- Minister for Education
The Andrews Labor Government is supporting community-based and local government organisations that manage early childhood services to deliver funded Three-Year-Old Kindergarten, thanks to $3.41 million in additional funding.
The funding will help these organisations with the additional costs involved in delivering high-quality kindergarten programs for all three-year-olds, as part of the Labor Government’s historic early childhood education reforms.
This additional funding will help Early Years Management organisations to cover the increased costs of providing kindergarten to all three-year-olds.
Just over a third of all kindergarten services in Victoria are run by an Early Years Management service. These organisations help to ensure kindergarten services are well-managed and drive quality, inclusion and access in services across the state.
In an Australian-first, the Labor Government is investing nearly $5 billion over the next ten years to deliver two years of funded kindergarten for all Victorian children.
Three-Year-Old Kindergarten is starting in 2020 in six regional local government areas – South Gippsland, Buloke, Hindmarsh, Northern Grampians, Strathbogie and Yarriambiack, with the program to be progressively rolled out across the state.
By 2022, Three-Year-Old Kindergarten will be available statewide, with children to have access to at least five hours of kindergarten per week, ensuring every child has a great start in life.
The Labor Government is also upgrading infrastructure through a $1.68 billion co-investment with the early childhood sector to build and expand kindergarten facilities across the state as part of the roll-out.
As noted by Minister for Education James Merlino
“We know that two years are better than one when it comes to kindergarten, which is why we’re investing nearly $5 billion to roll out funded Three-Year-Old Kindergarten across Victoria over the next ten years.”
“We’re providing extra support for services to help them deliver these historic reforms in early childhood education, to ensure families have the best possible experience and children can get the most out of kindergarten.”
