17 May2024 Policy and Funding
2024 Policy and Funding
On Friday, 12 May approved providers would have received a letter from the Victorian Department of Education (DE) regarding the 2024 Policy and Funding information. Here are some of the highlights:
Kindergarten Funding Guide
For key funding and policy parameters that will assist you to continue to deliver Three-Year-Old Kindergarten in 2023 and support your planning for 2024, please refer to the Kindergarten Funding Guide. Please CLICK HERE.
In addition, local area Early Childhood Improvement Branches (ECIB) are available to work with you. CLICK HERE for information on how to contact your ECIB. ECIBs can work with you on any issues facing your service and plan and develop tailored solutions to support delivery of your funded Three-Year-Old Kindergarten programs.
Transitional statewide flexible hours continue in 2024
Flexible hours were introduced statewide this year, allowing providers to determine how many hours — between 5 and 15 per week — of funded Three-Year-Old Kindergarten they offer, within set parameters. This transitional arrangement will continue in 2024 and will be reviewed ahead of 2025 service delivery.
For Three-Year Old Kindergarten in 2024, this means that:
- services should not increase their Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program hours beyond what was offered in 2023, if this would result in the number of 2024 Three or Four-Year-Old Kindergarten enrolments offered across the service being lower than the number of enrolments in 2023. The Department will not fund an increase in hours in this circumstance
- exceptions can be granted, subject to sufficient capacity to accommodate children being available in 2024 at other local services. If you are interested in this, you should discuss it with your local ECIB. CLICK HERE to learn more about exceptions
- if offering more than your 2023 Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program hours does not reduce your number of enrolments in both your Three-Year-Old and Four-Year-Old programs, you do not need Departmental approval to increase your hours.
Early Start Kindergarten
Early Start Kindergarten (ESK) will continue to be available for eligible children in 2024, providing 15 hours of funded kindergarten each week for two years before school. Please CLICK HERE to learn more about ESK.
It is important that providers ensure that children eligible for ESK are enrolled for the full 15 hours of funded kindergarten as an ESK enrolment. Children accessing ESK can be enrolled in a Three-Year-Old group, a Four-Year-Old group, a mixed-age group, or a combination of groups to access 15 hours of kindergarten.
Further information on funding and policies supporting Three-Year-Old Kindergarten can be found HERE.
