Labor promises more baby sleep schools and help for parents ahead of election
Victoria’s Labor government is hitting parents right in the feels ahead of this weekend’s election with some much-needed support and expanded programs.
Help for exhausted parents
“Seven new parenting centres providing baby sleep training to exhausted parents will be opened across Victoria if Labor wins Saturday’s state election,” The Age reports.
“Labor’s latest pitch for the family vote includes $232 million that will also go towards an updated 24-hour phone line with sleep specialists available to advise parents of their baby’s sleeping patterns.”
Also part of the package are tax incentives for employers who provide paternity leave and increased home visits from maternal child health nurses for vulnerable families.
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It takes a village
These proposed changes are designed to make the transition to parenting easier, Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said.
“Being a first-time parent is a magical experience but it can be a very stressful experience.”
There are three very busy early parenting centres in Melbourne at the moment, and families travel from far and wide to make use of them. The State government has promised to build new residential facilities for families in Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Whittlesea, Wyndham, Casey and Frankston.
Other improvements for parents include a “baby bundle” of infant and educational products, better access to support groups for new dads and what The Age described as a “revamp” of the parenting helpline which fielded over 100 000 calls last year.
Same-same but different
All this comes hot the heels of the federal government’s fresh plan to provide much-needed support for new mums and mums in crisis.
As we reported on Monday “over the next four years, $109 million will be dedicated to giving mums more paid parental leave and will even allow victims of domestic violence early access to their super.”
“Even though we have come a long way, we still want Australian women to be able to do even better,” Minister for Women Kelly O’Dwyer explained, SBS reported.
“We want to ensure that women can build their financial security to help them choose their own path so they and their families can live their best lives.”
