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Parents in New South Wales need not worry about paying preschool fees for the time being as the State Government has made the service free for six months.
As part of a $51 million funding package announced this morning, preschool fees have been waived to support parents during the Covid-19 crisis.
The State Government has also committed $82 million to support 260 council childcare centres that are not eligible for the JobKeeper payments.
"Parents are under a lot of pressure at the moment and it's crucial for them to continue to have access to childcare, particularly those working on the frontline during this crisis," says NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
"This will also provide financial relief to families during the pandemic and ensure childcare centres remain viable into the future."
The funding will be available to 700 state funded community preschools and 38 mobile services that provide care to 45,000 three to five year olds.
Today's announcement follows the Federal Government's plan to make childcare free for working parents and carers.
The Federal Government announced last Thursday it will pay 50 per cent of the sector's fee revenue up to the existing hourly rate cap, which will be based on a point in time before parents started withdrawing their children in large numbers.
The sector would have received an estimated $1.3 billion if current revenues and subsidies had continued, but now that has been lifted to $1.6 billion.
Updated at 9:55AM AEST on 9 April 2020.
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