Child-care transfer ‘complex’

Press, 10 October 1984, Page 8

Child-care transfer ‘complex’

PA Wellington Early child-care services should be transferred from the Social Welfare Department to the Education Department within a year, said the Minister of Social Welfare, Mrs Hercus, yesterday. Mrs Hercus had been meeting members of the Early Childhood Workers’ Union to discuss implementation of the five-year-old State Services Commission report on early child-care services.

She said she believed the complex process of transition was possible within a year and that this time scale was a goal to work towards. The shift to the Education Department, which already had responsibility for kindergarten and playcentre, should result in a more cohesive and coherent early, education structure, she said. She is considering setting up an advisory group of workers from all spheres of

early childhood education to assist with the transition. The union’s national secretary, Ms Belinda Montgomery, said members were delighted with the commitment from Mrs Hercus. She said the shift would not only provide a united service and coherent policies but would help parents who suffered from guilt because of old-fashioned attitudes to leaving children in child-care centres. These attitudes were in-

tensified because child care was seen as being a social welfare and not an education service, she said. The union also asked that worker-child ratios be lowered, particularly for children under two. Ms Montgomery said Mrs Hercus had told the union there would be no change to ratios in the new regulations due out soon, but changes could be expected when more funding was * available, possibly next year.