Getting the basics right – goals that would deliver a good national children’s services system

Abstract

Over the past three decades Australia’s children’s services system has been transformed from a predominantly publicly provided and operated community based system to a privatised, commercial market driven system. Today 70 per cent of our childcare services are privately owned and more than 25 per cent of our services are owned by one shareholder company. The National Association of Community Based Children’s Services (NACBCS) is an advocacy body and has been the principal force behind the retention of community based children’s services in Australia. NACBCS was formed in 1982 following the reporting of a federal government review of Australia’s Children’s Services Programme. This report, which became known as the Spender Report after the review committee’s chair John Spender, was never published but details of its recommendations were leaked. While many recommendations in the report were welcomed, some recommendations were strongly opposed, including recommendations that commercial services be subsidised by the federal government. Around the nation childcare advocates labelled such commercialisation of child care as inappropriate and destined to lead to poorer quality care as profit takers entered the service system and the service system became a market place. NACBCS came into being as the organising vehicle for these advocates and has remained an active advocacy body over the past three decades. It aims to protect a quality children’s services system and has put forward policy initiatives designed to curb the worst that commercialisation has brought to Australia’s children’s services.