Additional Wheatbelt Early Childhood Education and Care Services Prepare to Join REED

The Regional Early Education and Development Inc. (REED) is a recently formed not-for-profit service that provides high quality Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) services for Wheatbelt families.

Officially launched by Minister Simone McGurk MLA, Minister for Child Protection; Women’s Interests; Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence; Community Services in Narrogin in March this year, REED is funded in the establishment phase by the State Government and Lotterywest.

Since creating the service that is based in Narrogin, four ECEC Wheatbelt services are preparing to join the network – Corrigin, Narembeen, Hyden and Brookton. An additional three organisations have passed resolutions endorsing their intention to merge with REED.

REED is creating a new cluster model of management to provide services across the Wheatbelt, working to reduce the burden on local Committees and Shires to provide these vital community services.

REED Board Chairperson, Helen Creed, said that ‘the REED team is working hard with this initial group of centres as they prepare to merge with REED and establish the framework for the sustainable regional ECEC which we will become’.

Minister McGurk said that ‘the evidence is clear that quality early childhood education and care sets the foundations for children to thrive. By investing in the early years we are supporting a brighter future for our children, our communities and our state.

Working towards the sustainable delivery of high quality early childhood education and care services will not only benefit the Wheatbelt region, but will also offer broader social and economic benefits for our State. We know that child care services generate and support local jobs’.

Showing additional support for the service is Hon Mia Davies MLA, Leader of the Nationals WA, who said ‘for a long time there has been agreement in the Wheatbelt ECEC sector that issues of sustainability need to be addressed for the sake of our children, families, regional business and communities. As organisations and services merge with REED over the next year, their hardworking voluntary committees will be relieved of the pressure of increased regulatory burden and the challenge of attracting and retaining qualified staff’.

Hon Mia Davies further noted that ‘I’m confident that as REED grows and develops we’ll see a sustainable ECEC sector providing essential community services that support quality of life in the Wheatbelt and enable the region to grow and contribute even more to our State’.

Over the next 18 months, an additional 20 Wheatbelt ECEC services are expected to merge with REED. For additional information about REED, please email chair.reed@iinet.net.au