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ECE funding cuts start to bite

February the first will see funding rates drop for two thirds of New Zealand’s early childhood services as the 2010 budget cuts start to bite. These cuts to ECE funding for services with higher numbers of qualified teachers were widely regarded as a backward move by parents and families across New Zealand says Te Tari Puna Ora o Aotearoa/NZ childcare Association Chief Executive, Nancy Bell.

“The decision to remove the top funding bands for centres with higher numbers of qualified teachers has cost around 2 000 services between $20 000 and $50 000 per year. Centres were left with no option but to raise fees to parents, or reduce their numbers of qualified staff. These are hard choices at a time when the whole country is having to make every dollar go further.”

“Centres have had to make very difficult decisions about how they manage this drop in funding without compromising the quality of care and education they deliver. In many cases, centres will have had no choice but to drop their numbers of qualified teachers and reduce their staff to child ratios to the regulated minimum, a number most services feel are woefully inadequate, especially for young babies.”

“Early childhood education is a significant investment in our future. Longitudinal surveys have showed that money invested in early childhood pays dividends through ensuring children grow to be productive members of society. ECE has to be of a high quality however and for teacher-led services with good teacher-child ratios this means qualified teachers. It is disappointing to hear ECE described as a cost to society, not an investment. Our members are very unhappy that government have ignored the weight of evidence and the calls of parents to reverse their policy decision and put children and families at the forefront of their decision making.”

ENDS

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