Shine Bright Early Years Management chief executive Suzi Sordan said the state government's announcement that regional childcare centres would close during lockdown was a learning curve for staff and families.

"It's the first time childcare centres have closed in regional Victoria (due to lockdown). It happened in Melbourne last year. Parents have a whole lot of questions they are seeking clarification on," she said.

"Parents have been understanding and respectful.

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"It is all a bit of a learning curve with permits. It was a lot of work for staff but everyone is in a similar situation. Because it is all happening on the fly, we have to adapt and to communicate as soon as we can.

"All of us are working in the dark."

Jenny's ELC managing director Darren Reid said families had been extremely understanding about the latest requirements.

"From our perspective, families have been fantastic," he said. "The biggest challenge has been the change in messaging overnight.

"Certainly it is a difficult challenge for families and we're really mindful about that. The key thing for us is to keep in mind (the changes) is about the health of Victoria and the health of children and families. That is highest our priority."

As part of the latest lockdown, children will not be able to attend childcare unless one of their parents is an essential worker or they are vulnerable.

Initially, the state government announced both parents must be essential workers for a child to attend childcare during a lockdown but the state government revised that on Sunday.

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It now stands that one parent needs to be an essential worker and the other (in a dual parent family) is unable to provide adequate supervision.

Mr Reid said the change of advice meant staff at childcare centres were busy contacting families on Sunday.

"We were advised of that at 10pm after being aware media reports through the day," he said. "There are provisions we can make to (help provide care). If people are unsure they should speak with their childcare provider.

"The example I use is that a nurse at a hospital and an accountant working from home. Under the initial announcement, a child couldn't attend kinder. Now it allows for those dual-profession families to access childcare.

"Mental health is a big challenge for families at the moment and this has allowed for families to breath a sigh of relief during these challenging times."

Ms Sordan said the full impact of the permits wasn't felt until Tuesday.

"(Monday) was interesting because families didn't need a permit straight away but attendance was definitely lower (on Tuesday) and we will see fewer children as more permits are needed.

"It is all a bit of a learning curve with permits. It was a lot of work for staff but everyone is in a similar situation. Because it is all happening on the fly, we have to adapt and to communicate as soon as we can. All of us are working in the dark."

Ms Sordan said some remote learning may be available for students but it was dependent on how much staff members could take on.

"What we are looking at doing is once again some planning for remote learning and that very much depends on what attendance looks like and what capacity staff will have to put into it," she said. "At this stage, (childcare is only closed) for this week and next week but we will have reassess it. Our intent is to stay in touch with families."

On Tuesday, the federal government announced targeted support for child care providers in Commonwealth declared hotspots.

Childcare services in those designated hotspots will be eligible for payments worth 25 per cent of their pre-lockdown revenue while Outside School Hours Care services will be eligible for payments of 40 per cent.

"(Federal support) is mainly for hot spot areas but we have been have given permission to waive gap fees and have done that for our Maiden Gully Early Years Hub where we provide long day care," Ms Sordan said.

"The state government paid for this year's kindergarten fees, so that doesn't impact families."

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