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Investigation of early child care facilities in Tumbarumba

Community interest in all aspects of early child care facilities in Tumbarumba is escalating rapidly. Tumbarumba Shire Council’s Children’s Services Committee has acted quickly to acknowledge the growing concerns, and plans to ascertain the community’s long-term needs.

As Tumbarumba’s under school-age population grows, so does the need for a dedicated pre-school facility to cater for children as they advance from early childhood care to their first time in a Kindergarten or primary school. Several alternatives will be investigated, including

• Expansion of facilities already at Carcoola Children’s Centre,
• A pre-school class within Tumbarumba Primary School, funded and conducted by the Department of Education,
• Use of the Rural Transaction Centre (previously Carcoola’s founding facility) as a separate pre-school centre as a short term option until a more permanent solution is developed,
• Re-development of a downstairs section of Carcoola as an interim, temporary centre, or
• An in-home long day care service.

Paramount to developing any expanded facility is that viability of the existing Carcoola centre will not be at risk or threatened by a new pre-school centre.

Support and interest in Carcoola’s early childhood services is extremely strong with more than 25 children waiting for a place to become available. The entire community will be invited to air their views on all aspects of early child-care facilities in Tumbarumba in a broad-ranging survey to be distributed after the October school holidays.

Executive Officer for the Children’s Services Committee Kay Whitehead said it is critical that the community take the time to have input into the survey. “This will assist Council’s Children’s Services Committee to quantify and assess the demand and type of all child-care services required in Tumbarumba” Ms Whitehead said. 

“I am pleased that agreement was reached by all interested groups that we need a united and whole of town approach to addressing the childcare issue in Tumbarumba. “We need to verify the long term demand for all childcare services in Tumbarumba to assist the various groups and Council in this key issue for our community”, Ms Whitehead said. 

A public meeting will follow the survey, on a date to be set in November, to gauge further public needs and comments.

Contact details
Director of Corporate & Community Services
Tel: 02 69489100
corporate@tumbashire.nsw.gov.au

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