Ministers listening: IEU members speak up at Federal Government’s Early Years Summit
IEU member Janene Rox and IEUA Federal Secretary Christine Cooper were at the National Early Years Summit in Canberra in February, headed up by Minister for Early Childhood Education Dr Anne Aly and Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth.
Janene said she left the summit with sense of optimism for the future of her sector.
“The Federal Government is committed to change and high quality and affordable early childhood education and care,” Janene said.
“The Ministers spoke, but more importantly they listened,” she said.
Minister Rishworth said, “We are laying out this roadmap together to guide policies and programs and to provide a vision of what Australia wants to achieve for children and their families in the early years.
“The best way to achieve this is to do it together, to take what we establish – here today - as the vision, principles and priorities for our children’s early years,” Minister Rishworth said.
“We must shape this vision into meaningful reform and we have a unique opportunity here.
“The Albanese Government was elected on the foundational principle of leaving no-one behind or holding anyone back and I think we can apply that today.
“We want to ensure every child, no matter where they grow up, can grow up to reach their full potential.”
Christine said the summit was an opportunity for a renewed focus on the importance of early education in a child’s development.
“The summit heard directly from our members about the urgent repairs and reforms needed to better support staff and deliver improved outcomes for Australian children,” she said.
Read more Teachers R Teachers (March 2023):
- Ministers listening: National Early Years Summit
- Productivity Commission Inquiry into Australia’s Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) system
- Professional Development Opportunity – Early Childhood Teachers
- Tool to showcase your work: The Teachers in Early Education workshop
- Join the IEUA NSW/ACT Early Childhood Teachers Community Group
- Follow IEU NSW/ACT on LinkedIn