Childcare centre plans to open 6am-8pm, sell takeaways to meet demand for long care hours
NZ Herald 21 November 2019
Four-year-old Shannon van Zyl is one of a growing number of children spending long hours in childcare as parents struggle with long working hours and Auckland traffic.
An Auckland childcare company says it plans to offer care from 6am to 8pm, plus take-home meals for parents too busy to cook at home.
The new Rainbow Corner centre in Botany will also provide an on-site doctor, nurse, pharmacy, physiotherapist and podiatrist so children in daycare can get medical help if needed – even if their parents can’t get there quickly.
Owner Rrahul Dosshi said the multi-million-dollar centre for 200 children, split into two licences because centres can’t have more than 150 children on each licence, is responding to “a changing landscape”.
“Families are working longer hours these days, and where we are located there is a lot of shift work and emergency services,” he said.
“What we are trying to achieve is to give the parents a bit of a breather so they can get back on with their lives.”
He said the centre would be the first in New Zealand to operate from 6am to 8pm when it opens on December 1.
But Child Forum founder Dr Sarah Alexander warned that extending daycare into the evenings risked turning it into almost residential care.
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