IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT ENROLLING YOUR CHILD IN KINDERGARTEN

Kindergarten services are now required to collect information from all parents/guardians about their education and employment.

Why are we collecting this information?

Collecting this information will help your kindergarten to receive School Readiness Funding. This is in addition to normal kindergarten funding. The amount of funding each kindergarten receives will be based on the needs of its children, as determined by their parent/guardian occupation and education information.

What is School Readiness Funding?

School Readiness Funding will help children get even more out of their time at kindergarten. It can be used to purchase a range of programs and supports, such as programs to support children’s language development, resources for educators to help children manage their emotions, or professionals such as speech therapists to work with children, teachers and families.

This funding has been progressively introduced across the state from 2019 and will reach all kindergarten services by 2021.

What information needs to be collected?

The following education information is required from parents/guardians:

• highest level of primary/secondary education (e.g. Year 10 or equivalent, Year 9 or equivalent)
• highest qualification they have completed (e.g. no non-school qualification, bachelor degree).

Equivalent overseas education and qualifications are recognised for the purposes of this data collection.  

The following occupation information is required from parents/guardians:

• identify the occupation group from the Parental Occupation Index relevant to their work.

If a parent/guardian has more than one job, they must select the occupation group which includes their main job.

What if accurate information is difficult to collect?

The information collected will help ensure that School Readiness Funding supports the children who need it most - this is why accuracy is important. The Department will be working with all kindergarten services to assist them to provide accurate information on the education and occupation of parents/guardians.

We Will Respect Your Privacy

This is the same information collected by schools when a child is enrolled in prep. All information provided during the enrolment process will only be used to inform kindergarten funding.  For further information on the Department’s Privacy Policy, please visit https://www.education.vic.gov.au/pages/privacypolicy.aspx

Questions?

Visit: https://www.vic.gov.au/school-readiness-funding

Or contact the Early Childhood Improvement Branch in your regional office https://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/contact/pages/regions.aspx.