1367.8 - Australian Capital Territory Statistical Indicators, Jun 2003  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 29/07/2003   
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  • Over half of ACT children aged under 12 are in child care (Media Release)

MEDIA RELEASE

July 29, 2003
Embargoed: 11:30 AM (AEST)
77/2003
Over half of ACT children aged under 12 are in child care

In June 2002, 55% of ACT children aged 12 years or younger used some type of child-care each week, according to new figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

These findings are from the publication ACT Statistical Indicators which includes a feature article on child care in the ACT with findings that also include:
  • 26% of 6-8 year old children used informal child-care only
  • more than one third of children in the ACT used formal child-care
  • long day care was the most common type of formal care used by ACT children (12%)
  • 16% of children in informal care were looked after by grandparents

Another feature article in the publication looks at the way that ACT households manage environmental issues. Some points noted include:
  • Greenpower was used by 4% of households in the ACT in 2002, above the national average
  • 94% of dwellings in the ACT were mainly constructed from brick, well above the national average of 69%. 80% of ACT dwellings had some form of insulation in 2002
  • 56% of households in the ACT used gas for the main form of heating, well above the national average of 34%
  • fewer households in the ACT used fluorescent lights than nationally, while ACT households were the highest users in the nation of energy saving lights
  • there has been a significant increase in the percentage of households owning air conditioners between 1994 and 2002, up from 17% to 29% in 2002 while the use of separate freezers has declined. Increases were also seen in the ownership of clothes dryers and dishwashers.
  • Most households in the ACT who owned a dishwasher used it either daily or at least once a week.
  • Most households in the ACT owned top loading automatic washing machines. Only 22% of households owned a machine with a suds saver facility. 66% of households reported using cold water in their washing machine.

The publication also contains figures relating to the ACT's demography, labour force, prices, building and construction, crime and justice, finance, retail, the economy, transport, tourism and climate.

Further information is in Australian Capital Territory Statistical Indicators, June Quarter 2003 (cat. no. 1367.8).