What Corangamite council plans to do about the major childcare shortage in Skipton

Four new Skipton mothers can’t return to work because childcare is unavailable, while others are driving almost an hour round trip to take their kids to available centres.

But a vote to seek state funding to create more locally available slots for kids could change that.

What happened: Corangamite Shire Council unanimously approved a grant application to expand the town’s early years facility at Tuesday’s council meeting.

• Councillors backed a submission to the Victorian School Building Authority to upgrade the Skipton childcare centre, increasing capacity across both daycare and kindergarten programs.

• The childcare centre provides services to a population of almost 600;

• But it only acts as childcare on Mondays and Fridays from 9am to 3:30pm and as a kindergarten from Tuesday to Thursday. 

State reforms: The push is tied to the state government’s Best Start, Best Life reforms, which will require councils to deliver 30 hours of funded kindergarten for four-year-olds by 2031.

This shift is already placing pressure on existing services.

“Childcare desert”: Councillor Nick Cole told the meeting the shortage in Skipton was acute, describing the town as “a bit of a childcare desert”.

• “They desperately need it,” Cole said. “I know about four women up there, they've had babies recently that need childcare to be able to help get back to doing [other] things.”

• Council officers identified a need for at least 33 additional licensed places, meaning 33 more children could be enrolled in regulated childcare or kindergarten programs, with the proposed design allowing for further expansion as demand grows.

The numbers: The scale of the shortfall reflects broader regional trends. The Brolga previously reported Victoria University’s Mitchell Institute data showed areas like Skipton have less than 0.333 places per child, often forcing families into long commutes or out of the workforce altogether.

A long process: Councillor Geraldine Conheady said the proposal reflected “extensive discussions about this matter over many, many months” to understand both current and future demand in Skipton.

• Conheady said changes to government policy had “changed the landscape” of kindergarten and childcare, requiring councils to expand capacity while avoiding disruption to existing services.