With up to 140,000 children and families benefiting from the state government’s free kinder program for three and four-year-olds this year, Macedon Ranges council-run kinders have experienced a strong uptake.
Council manages eight kindergartens in the region for both three and four-year-old age groups, with 361 and 538 enrolments in each group respectively.
Council community director Maria Weiss said most programs were nearing capacity or were already full.
“As a result of increased funding by the Victorian government in 2023, council is able to offer more hours per week for three-year-old kindergarten in addition to the 15 hours per week already available for four-year-old kindergarten,” she said.
“This means children in the shire now have increased access to two years of free, high-quality education and care provided by an early childhood teacher to help with their development and learning.”
The state government said 100 per cent of kinder services in 44 local government areas have opted-in to the program, where children in three-year-old kinder will receive between five and 15 hours of funded learning each week, and four-year-old kinder kids will receive 15 hours.
According to the government, the free kinder program will save families up to $2500 in fees per child each year with participating programs to receive funding directly from the government so families are not out-of-pocket.
Early Childhood and Pre-Prep Minister Ingrid Stitt said free kinder for young families meant “more choice, more flexibility, and more money in their pockets”.
“With this reform we’re making sure every child gets the early education they need to thrive,” Ms Stitt said.
“Free kinder doesn’t just give our littlest Victorians the best start in life, it also gives parents, particularly mothers, the freedom to go back to work if and when they choose.”
