Introducing FREE Kindy!

From 1 January 2024, Kindy is FREE for all Queensland children.

 

We all want our children to have a strong start to their education, it’s exciting to announce that the Queensland Government is making Kindy FREE in 2024.

What this looks like for our families, Kindergarten or Kindy is 15 hours per week, 40 weeks per year and is FREE for eligible Queensland children.

Who is eligible for FREE Kindy? Children aged at least 4 years of age by 30 June in the year before they attend Prep. Children attending an approved Kindergarten Program, delivered by a qualified Early Childhood Teacher will be eligible for FREE Kindy, including approved Kindergarten Programs within a long day care setting.

Follow this link to the Kindy age calculator here.

Kindergarten is delivered in different ways at different services. For some services, 15 hours of free Kindy may be delivered over two or three days, with additional care paid for separately. If a child attends Kindy in a long day care setting, additional care may be covered in part by the Australian Government Childcare Subsidy.

Kindy is a place where your little one will make friends, explore new environments, build confidence and have fun learning. Kindy offers meaningful experiences and interactions that support your child’s early learning, wellbeing and development, now and into the future.

There are so many benefits you will see your child gain through attending Kindy, an opportunity for your child to build independence and a sense of identity through a range of fun and challenging experiences. By interacting with others, exercising agency and engaging in life’s complexities and joys, children learn how to meet challenges encountered in everyday life.

For more information on the Free Kindy for all, talk to your LEAD Childcare Family Support Leader, Centre Manager or visit the Queensland Government website.