Child care in Australia: availability and affordability (see comments)

Balancing work and family life has become one of the biggest issues in Australian social policy today. Child care is an essential tool that aids the workforce and educational participation of those families that use it, employs thousands of persons within the industry, and hopefully provides an environment that is safe, educational and beneficial to our children. Yet relatively little research has been conducted into child care affordability and availability, leaving a gap in information for public debate and decision making. This project aims to close this gap by assessing the affordability and availability of child care within Australia by using appropriate data sources.