<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Stop this hike, or it's back to square one
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->SINCE the childcare subsidy for working mothers increased from $150 to $300 on Aug 17, I have made many enquiries at various childcare centres. To my surprise, most, if not all, the centres said that they were revising their fees from next year. Reasons cited include the fact that childcare subsidies had increased, that they needed to cover the rising costs and that teachers were not well paid.
I thought the childcare subsidy was meant to help parents with preschoolers by reducing the costs and making childcare more affordable. With childcare centres increasing their fees, there are no savings for parents. It will be back to square one - childcare services will still be a high cost for parents with many children going to preschool even if the mother is working. Will the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) stop childcare centres from increasing their fees as a result of the increase in the childcare subsidy?
Childcare centre costs and preschool teacher pay are issues MCYS needs to address. Why not consider giving a subsidy to childcare centres too?
With such a subsidy, centres could address the problem of costs. They could also pay preschool teachers better, which will attract higher quality teachers. They would not need to use the MCYS subsidy for working mothers to address their own problems.
Someone really needs to look into this matter and do something fair for us parents. Ronnie Tan
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->SINCE the childcare subsidy for working mothers increased from $150 to $300 on Aug 17, I have made many enquiries at various childcare centres. To my surprise, most, if not all, the centres said that they were revising their fees from next year. Reasons cited include the fact that childcare subsidies had increased, that they needed to cover the rising costs and that teachers were not well paid.
I thought the childcare subsidy was meant to help parents with preschoolers by reducing the costs and making childcare more affordable. With childcare centres increasing their fees, there are no savings for parents. It will be back to square one - childcare services will still be a high cost for parents with many children going to preschool even if the mother is working. Will the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) stop childcare centres from increasing their fees as a result of the increase in the childcare subsidy?
Childcare centre costs and preschool teacher pay are issues MCYS needs to address. Why not consider giving a subsidy to childcare centres too?
With such a subsidy, centres could address the problem of costs. They could also pay preschool teachers better, which will attract higher quality teachers. They would not need to use the MCYS subsidy for working mothers to address their own problems.
Someone really needs to look into this matter and do something fair for us parents. Ronnie Tan
