Early learning in Australia is lagging behind other developed countries, a new report card from the peak early childhood advocacy has found.
Research has shown the first five years of a child’s life are crucial to their lifelong development and children who attend early learning services are 33 per cent less likely to be developmentally vulnerable when they start school.
The report states the Australian Government’s investment in early learning per child declined between 2016 and 2019 and that low-income families devote a higher proportion of their income to early learning services, even with government subsidies.