West Kempsey contains 4 Long Day Care centres (235 places), 2 preschool/kindergarten facilities (108 places) and 2 OSHC facilities (116 places), with overall provision relative to the local child population appearing favorable compared to national benchmarks, and above the Regional NSW average. Combined service provision across long day care and preschool/kindergarten services, and the approximate 402 children in the cohort, sees a ratio of children per place of 1.0 - placing the area among the top 20% nationally for supply per child. Looking at long day care specifically against the under-5 population, the ratio is 1.5 children per place (upper quintile supply). Further breakdowns by age, to help in identifying the most in-need services, show strong LDC provision for the infant and toddler cohort (<3yo) with 235 places across 4 facilities serving 205 children while preschool supply is similarly strong with 2 facilities providing 108 places (1.3 children aged 3-4 per place compared to the Regional NSW average of 4.4). With projected population growth of 14.6% between now and 2041, and 17.7% in the under 5 age group in particular, 130 new places will be needed to maintain today's ratios. As well as this projected growth, other factors worth noting are lower female labour force participation of 38.4%, as well as lower 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 38.1 per 100 residents with 1,965 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. Out of school hours child care provision is similarly strong, with 116 places serving the 5-12 cohort. Proximity analysis saw distances of local residents to their nearest child care centre being longer than typical nationally while 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.
6 school catchments intersect West Kempsey (note; school catchment data provided for public schools only), in which a combined 1,929 children aged under 5 reside, served by 1,140 LDC and preschool places. The overall demand-to-supply ratio across these catchments is 1.7 children per place, with significant variance in this ratio.