Australian Attitudes to Child Care

Abstract

One of the 1972-75 Labor Government's most innovative moves was the setting up of the Australian Children's Commission, a body charged with promoting services to meet the “emotional, educative, physical, social and recreational” needs of children and their families.1 The Commission, in an interim form, was established in September 1974 following Labor's 1972 electoral promise of a year's free pre-school experience for every four-year-old, and the preparation of reports by three committees of enquiry into pre-school and childcare issues. The first of these three was written by the Pre-School Committee,2 a body made up largely of educationists and pre-school authorities. It recommended that government funding should aim at providing three half-day sessions per week for 45% of Australian four-year-olds, five sessions for 15% and ten sessions for 10%; full day care was to be provided for 12% of four-year-olds and roughly 10% of 0-3-year-olds.