Guest Post: The childcare thing

A guest post by a reader:

A major obstacle for getting back to work. We have a pretty high bar – carer/child ratios, teacher (carer) qualifications, floor area/child, outdoor area/child and a raft of others. High quality stuff, expensive but subsidised and over-subscribed. Waiting lists and all that. Even the creche at a gym has to meet all the ECE standards including qualified “teachers” and all that.

On the other hand, you could get lucky and have a parent or auntie or other family member or friend where you can park the little treasure. No requirements about qualifications, space or anything like that. Just acceptance of the arrangement by the parent and caregiver. No money changes hands.

Once upon a time, in-house baby sitting (as it was called) was unremarkable.  The kids were fed, watered, changed and entertained – probably in front of a TV for some of the time. If your kid was not happy or you were not happy you found someplace else to take him/her. Willing buyer/willing seller and all that. Noone called it “early childhood education”

Such an arrangement is obviously not as good as the full-service bells-and-whistles stuff found in an ECE establishment. On the other hand it might be a bit more econmically feasible and be the difference between Mum/Dad staying home or getting back to work. I guess there would have to be some minimal standards about space etc and probably some finagling of the subsidy arrangements. Details. What’s not to like?

These days ECE is big business and popping up all aver the place. Sort of recognised as part of the education system except for the 100% private (ie for profit) ownership with significant government subsidy bit. Just an observation. We don’t run the primary, intermediate or high school system like that ….

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