Hayley Lynch, 30, told the Mercury she put her 11-month-old son Otis on waiting lists at eight daycares between Bulli and Corrimal when he was born, and she still has not secured a spot for him.

She is hoping a plan by Maged Zaki, owner of the Little Zak's Academy chain of childcare centres, to build a new facility in Hopetoun Street, gets approved.

"I'm going back to work in January and the only place we can get him into is a daycare centre in Appin," she said.

Read more: Woonona residents furious over plans for three-storey child care complex

"When we booked him into the ones down here and he was put on the wait list we were told it could take up to two years to get a spot.

"I'm flexible with what days I want but it's been radio-silence from the centres so far."

The first-time mother said Appin was 20 minutes from home and somewhat suited the family as her husband worked in Campbelltown, but said she desperately wanted to secure a spot in the local area.

"I've been told by other mums that live in the area that they put their child on the waiting list when they were born and they still haven't secured a spot," she said.

"I also have a friend who drives from Bulli to Engadine for daycare because she can't find a spot locally.

"It would be a Godsend to have more spots available in the area. I don't know a mum who has gotten their kid into daycare easily around here.

"Having a spot locally would mean flexibility for our family. If we're home and he's in daycare it's knowing he's not 20 minutes away if we need to get him."

Little Zak's first proposed a daycare centre on the site in April, revealing plans for a three-story development to cater for 117 children. The Mercury understands the proposal has since been scaled back to cater for 90 children.

A detailed plan of management filed with the council said the centre would operate 52 weeks a year and only close on public holidays.

Read more: Child care centre hikes fees by 25% to the outrage of parents

Little Zak's currently has 36 childcare centres operating or being built in NSW, including a centre at Corrimal.

The Shellharbour and Wongawilli facilities are due to open soon, according to the Little Zak's website.

Meanwhile, the council is also in the process of assessing another application for a 90-spot childcare centre at Dapto.

This application, submitted by Childcare Developers Pty Ltd, run by Denham Court's Kieu To, proposes to demolish two single-storey houses at 21-23 Werowi Street to make way for the development, which would consist of a single-storey building with a 30-space car park.

The application said the centre would operate Monday to Friday with 17 staff in total.

The site is across the road from St Patricks Catholic Parish Primary School.

The application is currently on exhibition on the council's website.

The Illawarra Mercury newsroom is funded by our readers. You can subscribe to support our journalism here.