Leeming contains 3 Long Day Care centres (209 places), 1 preschool/kindergarten facility (28 places) and 3 OSHC facilities (200 places). Combined service provision across long day care and preschool/kindergarten services, and the approximate 526 children in the cohort, sees a ratio of children per place of 2.2 - placing the area below the national average for supply per child. Looking at long day care specifically against the under-5 population, the ratio is 2.5 children per place. Further breakdowns by age, to help in identifying the most in-need services, show moderate LDC provision across the infant and toddler cohort (<3yo) with 209 places across 3 facilities serving 318 children while preschool supply is strong with 1 facility providing 28 places (7.6 children aged 3-4 per place compared to the Greater Perth average of 82.9). Projected population decline of 8.7% in the under 5 age group between now and 2041 suggests a reduction in demand for childcare services. Other factors relevant to demand worth noting are high female labour force participation of 63.8%, as well as upper quartile employment and income performance.
In assessing child care markets local school supply is a particularly important factor, given school-run convenience, and enrolment vs child care place analysis can provide useful insight into capacity both for parents seeking child care options and child care operators assessing opportunities in an area. The catchment sees a level of school enrolment relative to population of 20.2 per 100 residents with 2,367 enrolments across primary and secondary institutions. This notably elevated rate of school supply suggests many students travel to the area from beyond the immediate surrounds, typically amplifying local childcare demand given school-run proximity. Additionally, the level of school places per child care place (LDC+PSK) is moderate. Fee analysis shows fees are notably lower than national averages. Another finding worth noting is the low level of commercial activity in the area and assessment of local working populations which suggest many of the local population commute elsewhere for work with nearby services potentially taking some pressure off local child care centres.
10 school catchments intersect Leeming (note; school catchment data provided for public schools only), in which a combined 5,858 children aged under 5 reside, served by 3,278 LDC and preschool places. The overall demand-to-supply ratio across these catchments is 1.8 children per place, with limited variance in this ratio.