Preschool in the ACT: What you need to know for next year  

On this page: 

Savings continue for preschool families

Preschool and the ACT’s Set up for Success

Long day care preschool vs public preschool 

Play-based learning and the EYLF

Extended-hours preschool sessions

Learning tailored to your child

Confidently transition to school

Inclusive learning environments

Savings continue for ACT preschool families 

The Australian Capital Territory’s (ACT) Government's Set up for Success gives the average family a saving of $1,329 for enrolling three-year-olds in preschool. The program promotes two years of preschool before starting school. 

• The program will run for 7.5 hours per week. 
• It will run 40 weeks of the year. 
• Your child must turn 3 by April 30^th on the year they start preschool. 
• Your child needs to be a resident of the ACT. 
• All families qualify for the funding reduction when they enrol their children.
• You don't need to be claiming CCS to qualify. 

600 hours of free preschool is available to families of four-year-olds. 

This applies to long day care (LDC) preschool programs like our Goodstart preschools. This rebate is in addition to your child care subsidy (CCS).

ACT preschools and Set up for Success

Set up for Success: An Early Childhood Strategy for the ACT is a nation-leading ten-year plan for early childhood education and care (ECEC) in the ACT. 'Set up for Success' is based on a huge body of national and international data about the importance of quality early childhood education. 

The ACT government is committed to providing ECEC that's: 

• high-quality, accessible and affordable
• connected with other education, community and health services
• able to meet every child's needs. 

LDC and public preschool programs: What's the difference? 

At Goodstart, we're a long day care (LDC) program provider. We operate five days a week, 52 weeks a year, except on public holidays. We also offer government-approved preschool programs and undergo the same rigorous approval process as public preschools. 

A preschool must do the following to get government approval:  

• Deliver a quality early childhood education program to children aged three and above.
• A preschool teacher (ECT) with a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education designs and delivers the program. 

• The program needs to be paly-based and follow the Early Years Learning Framework. 

Our programs meet these criteria and run during extended LDC hours. This means your child gets extra preschool enrichment led by early learning experts all year round. 

Play-based learning that's government-approved 

Our preschool programs follow the Australian Early Years Learning Framework or EYLF. The EYLF is play-based and supports children to grow the following skills in preparation for their transition to school:

• Social skills, like making friends and respecting others.
• Participation in groups and learning to take turns.
• Emotional regulation and naming how they feel.
• Empathy, like reading and understanding the feelings of others.
• Communication skills, like saying what they need without getting frustrated.

It's easy to see play-based learning as 'just having fun'. But it's important to remember that it's not 'just playing'. Children learn through play. You can read more about play-based learning and the EYLF.

Choose sessions that work for you  

We provide flexibility and convenience for busy families with:

• longer opening hours, Monday to Friday 
• nine-hour, 10-hour and all-day sessions
• our preschool programs are in long day care (LDC) format. 

Choosing an LDC format for preschool means your child's early learning goes beyond the five hours a day they'd get if they went to a public preschool. Public preschools have four terms and operate during school hours.This is great if you've got the flexibility to work around school hours and can take school holidays off. But this isn’t possible for most families. 

At Goodstart preschools, you can drop them off on your way to work and pick them up on your way home. If you’ve got more than one child in care, this means there’s only one pickup and drop off, too. You don't need to max out your annual leave to take off school holidays, either.  

We'll support your child's unique learning journey

• We'll meet them where they are developmentally. 
• We assess and review their progress throughout the years leading up to kindergarten and ensure everything is on track. 
• We explore their passions with them so they feel seen and valued. We offer extra educational support if it's needed. 

 At Goodstart, we appreciate your child for who they are and where they're going. 

Promoting a confident transition to school 

Getting a child ready for transition is a team effort. We'll work with you and their future school to make the move seamless and fun. We use Transition to School Statements to communicate to schools about your child, who they are and how they learn. These documents are carried with them from preschool to school. It helps their new teacher prepare for the best possible year ahead. We often have school transition activities with local schools throughout the preschool year, so your child feels comfy on their first day. 

We offer inclusive learning environments   

Inclusion is everything to us. Every child deserves to feel seen and valued for who they are. We work hard to create environments and support networks that welcome all children and their families to our centres. We take reconciliation seriously, walking with our families, children, and communities on this journey.  

Save your preschool spot for next year! 

We hope we’re a good fit for you and your family in this exciting early learning stage. If you'd like to know how we can support your child from preschool to transition, call our Family Services team or book a tour of your local Goodstart Early Learning below.