$1.9 Million available for childcare providers
Source: Victoria. Department for Children and Early Childhood Development.
Grants are being provided to enable childcare providers to comply with new children's services regulations.

Building a highly qualified early childhood workforce
Source: Victoria. Department for Children & Early Childhood Development
As part of the Early Childhood Workforce Strategy, financial assistance is being offered to build qualifications and expertise for people in the childcare industry.

Funding allocated to CMC for phone-tapping capabilities
Source: Queensland. Attorney General. Media Release.
"The Bligh Government has demonstrated its commitment to fighting serious organised crime, corruption and paedophilia in Queensland by providing significant new funding to the Crime and Misconduct Commission for phone-tapping capabilities. Attorney-General Cameron Dick said the government had allocated $14 million over five years to the CMC for telecommunication interception capacity, including $605,000 this financial year to implement the system. He said the funding would allow the CMC to use telephone interception powers on three main operational areas: corruption and serious misconduct; organised crime such as drug trafficking, extortion and fraud; and paedophilia and child sex offences."

Family Referral Services
Source: New South Wales. Minister for Communities. Media Release.
Three pilot Family Referral Services have been announced as part of the NSW strategy of Keep Them Safe.

Initiatives to Help Improve Kinder Management
Source: Victoria. Minister for Children & Early Childhood Development. Media Release
"An improved approach to kindergarten management will help deliver better services for children and help relieve pressure on parent led kindergarten committees of management. Minister for Children and Early Childhood Development Maxine Morand launched the Brumby Labor Government’s new Kindergarten Cluster Management Policy Framework and funding of $520,000 to assist develop cluster management in Victoria.Opening the Kindergarten Cluster Management Forum in Melbourne, Ms Morand said cluster management relieves the administrative burden on parents involved in their kindergarten management and kindergarten teachers, freeing them up to focus on teaching. Kindergarten cluster management brings together a group of kindergartens under the management of a single organisation, such as the local council. They can then appoint someone to manage the administrative and professional development requirements for a number of centres.“A recent review of kindergarten cluster management in Victoria found that cluster management has resulted in significant benefits to families, kindergarten staff and the community,” Ms Morand said."

Research project begins for the provision of therapy services in rural and remote NSW
Source: New South Wales. Minister for Aging and Minister for Disability Services. Media Release.
"The NSW Minister for Disability Services Paul Lynch welcomed the start of a major research project into the provision of therapy services in rural and remote NSW. Mr Lynch said the four year project, a joint enterprise between Ageing Disability and Home Care (ADHC) and the University of Sydney would focus on the effectiveness of the delivery of psychology and therapy services to people with disabilities living in rural and remote NSW."

Working With Children Check legislation
Source: New South Wales. Minister for Youth. Media release.
"The Minister for Youth, Peter Primrose, reminded employers that tougher measures around the Working With Children Check are now in force in NSW and new forms and guidelines are available on the Commission for Children and Young People’s website. "The Working With Children Check forms and the guidelines that are used by employers to recruit people in child-related employment have been updated to reflect new laws and to make them much easier to use by employers," Mr Primrose said."

Improving education for children entering care
Source: New South Wales. Minister for Education and Training and Minister for Community Services. Joint Media Release.
"Minister for Education and Training and Minister for Community Services announced additional resources to support the education of children and young people coming into care. Minister Firth said $25 million funding over four years has been allocated to implement education initiatives under Keep Them Safe, the NSW Government’s reforms in response to the Report of the Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection Services in NSW. "These new education initiatives are about helping children entering care to improve their participation and performance at school," Ms Firth said."

The hunt is on for ideas that link families, schools and communities
Source: ACT. Minister for Children and Young People
"$5,000 is available for initiatives that build links between families, schools and communities. The ideas should aim to support children and young people in the ACT, and individuals or groups that are developing innovative and evidence-based. They are looking for projects that help identify potential issues and assist in preventing them, or that are designed to tackle problem areas in the early years of a child’s life."

Young Far North Queenslanders to benefit from new community mental health initiative
Source: Queensland. Minister for Disability Services and Multicultural Affairs. Media Release
"Young Far North Queenslanders are set to benefit from a $6.4 million community mental health initiative, Disability Services Minister Annastacia Palaszczuk said. Ms Palaszczuk said the Time Out Housing Initiative would deliver home and community-based services to Far North Queenslanders aged 18-25 experiencing early symptoms of mental health problems.
“Cairns will be one of the first Queensland locations to benefit from this new early intervention program, with a program run by Aftercare soon to be up and running,” she said.
The initiative will support young people in their own homes, ensuring they can access clinical support, counselling and specialist public mental health services where appropriate."

Bligh Government to review Domestic and Family Violence Legislation
Source: Queensland. Minister for Community Services and Housing and Minister for Women. Media Release
"Community Services Minister Karen Struthers and Police Minister Neil Roberts released a consultation paper as part of a five-year strategy to help reduce domestic and family violence in Queensland. The launch took place at Queensland Police Headquarters in Brisbane during the service’s Domestic Violence Liaison Officer conference. Minister Struthers said feedback on the consultation paper was part of a Bligh Government commitment to review current domestic violence legislation. “A lot has changed with the way domestic violence is viewed but more action is still needed,” Ms Struthers said. Domestic violence used to be viewed as a private matter but it is now it is finally coming out from behind closed doors."

The Coalition’s Direct Action Plan on Paid Parental Leave
Source: Leader of the Opposition, Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education and Childcare and the Shadow Minister for the Status of Women. Policy Statement.
"The Coalition Joint Party Room this morning endorsed a proposal to introduce Paid Parental Leave if elected to government. The proposal is the first part of our broader package of support for Australian families. The Coalition’s Paid Parental Leave scheme will: provide primary carers with 26 weeks paid parental leave, at full replacement pay (up to a maximum salary of $150,000 per annum) or the Federal minimum wage, whichever is greater; be available to all employees in the public and private sector, including contractors and the self-employed; and include superannuation contributions at the mandatory rate of nine per cent."

Government launches new Disability Employment Services
SOURCE: Australia. Minister for Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. Media Release.
"Minister for Employment Participation Mark Arbib today launched the Rudd Government's new $1.2 billion Disability Employment Services.. The new Disability Employment Services will operate under two new programs:. In addition to the new Disability Employment Services, Senator Arbib also announced a Disability Employment Services Reference Group would be established to provide strategic advice on the future of Disability Employment Services."

From today spouses to get estates when no wills are left
Source: NSW. Attorney General. Media release.
"Spouses will automatically inherit the estates of their partners when their partners don’t leave a will, under new laws, said Attorney General John Hatzistergos.“The changes we have made to intestacy laws have simplified the legal process involving estates when a person dies who doesn’t have a will,” said Mr Hatzistergos."

Draft Australian Curriculum (NOTE: Registration Required to View or Comment)
Source: Australia. Minister for Education and The Prime Minister. Joint Media Release.
"Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, and Minister for Education, Julia Gillard, today released the first draft Australian Curriculum for students from Kindergarten to Year 10 in the subjects of English, maths, science and history. Having an online curriculum means the curriculum will be dynamic, and easily updated, in contrast with the static, hard-copy format. The Australian Curriculum will be among the world’s first curriculum delivered online. From next year, students from all states and territories will be able to move schools, school systems and states and be taught the same knowledge, skills and understanding as part of a curriculum for the 21st Century."

Road Amendment (Isabelle Broadhead Child Restraint Measures) Rules 2010.
Source: NSW. Minister for Transport. Media release.
"New national safety regulations to curb the high number of children injured in car crashes come into effect in NSW. Minister for Transport and Roads David Campbell said the changes mean children up to the age of seven are now required to travel in approved child restraints or booster seats."

School sectors unite to tackle school violence
Source: Queensland. Premier and the Minister for Education and Training. Media Release
"In a first for Queensland, all school sectors will unite to tackle school violence.
Queensland Premier Anna Bligh and Education Minister Geoff Wilson were joined by Executive Director of the Association of Independent Schools David Robertson and Executive Director of the Queensland Catholic Education Commission Mike Byrne to announce the establishment of the cross-sector Queensland Schools Alliance Against Violence.
Premier Bligh said the group would be responsible for overseeing the implementation of world’s best practice measures to help tackle schoolyard violence.
"The playground of today no longer stops at the school fence, it extends to cyberspace and beyond," Ms Bligh said. My Government is working cooperatively with the Independent and Catholic school sectors to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all Queensland students.”

New laws to lift standards in Queensland schools and childcare centres
Source: Queensland. Minister for Education and Training. Media Release
"Primary teachers will be tested on their literacy, numeracy and science skills before entering Queensland classrooms under new laws passed by the Bligh Government.
Education and Training Minister Geoff Wilson said the amendments would allow the Queensland College of Teachers to develop a new testing regime for teacher graduates.
“We expect testing to begin by the end of 2011,” Mr Wilson said.
This move is in response to a key recommendation by Professor Geoff Masters as part of his report into Queensland’s education system."

Stronger Together
Source: NSW. Minister for Disability Services. Media Release.
" More than 1000 people have filled out job applications to work in the disability and community care sector following a television advertising campaign launched two weeks ago. The carecareers campaign is a partnership between the NSW Government and National Disability Services (NDS) to meet the challenges of an ageing population."

Australian families get an online safety boost
SOURCE: Attorney-General and Minister for Home Affairs. Media Release
"Australian families will be better prepared to protect children from online sex offenders, cyber bullies and scammers with the national rollout of the school-based cyber safety program - ThinkUKnow - launched by Minister for Home Affairs Brendan O'Connor in Brisbane today. 'The AFP will also continue to work closely with industry, government and local and international law enforcement agencies to protect children online through education initiatives and operations against online sex offenders.'"