VIC Govt Free Kinder Funding

All Victorian children can now experience the benefits of 2 years of quality play-based learning.

2026 snapshot

  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, children from a refugee or asylum seeker background, and children who have had contact with Child Protection have statewide access to Pre-Prep.
  • Any child who was supported by Early Start Kindergarten or Access to Early Learning in their Three-Year-Old Kindergarten year is also eligible for Pre-Prep from 2026.
  • A further 12 local government areas (LGAs) will start to deliver Pre-Prep, following a successful launch in 6 LGAs this year.
  • Three-Year-Old Kindergarten will move another year closer to full implementation.
  • Free Kinder continues.

Shine will be delivering 15 hours of Three-Year-Old Kindergarten and 15 hours of Four-Year-Old Kindergarten each week.

An image of children in child care carlingford centre.

Free Kinder –

Free kinder will continue to be available at our service next year, which means families with children enrolled in Three and Four-Year-Old Kindergarten programs will receive an annual fee offset.

In 2026, this means families with:

  • 3-year-old children save between $700.33 (5 hours) and $2,101 (15 hours)
  • 4-year-old children save $2,101 (15 hours)

If families are eligible for the Commonwealth Childcare Subsidy (CCS), this will be applied first and then the Free Kinder offset. Families only need to pay the remaining amount after CCS and the Free Kinder offset have been applied.

An image of children in child care carlingford centre.

Three Year Old Kindergarten –

Starting a quality kindergarten program at an earlier age leads to positive effects on child development. Kindergarten is a safe place for children to build skills, become more independent, and make friends.

Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program hours will vary from service to service, providing families with between 5 and 15 hours each week. Our service will offer 15 hours each week in 2026.

Use the Starting Age Calculator on the Department of Education’s website to enter your child’s birth date to find out what year they can start Three- and Four-Year-Old Kindergarten.

Pre-Prep –

Pre-Prep is a play-based learning program led by qualified teachers. Like Four-Year-Old Kindergarten, Pre-Prep will follow the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework.

Four-Year-Old Kindergarten is becoming Pre-Prep, with programs increasing from 15 to 30 hours each week by full roll-out.

Pre-Prep offers a longer program in the year before school, which means there will be more time for children to deepen their learning and development.

For more information about Pre-Prep, go to vic.gov.au/preprep.

Pre-Prep priority cohort roll out –

From 2026, between 16 and 25 hours of Pre-Prep will be available statewide to:

  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
  • Children from a refugee or asylum seeker background
  • Children who have had contact with Child Protection services
  • Children supported by Early Start Kindergarten or Access to Early Learning in their Three-Year-Old Kindergarten year.

The Pre-Prep program for children from a priority cohort group will be for 15 hours each week at our service.

If you think your child meets one of the eligibility criteria for Pre-Prep, talk to us about what the program may look like for your child in 2026.

If your child is currently accessing Early Start Kindergarten at our service in 2025, they are eligible for Pre-Prep from 2026.

An image of children in child care carlingford centre.

Early start kinder –

Early Start Kindergarten (ESK) continues to be available for eligible 3-year-old children, providing 15 hours of kindergarten each week.

To be eligible for ESK, children must be aged 3 by 30 April in the year they start kindergarten, and either:

  • Identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
  • Be from a refugee or asylum seeker background, or
  • Be from a family that has had contact with Child Protection.

ESK eligible children can access a 3-year-old group, 4-year-old group, a mixed-age group, or a combination of groups to achieve 15 hours per week.

It is important that our service enrols eligible children in ESK, even if Free Kinder or funded Three-Year-Old Kindergarten is available. This ensures eligible children have priority of access, and services can receive additional funding and support.

Children who are eligible or have access to ESK in 2025 will be able to access Pre-Prep in 2026.