EDUCATION FOCUSED BUDGET WELCOMED BY THRIVE BY FIVE
25 November 2020 – Thrive by Five has welcomed the Victorian Government’s 2020-21 state budget and congratulated Premier Daniel Andrews and Treasurer Tim Pallas for making education a key part of their COVID-19 recovery plan.
The budget allocated about $170 million to make kinder free, which will save Victorian families around $2,000 per child, as well as investing billions in support for students with a disability and school builds and upgrades.
Thrive by Five CEO Jay Weatherill said the investment would be a big boost for Victoria as it recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, both socially and economically.
“We’re delighted to see the Victorian Government putting education at the centre of its recovery plan,” said Mr Weatherill.
“The free kinder program in particular is a welcome announcement for Thrive by Five – it will help kids develop intellectually and socially, help women get back into the workforce and ease cost-of-living pressure on families.
“While the pandemic has been a challenging time for governments all over Australia, we congratulate and thank the Victorian Government for using it as an opportunity to properly invest in early learning and would like to see more governments follow suit.”
Childcare and early learning have been front and centre in politics since the pandemic began and have received support from the Victorian Government, both major parties in NSW and Federal Labor proving the issue is Australia-wide and non-partisan.
“The pandemic has exposed the flaws in our current childcare system, but we’re seeing more and more governments around Australia begin to confront those flaws and talk about building a proper and effective early learning system.
“This is not a partisan issue, it’s a social and economic issue. It’s an issue that affects women, children and families no matter who they vote for, and it’s time it was treated as such.”
Thrive by Five is advocating for universally accessible childcare for all Australian children and effective policy and investment in early childhood outcomes.
