North Shore parents rally against Hornsby Shire Council’s privatisation of childcare centres, saying quality will drop

Charmaine Hui

Hornsby Shire Council is considering the privatisation of its four childcare centres, leaving parents concerned about the future of the area’s existing high-quality services.

Hornsby councillors voted unanimously to allow businesses to put forward expressions of interest for the four council-run childcare centres located in Hornsby, Asquith, Cherrybrook and Eastwood, after a private operator made an unsolicited bid.

A council spokesperson said Hornsby Council has decided to assess its childcare services against the broader market to determine whether retaining the services is in the best interests of ratepayers.

“This is merely an investigation and there has been no decision to privatise,” a council spokesperson said. “Council is just one of many childcare operators that provide services to families within the Shire.”

But parents remain concerned about the prospect of privatisation, with fears that it may damage the quality of childcare services, increase fees and cut jobs.

An online petition has been set up asking councillors to stop the review of the childcare centres attracting 340 signatures so far.

The creator of the campaign, Mohamad Peerzada, whose child attends Asquith Nursery and Preschool Centre, said he has experienced the difference in care between private and council-owned childcare centres.

“We have seen how they operate in private childcare around the area. The level of service they provide, the staff turnover, the child to teacher ratio … it’s horrible, actually,” Peerzada said.

“As a parent, I want to make sure that when we put our children in childcare they are safe, they are happy and there is someone there who can look after them the way we do, and in my personal experience, that has been achieved when I put my child into the council-run childcare, because my son is happier.”

Council maintains that it will only consider expressions of interest that are based on their current service model, including the same number of licensed places for each age group. But Peerzada said the council’s consideration to privatise their childcare centres is simply a profit-making objective.

“They don’t think there is a social responsibility, or moral obligation, as councillors to provide a better service to the community.”

Research shows that access to quality early childhood education and care has long-term benefits in academic success, health and productivity.

Early childhood education advocate Liam McNicholas said: “International research has demonstrated that high quality early learning can provide a significant improvement in young children’s lives, as 90 per cent of a child’s brain is developed by the time they’re five.”

He said it was about giving everyone the best possible start in life, regardless of background.

“It is important for local governments to be providing childcare as it is far more likely to be embedded in that community… they can be much more responsive to the needs of their community than a large corporate provider.”

“Private providers at the end of the day answer to shareholders, which can conflict with quality provision for children.”

Cost concerns come with private care

Parents have also voiced concerns over the possibility of even higher fees if private owners take over the childcare centres, despite fees already increasing by 7.5 per cent on July 1, raising the cost of childcare to up to $110 a day.

The fears surrounding fee increases come as the Abbott Government announced more than $1 billion in cuts to early childhood education and care, including cuts to the Child Care Benefit, which would directly affect families earning as little as $42,000 a year.

While the average family income on the North Shore is higher, the area has some of the highest rates for childcare in Sydney, according to a report by the National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling.

The report also revealed that on average, mothers who return to full-time work can expect to keep just one-third of their hourly wage, after accounting for childcare costs, income tax and loss of government benefits.

Joanna Beeston, who has two children attending Asquith Nursery and Preschool, said that while childcare fees are becoming very high, the quality of care for her children is worth the cost.

“Some of the staff have been there for five or 10 years or more, so the comfort in knowing the carers, trusting them with your children to do an excellent job – I suppose it doesn’t worry me if the cost is going up that much if I can be sure that my children are getting good quality care,” Beeston said.

“If a private operator came in and increased the fees again, you can’t guarantee that the quality is going to be as good.”