Families at the centre: negotiating Australia's mixed market in early education and care

尽管政策改革和澳大利亚政府对早期儿童教育和护理（ECEC）的投资激增，但在澳大利亚，人们对当地ECEC市场的运作方式以及低收入家庭如何决定使用或不使用儿童保育服务知之甚少。该项目将为旨在鼓励低收入家庭使用托儿服务的政策制定和服务提供证据。儿童保育提供者直接参与研究将加强其相关性和影响。这项研究将使澳大利亚在当地儿童保育市场的国际研究中处于领先地位，由此产生的ECEC政策和服务的改进将产生巨大的经济和社会效益。

Despite a surge of policy reforms and Australian government investment in early childhood education and care (ECEC), little is known in Australia about how local ECEC markets function and how low-income families make decisions about the use or non-use of child care services. This project will provide evidence for policy-making and service provision that aims to encourage child care use by low-income families. The direct involvement of child care providers in the research will strengthen its relevance and impact. This research will place Australia at the forefront of international research on local child care markets, and resulting improvements in ECEC policy and services will generate substantial economic and social benefits.