Children are our most precious resource. We know the first five years of a child's life are crucial. The early years shape the person we each become. When we invest in our children we invest in our future. That is why one of the most significant commitments Labor made to families across the nation at the last election was to cut the cost of child care.
In November last year, the Albanese government delivered on that commitment, passing legislation through the parliament. The government's reform bill will cut the cost of child care for about 1.26 million families, and 96 per cent of families with children in early childhood education and care will benefit from this reform. The legislation gives children access to critical early education they may not have otherwise received. The cheaper child care reform is good for kids, good for families and good for our economy.
Cheaper child care will help families with young children in rapid-growth areas like those in my electorate of Corangamite, such as suburbs like Charlemont, Ashbury Estate and Anchorage all within the high-growth area of Armstrong Creek, or in established areas with fast-growing estates, like Bannockburn, Grovedale, Leopold, Torquay and Ocean Grove. Young families in these areas know all too well the rising costs of child care, costs that have soared across the nation by 41 per cent in the past eight years.
It's clear that parents, particularly women, want to make the best choices for their families around child care, early education and, importantly, workforce participation. Women want to choose to progress their career, develop their skills and earn more. Our child care reforms will help women to do this.
There are some 6,000 families currently using approved child care within my electorate. Of those, some 5,800 will directly benefit from our government's cheaper child care. From July, our government will lift the maximum childcare subsidy rate to 90 per cent for families with a combined income of under $80,000. It will also increase subsidy rates for families earning less than $530,000 annually. Analysis by Treasury indicates this policy will mean up to 37,000 extra full-time workers in Australia, and they will be available for businesses in the next financial year.
I've met many families in my electorate who have sat down with a calculator and figured out that, under current arrangements, working an extra day or two days is just not worth it, financially. Under our legislation, families will have the option to go back to work, knowing they can afford quality child care, earn more and save more.
According to the Bureau of Statistics over the last year 73,000 people who wanted to work didn't look for work, because they couldn't make childcare costs work for them. What a lost opportunity for these parents and for their children, because research shows that these early preschool years are significant formative years. Children learn to play through interaction with others. They learn more and develop their skills. It prepares them for school and it prepares them for life. We know that when we invest in these early years we get better outcomes for them later on. Under our reforms a family on the median combined income of $120,000 with one child in early childhood education will save $1,780 in the first year. That is significant, and it is good news.
The Albanese government is also introducing reforms to help more Indigenous children into early education as part of the government's cheaper child care, all Indigenous children will be able to access 36 hours of subsidised child care a fortnight from July. These simple changes will benefit around 6,600 First Nations families.
The government knows that things are tough for many families in our community, and that's why the Albanese government is taking a number of practical steps. Cutting the cost of child care through legislation is a significant cost saver that will help to ease the squeeze on many families. It will help women to return to work, it will improve the wages of families, it will improve the future for children and, importantly, it will make it easier for families across our nation. This is a reform. It is only one element of the Albanese government's package to foster a better and more caring and inclusive Australia.
