Childcare centres will have to provide detailed information on vacancies as part of the Federal Government's push to make it easier for parents to find places.
The Minister for Childcare, Kate Ellis, said that from next week centres would have to report to the Government on the numbers of vacancies that existed on each day of the week.
"Increasing the availability of information for parents provides real support for families and empowers them to make the best choices for themselves and their children," Ms Ellis said.
The information will first be available to parents who call the Government's childcare availability hotline. It is expected the information will then be put on the Government's childcare website to allow parents to search for care for their children on specific days.
The website is an attempt to make more up-to-date information available. Childcare operators had complained that the telephone hotline was frequently out of date, making it frustrating for centre staff who had to explain why places were no longer available.
The information will be of most use to parents who live in suburbs close to the centre of large cities such as Sydney and Melbourne, where childcare places are typically most scarce.
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