11 March 2026 

The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia (ELACCA) is conducting a briefing at Parliament House Canberra on Thursday 12 March 2026, hosted by the cross-party led Parliamentary Friends of Early Childhood:

The path forward: How we can build the early learning system that Australia’s children need.

Anne Hollonds AO, Chief Executive of ELACCA, and former National Children’s Commissioner (2020-2025) said: ‘This is a critical time for reform in early childhood education and care, with a large number of regulatory changes and Parliamentary inquiries underway.

‘We are delighted to announce that Senator the Honourable Jess Walsh, Minister for Early Childhood Education and Minister for Youth, will be speaking.

‘There will also be an expert panel with Laureate Professor Karen Thorpe from University of QLD sharing international evidence on the critical factors in early childhood education and care that contribute to positive child development outcomes. Penny Dakin, Executive Director Communities at Minderoo, will outline options for an independent National Early Childhood Services Commission developed by Thrive by Five alliance experts.

‘In 2025 the community was shocked to learn about the systemic weaknesses in child safeguarding in the early childhood education and care sector across Australia. Governments and service providers are addressing these serious systemic issues, and there is much more to do.

‘This event is focussed on the opportunities we have with decades of evidence – the opportunities to build the early learning system that Australia’s children need.’

Ends

For interviews and further information contact:

Anne Hollonds     M: 0411 382 692     E: anne.hollonds@elacca.org.au

About ELACCA    www.elacca.org.au 

ELACCA is a peak body representing the nation’s largest providers of early learning and care services including preschool/kindergarten, long day care, outside school hours and family day care.

ELACCA members comprise a significant percentage of the nation’s not-for-profit and private providers operating 2,386 early learning services for 358,812 children and their families, and employing more than 58,738 staff.

ELACCA advocates for the right of all children to access quality early learning and care, particularly children facing disadvantage. Our advocacy builds on international evidence, and the knowledge and experience of our members.

The post Building the early learning system that Australia’s children need appeared first on ELACCA.

27 January 2026 

ELACCA is proud to congratulate our Chief Executive Officer, Ms Anne Hollondson her appointment as an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO), in the 2026 Australia Day Honours List.

Ms Hollonds’ award is in recognition of her distinguished service to family, children and community safety, wellbeing and human rights, and to policy, research and practice, and reflects her decades‑long commitment to improving the lives of children, families and communities across Australia.

ELACCA co-chairs Ms Kay Turner and Mr Pejman Okhovat said the honour is a fitting acknowledgement of Ms Hollonds’ contribution to public policy and practice:

“On behalf of the ELACCA Board and team, we extend our warmest congratulations to Ms Hollonds on this well‑deserved achievement.”

“This award recognises Ms Hollonds’ commitment to elevating the voices and experiences of children, especially children in vulnerable circumstances, and advocating for the safety, rights and wellbeing of children to be a national priority in Australia.”

In accepting the honour, Ms Hollonds emphasised the importance of keeping children at the heart of national reform: “This award is a recognition of the importance of evidence-based reform to improve outcomes for children living with disadvantage and discrimination. When we make children’s safety, rights and wellbeing our national priority, we build stronger families and communities to benefit everyone. I am grateful to work alongside so many dedicated people who share this commitment.

Ends

Contact:

Anne Hollonds, CEO

M: 0411 382 692

E: anne.hollonds@elacca.org.au 

Early Learning and Care Council of Australia

PO Box 497

Roseville NSW 2069

www.elacca.org.au

About us:  

Our 17 CEO members include some of the largest early learning providers in the country, representing both not-for-profit and for-profit services. 

ELACCA members operate 2,019 long day care services, 298 preschool/kindergarten services and 70 OSHC services, covering every state and territory. They offer one-quarter of all the long day care places in Australia. Together, our members serve 356,339 children and their families, and employ more than 57,382 staff.

As well as promoting the value of quality early learning and the need for greater public investment, ELACCA advocates for the right of all children to access quality early learning and care, particularly children facing disadvantage. We do this by drawing on the knowledge and practical experience of our members and representing their views to decision makers in government, the media and the public. 

The post ELACCA congratulates our CEO Anne Hollonds on her Order of Australia award appeared first on ELACCA.

5 January 2026 

The commencement of the 3 Day Guarantee today moves Australia one step closer to universal early learning and care, removing a longstanding barrier to children’s participation.

The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia (ELACCA) welcomes the commencement of the 3 Day Guarantee, which extends access to the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) to all eligible children in Australia, for at least 72 hours per fortnight (three days per week).

‘This new measure is a big step forward in securing every child’s right to learn,’ said the CEO of ELACCA, Anne Hollonds.

‘For three days each week, the Australian Government is prioritising a child’s right to early learning, even if their parent or carer is not in the workforce or has irregular working hours,’ Ms Hollonds said. ‘This is an important cultural shift for Australia, reflecting the critical importance of early learning to all children, separately to support for parents’ workforce participation.  It opens the way for genuine universal access to early learning and care.’

‘The extension of the 3 Day Guarantee to 100 hours per fortnight (or four days per week) for First Nations children is especially important, given the urgent need to close the gap in education and health outcomes in First Nations communities.’

Alongside other organisations, ELACCA has long advocated for the removal of the ‘activity test’, which had previously restricted access to the CCS based on parents’ and carers’ participation in employment, study or volunteering. In its 2023-24 inquiry into the early learning system, the Productivity Commission found that the activity test ‘limits access to ECEC for those children and families who need it most, without substantial gains in labour force participation’.[1]

[1] Productivity Commission. (2024). A path to universal early childhood education and care, Inquiry report no. 106, Vol. 1, Canberra, p. 5.

Ends

Contact:

Anne Hollonds, CEO

M: 0411 382 692

E: anne.hollonds@elacca.org.au 

Early Learning and Care Council of Australia

PO Box 497

Roseville NSW 2069

www.elacca.org.au

About us:  

Our 17 CEO members include some of the largest early learning providers in the country, representing both not-for-profit and for-profit services. 

ELACCA members operate 2,019 long day care services, 298 preschool/kindergarten services and 70 OSHC services, covering every state and territory. They offer one-quarter of all the long day care places in Australia. Together, our members serve 356,339 children and their families, and employ more than 57,382 staff.

As well as promoting the value of quality early learning and the need for greater public investment, ELACCA advocates for the right of all children to access quality early learning and care, particularly children facing disadvantage. We do this by drawing on the knowledge and practical experience of our members and representing their views to decision makers in government, the media and the public. 

The post Australia takes a leap forward on early learning with the 3 Day Guarantee appeared first on ELACCA.

We are seeking a high-performing policy and advocacy professional for this key national peak body in the early childhood education and care sector. Reporting directly to the CEO, the Senior Policy Manager has strategic leadership responsibilities for policy and advocacy; stakeholder engagement with governments, regulators, academic institutions and non-government partners; and provides support for the ELACCA project teams.

Application closing date: 27 January 2026

For inquiries and position description, please email admin@elacca.org.au

The post Career Opportunity – Senior Policy Manager appeared first on ELACCA.

Prioritising child safety is not optional. The safety, rights, and best interests of every child are our highest priority and our paramount consideration in operational decisions.

As Australia’s largest providers of early childhood education and care, ELACCA members are united in our commitment to prioritise child safety.

We commit to:

• working closely with Commonwealth, state and territory governments to implement evidence-based reforms across Australia,

• delivering mandatory child safety training from February 2026 across all services without exception,

• ensuring every educator completes mandatory child safety training in paid time, and we will work directly with our teams and families to deliver it in the most effective way possible. We welcome the Commonwealth Government’s support for training to be conducted during CCS hours, and we will work with state and territory governments to enable the best support for other service types,

• supporting our qualified and capable educators. Together, we employ more than 57,000 early childhood education professionals. Their vigilance, professionalism, and daily commitment to child safety and wellbeing are critical to the protection of children and their rights,

• ensuring that all services build positive child-safe cultures in recognition of the fact that child safety requires more than compliance or minimum standards, and

• ensuring that child safety, rights and best interests are visible at the core of governance and strategy in our member organisations.

The post Our Commitment to Children appeared first on ELACCA.

19 November 2025 

Anne brings a wealth of experience, vision, and dedication from 28 years of senior leadership across government and non-government sectors, with a distinguished career dedicated to improving outcomes for children and families. Anne recently completed her term as Australia’s National Children’s Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission. In her previous CEO roles, Anne provided advice to governments and led research, policy and practice in education, health and social services, including as a provider of early childhood education and family support services.  

Throughout her career, Anne has championed evidence-based policy and systems reform and has been a strong advocate for the safety and wellbeing of children and their families.  

“I am honoured to join ELACCA at such a pivotal time for the early learning and care sector in Australia. Every child deserves access to high-quality education and care, and I look forward to working with our members, partners, and governments to strengthen the sector and make the safety, rights and wellbeing of children our priority nationwide.” — Anne Hollonds, CEO, ELACCA 
 
“Anne’s leadership will be instrumental in guiding ELACCA through the next chapter of our journey, as we continue to advocate for quality early learning for all children across Australia. We are confident that Anne’s strategic insight and collaborative spirit will strengthen our partnerships, amplify our voice in policy discussions, and support our members in delivering quality education and care.  

We thank Sally Maddison for leading ELACCA as Acting CEO, and look forward to Anne’s leadership as ELACCA continues to champion quality early learning and care for every Australian child.

Anne will commence at ELACCA on Monday 24 November 2025.” 

Pejman Okhovat and Kay Turner, ELACCA Co-chairs

Ends

Early Learning and Care Council of Australia

PO Box 348

Annandale NSW 2038

www.elacca.org.au

About us:  

The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia (ELACCA) was established to promote the value of quality early learning and care as an integral part of Australia’s education system. Our 17 CEO members include some of the largest early learning providers in the country, representing both not-for-profit and for-profit services. ELACCA members operate 1,947 long day care services, 297 preschool/kindergarten services and 77 OSHC services, covering every state and territory. They offer one-quarter of all the early learning places in Australia. Together, our members serve 356,339 children and their families, and employ more than 57,000 staff.  

As well as promoting the value of quality early learning and the need for greater public investment, ELACCA advocates for the right of all children to access quality early learning and care, particularly children facing disadvantage. We do this by drawing on the knowledge and practical experience of our members and representing their views to decision makers in government, the media and the public.  

The post The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia (ELACCA) is pleased to announce the appointment of Anne Hollonds as our new Chief Executive Officer appeared first on ELACCA.

ELACCA and its members are committed to delivering safe, quality early childhood education and care (ECEC) for all children. Across all the priorities we pursue in our work, nothing is more important than the safety and wellbeing of children. We are collectively driven by a zero-tolerance approach to child harm, in all its forms.

We know that qualified early childhood teachers and educators remain the single most critical guarantor of child safety. We pay tribute to our early childhood teachers and educators – overwhelmingly, they are skilled professionals who consistently demonstrate their commitment to the paramount importance of the child.

ELACCA supports an ECEC system in which:

• Child safety is the paramount consideration
• Approved providers – including all their staff – have a clear understanding of standards and regulations
• Educators feel supported and empowered to act in the best interests of children
• High-quality pedagogy underpins the standards
• Innovation and customisation – including educational programs that are specific to places and communities – are encouraged.

We welcomed the package of child safety reforms announced by Australia’s Education Ministers in August 2025. We are currently engaging with governments across the country to ensure that legislative, policy and regulatory changes are impactful, feasible, and aligned with high-quality service delivery.

As large providers of ECEC services, ELACCA members are uniquely positioned to lead in embedding child safety improvements at scale. We will continue to contribute our time, energy and resources to support the national reforms.

The emerging suite of improvements to ECEC system infrastructure and regulatory practice, combined with investment in educator training, will strengthen our collective capacity to prevent harm to children.

Importantly, our members are committed to working with families to explain the new safety measures, and to build relationships of trust, vigilance and accountability. Following a series of highly publicised cases of alleged and proven abuse of children, it is vital that we build the confidence of families, by embedding safeguarding practices across the entire sector.

ELACCA members understand the scale of the challenge, and are committed to building a world-class system of child safety. Australia’s children deserve nothing less.

November 2025

The post ELACCA Statement on Child Safety appeared first on ELACCA.

22 August 2025 

The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia (ELACCA) backs today’s Education Ministers Meeting agreements on a suite of national safety reform actions to improve safety, quality and transparency in the early learning and care sector.

‘Education Ministers today have joined together in a historic collaboration to agree on important reforms to further increase safety for our littlest learners. The establishment of a national educator register, nationally consistent mandatory child safety training, national trial of CCTV, increased transparency of provider quality for families plus other initiatives are an essential collection of impactful measures. Importantly, the critical role of nationally consistency legislation and regulation into the future cannot be underestimated.’ said ELACCA CEO Elizabeth Death.

‘ELACCA is committed to safe, high-quality early learning and care for all children, regardless of the location or type of service they attend.’ Ms Death said. ‘There is nothing more important than the safety and well-being of children coupled with support for our dedicated, skilled early learning professionals.’

‘However, we must remain vigilant. The national application of the Law and Regulations builds a safety net for consistent, clear policy and practice across the country. Shouldany one jurisdiction ‘go-it-alone’ and deviate from the National Quality Framework Law and Regulations, even for noble reasons, they would weaken the whole system,’ Ms Death said.

‘Families, and the sector, demand nationally consistent and easily navigable systems to ensure all children are safe. Australia still has a way to go before we can put hand on heart and say we have nationally consistent implementation, and now is the time for us to step up together – government, providers, educators and families – in lock step for our children.’

ELACCA supports the Australian Government’s $189 million investment and commitment, alongside State and Territory investments and commitment, to keeping our children safe through:

• $45 million to trial, test and establish a National Educator Register, to be built by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) and rolled out in 2026
• $21 million to cover wage costs for mandatory child safety training developed by the Australian Centre for Child Protection (ACCP) for all early learning and care staff who work with children, including through all levels of management up to the board room
• $21 million to assess the risks and benefits of CCTV through a trial in 300 services, overseen by experts including ACCP.
• A ban on personal mobile phones from September 2025
• Increased transparency for families through a $2 million update and upgrade to the Starting Blocks website, including to show compliance breaches and enforcement actions from November, with a further $5 million to ACECQA to increase understanding of safety and quality in early learning and care by families.
• Increased penalties for violations of the national law and regulations
• An increase in unannounced spot checks – 1600 additional unannounced visits each year by Commonwealth officers, plus $73 million in compliance actions to lift safety and integrity, including new powers to cut funding to providers that don’t meet quality and safety standards.
• Rapid review by ACECQA on supervision rules, including how the current adult:child ratios are being implemented and if there are changes required to increase the safety of our children.
• $22 million funding for joint regulatory action – for joint compliance work and monitoring with states and territories and to improve data exchange.
• Regular assessment and rating visits, with states and territories to ensure that all services are assessed on average every three years, and those rated “Working Towards” the National Quality Standard more frequently.

ELACCA and our members support measures that are aimed at improving quality and increasing safety for children and educators in our sector, and we will lean in, with governments and sector colleagues to inform and implement today’s suite of reforms.

ELACCA also supports efforts by governments to investigate ways of preventing unscrupulous operators from entering the market or switching across care sectors, including between early learning and care, aged care, disability care and veterans’ care. We would also support implementing a National Working with Vulnerable People Check across all states and territories, for people seeking to work and volunteer in early childhood education and across the care economy. ELACCA also continues to call for a national reportable conduct scheme.

It is ELACCA’s vision that all children in Australia have access to inclusive, high-quality early learning and care, delivered by a skilled, valued workforce.

Ends

Early Learning and Care Council of Australia

PO Box 348

Annandale NSW 2038

www.elacca.org.au

About us:  

The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia (ELACCA) was established to promote the value of quality early learning and care as an integral part of Australia’s education system. Our 17 CEO members include some of the largest early learning providers in the country, representing both not-for-profit and for-profit services. ELACCA members operate 1,947 long day care services, 297 preschool/kindergarten services and 77 OSHC services, covering every state and territory. They offer one-quarter of all the early learning places in Australia. Together, our members serve 356,339 children and their families, and employ more than 57,000 staff.  

As well as promoting the value of quality early learning and the need for greater public investment, ELACCA advocates for the right of all children to access quality early learning and care, particularly children facing disadvantage. We do this by drawing on the knowledge and practical experience of our members and representing their views to decision makers in government, the media and the public.  

The post ELACCA endorses Education Ministers’ Suite of National Safety Reforms – for Australia’s littlest learners – from services to boardrooms appeared first on ELACCA.

10 July 2025 

The ELACCA Board writes today to formally advise that ELACCA CEO, Elizabeth Death, has submitted her resignation and will be stepping down on 6 October 2025.

Since commencing in 2016, Elizabeth has facilitated ELACCA’s growth from a small representative group of CEOs to the current 18 member organisations with a significant national footprint and voice.

Whilst representing members, Elizabeth has successfully navigated the challenges that faced the sector during COVID, two Productivity Commission Inquiries, an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Inquiry, the South Australian Royal Commission, NSW IPART Inquiry and Market Monitoring, as well as innumerable policy agendas across State, Territory and the Australian Government. She has been a trusted advisor and council to many – providers, regulators, and Governments. Elizabeth and her team have developed ELACCA to be a recognised voice.

Elizabeth is immensely proud to have worked collaboratively with members, the ELACCA team, partner organisations and all Governments, to advocate for quality early learning, and deliver professional learning, through numerous initiatives.

She has led with clarity and purpose, ensuring large providers are actively engaged in sector-wide reforms. Importantly, she has never lost sight of the children at the heart of our work, and the value of working together for change.

The board and members of ELACCA would like to thank Elizabeth and acknowledge the huge contribution that she has made in leading an organisation that has, at its core, improving the quality of the Early Childhood Education and Care sector in Australia.

Pejman Okhovat and Kay Turner

Co-chairs

Early Learning and Care Council of Australia

PO Box 348

Annandale NSW 2038

www.elacca.org.au

About us:  

The Early Learning and Care Council of Australia (ELACCA) was established to promote the value of quality early learning and care as an integral part of Australia’s education system. Our 18 CEO members include some of the largest early learning providers in the country, representing both not-for-profit and for-profit services. ELACCA members operate 1,980 long day care services, 316 preschool/kindergarten services and 83 OSHC services, covering every state and territory. They offer one-quarter of all the early learning places in Australia. Together, our members serve 360,870 children and their families, and employ more than 58,000 staff.  

As well as promoting the value of quality early learning and the need for greater public investment, ELACCA advocates for the right of all children to access quality early learning and care, particularly children facing disadvantage. We do this by drawing on the knowledge and practical experience of our members and representing their views to decision makers in government, the media and the public.  

The post ELACCA Board announces the resignation of CEO, Elizabeth Death appeared first on ELACCA.

Public consultation about regulatory and non-regulatory policy options to improve child safety in the education and care sector is open until 11 June 2025*.

What are the possible changes?

There are six themes across the changes for consideration. For more information, read the Consultation Regulation Impact Statement, using the QR code below, or go to https://content.deloitte.com.au/ChildSafetyReview

Management of Digital Devices

Child Safety Training

Responding to Educator and Staff Member Conduct

Working with Children Checks

Improving the Safety of the Physical Service Environment

Additional Recommendations

For more Information

The post Child Safety Review – Have Your Say appeared first on ELACCA.