Kindergarten Sector Guide

The new kindergarten year marks an exciting time for children and the early childhood education sector. Thousands of children will be starting Three- and Four-Year-Old Kindergarten, and 6 local government areas (LGAs) launch Pre-Prep.

The Best Start, Best Life reforms are the most significant change to Victoria’s early childhood sector in a generation. There will be many exciting milestones over the life of the reforms, including a growing workforce and record infrastructure investment.

With all that is happening, the Department of Education has developed this resource with key information about early childhood education in Victoria. This guide will be updated for the start of each year so you can stay up to date on the reforms.

How to use this guide

The guide is for service directors and managers, teachers and educators. It includes key information about the Best Start, Best Life reforms, and the support available for children to access and participate in kindergarten programs.

The content in this guide can be used on websites, social media and newsletters and to help respond to questions from staff and families.

For up-to-date information about the range of funding that is available, eligibility criteria and the obligations and accountability in receiving funding, refer to the Kindergarten Funding Guide(opens in a new window).

Where we are now – 2025

• Three-Year-Old Kindergarten continues to be delivered, with services offering programs between 5 and 15 hours
• Free Kinder is available
• six LGAs start Pre-Prep, with a further 12 LGAs preparing to launch Pre-Prep in 2026
• work is underway to support the statewide launch in 2026 of Pre-Prep for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, children from a refugee or asylum seeker background, and children who have had contact with Child Protection services
• the first 4 Victorian Government-owned early learning and childcare centres open
• services will begin to transition from the Kindergarten Information Management System (KIMS) to Arrival.

Resources

• Communicating about kindergarten to your community:(opens in a new window) for resources about kindergarten, including Free Kinder, that can be shared with families
• Supporting CALD families to engage in kindergarten:(opens in a new window) for programs and resources to support engagement with cultural and linguistically diverse families
• Information about kindergarten in your language: (opens in a new window)for information in 30 languages about kindergarten in Victoria
• Arrival: shares information on a new purpose-built system for kindergarten data reporting.