The Andrews Labor Government is supporting kindergartens across Victoria to help plan their future infrastructure projects, creating extra places for three and four-year-old children in growing areas across the state.
Minister for Early Childhood Ingrid Stitt today announced 39 recipients will share in $5.1 million worth of Building Blocks Planning Grants of up to $150,000 each, helping them plan and design infrastructure projects that support the Labor Government’s statewide roll-out of Three-Year-old Kindergarten.
Grants can support the preparations for a project, or a pipeline of projects, that might seek future Building Blocks construction grant funding. The grants can be used for work such as planning scope development, design preparation, soil investigations or construction costing works.
The Planning Grants program is critical to help kinders plan to increase places for children and meet the growing demand for Three and Four-Year-Old Kindergarten.
The Labor Government has also invested $7.5 million to be shared among 47 kindergarten services under the Building Blocks Inclusion Grants and the Refurbishment and Minor Works programs, building on recent announcements of successful projects under these programs.
The Inclusion Grants stream enables kindergartens to upgrade their facilities or buy specialist equipment to provide a and inclusive learning environment for children of all abilities.
Under the Refurbishment and Minor Works program, announced to help the Victorian economy recover from the coronavirus pandemic, grants were available for up to $500,000 for major kindergarten works and refurbishments, and up to $50,000 for minor works and refurbishments.
The Building Blocks Program offers grants to contribute to kindergarten infrastructure and supports the roll-out of Three-Year-Old Kindergarten across Victoria this decade – streamlining all pre-existing kindergarten infrastructure grants into one overarching program and increasing government funding to vital early childhood projects.
In an Australian-first, the Government has invested almost $5 billion to deliver a full 15 hours of Three-Year-Old Kinder to children across the state over this decade, with the roll-out beginning in selected areas in 2020 and expanding in 2022 to support five hours of Three-Year-Old Kindergarten statewide.
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As stated by Minister for Early Childhood Ingrid Stitt
“We’re delivering unprecedented investment in kindergarten across Victoria – giving every child and their families access to great facilities to start their education journeys.”
“The new planning grants will help kinders plan projects that increase places for more kids, while removing the financial burden of planning costs that may be a barrier to important projects getting started.”
