A third of families using grandparents or relatives as main childminder: survey
A third of families here are using grandparents or relatives as their main childminder as costs continue to soar.
Nisra's new NI Childcare Survey shows 32% are using family members to look after their children while they work, and that 58% of parents had been forced to change decisions on work, education and training because of the expense.
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Australia Post's cash-splash for EV delivery trial
Next time Australia Post turns up with your mail, you might notice a major change in the appearance of the delivery van. The government enterprise has announced the purchase of 36 electric vehicles from European luxury car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz, and each will be painted in familiar red tones, but with the addition of a graphic showing an electric plug and a sign that reads "I'm Electric". The purchase represents the largest trial of electric vans at this scale by the company, and is part of a plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050. With the popularity of online shopping continuing to grow, the company says it's important to become more sustainable. To help meet this target, each EV will be powered by charging stations owned by Australia Post that are run on renewable energy, which will be delivered via a mix of onsite solar panels, purchases of electricity, and the voluntary surrender of Renewable Energy Certificates. How much do the EV vans cost? eVito vans retail for close to $100,000 each, meaning a purchase like this would cost a consumer well over $3 million. But how much Australia Post's purchase actually cost the taxpayer is unknown, as it has declined to disclose the amount, maintaining that the information is "commercial in confidence". The vans were purchased outright from Mercedes-Benz and are now owned by Australia Post. The company did not disclose whether insuring these vehicles would cost more, and would only advise that it would be done under 'existing fleet management agreements'. 'The investment in electric vans is part of a broader package of sustainability initiatives supporting a reduction in our emissions as we target Net Zero,' its chief sustainability officer Richard Pittard said via email. In August last year, Australia Post announced it was deploying 175 electric motorbikes across its fleet and said they would be more agile than the three-wheel electric delivery vehicles it was already operating. Where will the new Australia Post vans be used? Where the vans will be used has not been disclosed, but it will be around metropolitan centres. And according to stats provided by Mercedes-Benz to Australia Post, the vehicles will have a range of 283km. Because they have fewer moving parts, Australia Post believes the EV vans will have lower maintenance costs, and at the end of their use, they'll be sold onto the secondhand market. 'The eVito vans are being deployed to selected facilities nationwide, chosen for adequate charging capacity and suitability for a range of delivery routes,' Pittard added. Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? 🐊🦘😳 Get our new newsletter showcasing the week's best stories.
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Dodgers at Rockies Prediction: Odds, expert picks, starting pitchers, betting trends, and stats for August 20
It's Wednesday, August 20 and the Dodgers (71-54) are in Denver to take on the Rockies (36-89). Shohei Ohtani is slated to take the mound for Los Angeles against Tanner Gordon for Colorado. Los Angeles pummeled Colorado in the second game of the series, 11-4, behind Ohtani's 44th homer of the season, while Alex Call notched a career-high four hits and was a triple away from the cycle. Colorado is now 4-1 over the last five games, while Los Angeles looks to close out the series and build off its 7-1 record over the Rockies this season. Let's dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two. We've got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch first pitch, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts. Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long. Game details & how to watch Dodgers at Rockies Date: Wednesday, August 20, 2025 Time: 12:40AM EST Site: Coors Field City: Denver, CO Network/Streaming: SNLA, COLR Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out. Odds for the Dodgers at the Rockies The latest odds as of Wednesday: Moneyline: Dodgers (-274), Rockies (+222) Spread: Dodgers -1.5 Total: 12.0 runs Probable starting pitchers for Dodgers at Rockies Pitching matchup for August 20, 2025: Shohei Ohtani vs. Tanner Gordon Dodgers: Shohei Ohtani, (0-0, 3.47 ERA)Last outing: 0.00 ERA, 0 Earned Runs Allowed, 0 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 2 Strikeouts Rockies: Tanner Gordon, (3-5, 7.98 ERA)Last outing: 5.40 ERA, 3 Earned Runs Allowed, 5 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 2 Strikeouts Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type! Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Dodgers at Rockies The Dodgers are 7-1 versus the Rockies this season The Dodgers have scored 5 or more runs in 6 of 8 versus the Rockies The Rockies are 6-2 in the last 8 games The Rockies are 4-1 in the last 5 games The Under is 4-1 in the Dodgers' last 5 matchups against NL West teams The Dodgers have covered in their last 3 games against the Rockies The Dodgers have won 12 of their last 20 away games against teams with losing records If you're looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports! Expert picks & predictions for tonight's game between the Dodgers and the Rockies Rotoworld Best Bet Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700. Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts. Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager. Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Wednesday's game between the Dodgers and the Rockies: Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Los Angeles Dodgers on the Moneyline. Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Colorado Rockies at +1.5. Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the under on the Game Total of 12.0. Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page from NBC. Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff: Jay Croucher (@croucherJD) Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) Trysta Krick (@Trysta_Krick)
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How Strictly Come Dancing has championed diversity as Ellie Goldstein is named 2025 favourite
The hit BBC One contest has become known for its inclusive casts, raising awareness of disability and health conditions. Strictly Come Dancing is set to welcome another diverse cast of celebrities to the ballroom this autumn, with model Ellie Goldstein currently tipped to lift the 2025 Glitterball Trophy. Bookies are predicting Goldstein - the BBC One show's first contestant with Down syndrome - will be a hit with viewers and judges, although with the series yet to begin, it's currently anyone's guess who will rack up the high scores. Goldstein's casting in the BBC's flagship entertainment show is the latest in a committed effort at inclusion and representation that Strictly has become known for in recent years. As well as proving that dancing is for everyone, it has also helped to raise awareness and understanding for viewers, even creating some award-winning TV moments. We take a look at Strictly's contestant diversity over the years, as well as the positive effects it has sparked. Read more: Strictly's 2025 celebs ranked — who'll sparkle and who's doomed? How are Strictly's partners chosen? Inside the BBC's 'speed dating' event Which Strictly couples are still together? Inside the BBC show's greatest love stories Chris McCausland - 2024 The reigning Strictly Come Dancing champion was also the first blind celebrity ever to compete in the ballroom. Comedian McCausland was matched with Dianne Buswell in an electric partnership that quickly won over viewers. The pair explained that to learn the dances, Buswell had to place McCausland's feet where they needed to go and talk him through each move during their performances. There was no limit to the couple's dancefloor ambitions, with their Waltz to You'll Never Walk Alone proving to be their series highlight. In fact, it even bagged them a TV Bafta for most memorable moment. McCausland and Buswell were the hugely popular winners of the 2024 series, with the comedian saying as he lifted the trophy: "This is for her (Buswell) and it's for everyone out there that thought and got told they couldn't do something. It just shows with opportunity and support and determination anything can happen." He had told ITV's Lorraine in the run-up to the final: "We represent in a positive way, and kind of surprise people and change people's expectations. The support and the messages we've been getting from people are making me realise that what we've done has reached people." Rose Ayling-Ellis - 2021 As TV made its way out of the shaky pandemic months, Strictly was back with a bang in 2021 and crowned EastEnders actor Rose Ayling-Ellis one of its most memorable champions. She was the first deaf contestant to take part in the show, where she was partnered with Giovanni Pernice who has since been dropped from the cast. However, she and Pernice formed a close bond and the stand-out moment of their competition included a now-famous silent moment in one routine to represent Ayling-Ellis being deaf. It resonated so much with viewers that it won a TV Bafta for must-see moment and is one of the most memorable routines in Strictly history, propelling Ayling-Ellis to win the series. The star explained to viewers how she was able to pick up some of the music beat through her hearing aid and also felt vibrations to be able to time her dancing. Ayling-Ellis's representation of the deaf community had wide-reaching effects, with even now-Queen Camilla telling her that the Royal Family had been voting for her. Following the show, she became the first person to read the CBeebies Bedtime Story in British Sign Language, made documentaries about deafness and sign language, and has gone on to star in TV dramas where she played signing characters. In 2024, Tasha Ghouri reached the final of Strictly and told how she had been inspired to go for her dream of taking part in the contest after watching Ayling-Ellis dance. Ghouri, who wore sequin-encrusted cochlear implants for her Strictly routines, told Lorraine: "It's a message to people out there, don't let your disability define you, just keep going. It's so lovely to have such a diverse year, Chris (McCausland) is representing and I'm representing. The messages have just been so, so positive." Jonnie Peacock - 2017 The first time Strictly showed inclusivity in its casting was in 2017, when Paralympic athlete Jonnie Peacock danced with Oti Mabuse. Peacock is an amputee who wears a prosthetic leg, and he paved the way for other celebrities with physical disabilities to take part. He was followed by Paralympic cyclist and swimmer Jody Cundy in 2023, as well as TV presenter JJ Chalmers in 2020 who took part in the Invictus Games after being injured during his military career. Lauren Steadman - 2018 Strictly continued to champion inclusivity in its cast in 2018 by signing up Paralympic athlete Lauren Steadman, raising awareness about limb differences. Steadman danced with AJ Pritchard and the pair made it to the semi-final of the competition as one of the favourite couples that year. Paralympic table tennis player Will Bayley, who was born with a condition affecting all four of his limbs, followed her onto the dancefloor in 2019. However, Bayley had a more difficult time after becoming injured during training, which forced him to drop out mid-series and eventually undergo surgery. He has since spoken out with claims that he felt there was a lack of duty of care and support from the show. Ellie Simmonds - 2022 Paralympic swimmer Ellie Simmonds became Strictly's first contestant with dwarfism in 2022, talking before the series launch about the importance of disability representation in high-profile programmes. She said: "Disability representation is so important, [especially] having it on primetime TV. If I'd seen it when I was younger, and there were more individuals with different disabilities… children growing up will have something to relate to." Despite revealing that she had suffered some cruel trolling online during the series, many more of the show's viewers were supportive of Simmonds and she praised the Strictly team for the adaptations they had made for her. Since her star turn in the ballroom, Simmonds has gone on to make documentaries about dwarfism and gene therapy, being adopted, and her questions over whether she should have children. Adam Thomas - 2023 He might be better known for his roles in Waterloo Road and Emmerdale, but Adam Thomas did a huge amount to raise the profile of a tough medical condition he had been diagnosed with when he took part in the 2023 series. Thomas is only in his 30s, but had been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis which made some of the training require painful and tricky for him. He wrote on social media ahead of his ballroom debut: "The reason I signed up to Strictly is because I just want to be able to move again, get fit and do it, all with a smile on my face! "It really couldn't have come at a better time I'm a firm believer of everything happening for a reason, and I know the journey I've been on was meant to happen, to never take small things in life for granted! …Like going for a run, playing with my kids and just being able to walk with no pain! "I know it's going to be tough and I've definitely got my work cut out but am up for the challenge and can not wait to get on that dance floor!" Since his appearance, Thomas has gone on to continue to raise awareness of his treatments and what it is like to have arthritis as a younger person. Amy Dowden One of the show's favourite pro dancers is Amy Dowden, who has candidly spoken out about two huge health issues she has faced. Dowden had been open about her diagnosis with Crohn's disease, which she has lived with since childhood, and even made a BBC documentary showing the effect it can have on her energy levels and training. But even tougher times were still to come for the Welsh dancer, when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023 and forced to miss a year of Strictly whilst she underwent treatment. She has shared her experiences with fans many times, including what symptoms to look out for, what her treatment involved, and returning to the dancefloor after a mastectomy. In 2024, Dowden was proud to be awarded an MBE for services to fundraising and raising awareness of inflammatory bowel disease. Strictly Come Dancing returns to BBC One in September.
