Early Childhood Three-year-old kindergarten rolls out

Three-year-old kindergarten has rolled out across six local government areas (LGAs) with 575 three-year-old children enrolled in kindergarten – amounting to a 90% participation rate in the program’s first year.

Some 36 out of 40 services are delivering three-year-old kindergarten, 26 services are delivering 15 hours and 10 services are delivering between five and 15 hours.

We’ve seen 20 new teachers and 20 new educators employed across the six LGAs and DET has been providing ongoing place-based change management support across those services.

At the end of March, individual services will be able to request the findings from the capacity survey about your local service. In 2021, services across another 15 LGAs will begin delivering three-year-old kindergarten.

By 2022, every three-year-old child will be able to access at least five hours of kindergarten. This means that all children will have learned important life skills, having received the best possible start to their education.

The AEU will continue to raise with DET and Minister James Merlino the need to further develop a comprehensive workforce strategy, as each year there will be an increasing demand for more teachers and educators.

We want to ensure the Victorian government can deliver on its Early Childhood Quality Reform Agenda. Securing a good industrial agreement that addresses workload and salaries will go a long way to attracting and retaining teachers and educators. We will continue to ensure the voice of the profession is well represented and let you know of any opportunities for direct engagement.

Finally, best of luck to the teachers and educators who are the first to deliver funded three-year-old preschool this year. You are the leaders of this important social reform.

Find more information about three-year-old kindergarten and our other EC campaigns here.