Chris Gulaptis, Member for Clarence, has welcomed an additional $115 million in funding to make early childhood education more affordable for local families and reduce fees by an average of 30 per cent, $85 million of this funding will go to community preschools like the Copmanhurst pre-school, while $30 million will be delivered to long day care services. Mr Gulaptis said the NSW Government is requiring preschools to pass on at least 75 per cent of the increased funding to families through lower fees. As every preschool sets its own fees, preschool providers will be advising families of their lower fees directly. The government is committed to providing universal access to quality early childhood education. This funding will reduce preschool fees for four and five year olds and remove nearly all fees for children from Aboriginal and low-income families at preschool. “This is fantastic news for local families with young children,” Mr Gulaptis said. “This funding boost will deliver the largest single fee reduction in NSW history, making preschool more affordable so that more children will be able to participate in 600 hours – or about 15 hours per week – of early childhood education in community preschools and long day care centres in the year before they start school. “This funding boost shows the NSW Government is serious about helping more families access early childhood education, especially for children from Aboriginal or low-income backgrounds.” Starting in 2017, community preschools across the State who enrol children for at least 600 hours in the year before school will receive increased subsidies from the NSW Government, enabling them to reduce fees for families. “Research shows that a quality preschool education for at least 600 hours gives children a head start in their learning journey,” said Mr Gulaptis.