remoteness, lagging those of the capital cities. Rural and remote Australians have poorer health outcomes, and lower rates of year 12 completion than in capital cities.”

The Mitchell Institute found that about nine million Australians live in neighbourhoods that are classified as a “childcare desert”. A childcare desert is a populated area where there are more than three children per childcare place. 

One million rural and remote people live in areas without any services.

Gippsland is not immune - phone around daycare centres and you’ll find there are no spots available, but names can be added to waitlists.

Hobson has worked in child care for 17 years and is excited about a new child care facility  being constructed in Traralgon. 

She is hopeful the new facility is a sign that things are getting better for regional childcare, as  “we need more money for early childcare facilities to get children in the doors”.

The centre will cater for a maximum of 120 children from newborns to five year olds.

According to Latrobe City Council, Traralgon will see a 17 percent increase in the number of 0-6 year olds from 2023 to 2040.

Under the Building Early Education Fund, a re-elected Labor government said it would construct or expand about 160 centres in areas of need.

The Parenthood is hosting candidate forums on regional early education issues ahead of the election.

• With reporting from AAP.