Morrison Government delivers additional $40 million in ongoing kindergarten funding for Tasmanian families

More than 25,000 Tasmanian children will benefit from a new agreement signed by the Morrison and Tasmanian governments that will deliver an additional $40 million in funding to kindergartens over the next four years.

Federal Acting Minister for Education and Youth, Stuart Robert, said the additional funding will ensure Tasmanian children continue to have access to high-quality kindergarten and are prepared for their first year of full-time school.

‘This agreement will mean every child in Tasmania continues to have the opportunity to attend at least 15 hours of kindergarten a week in the year before they start school,’ Minister Robert said.

‘Importantly, this funding is linked to new reforms, including improving participation and measuring outcomes, and will benefit all children.

‘This agreement maintains Commonwealth funding to the sector and, importantly, will ensure all Tasmanian children and their families are supported during these significant years.’

Tasmanian Minister for Education, Children and Youth Roger Jaensch said the Commonwealth’s contribution would provide funding certainty for Tasmania’s highly successful Kindergarten model.

‘The Tasmanian Government looks forward to working with the Commonwealth Government on developing new reforms, which will take account of Tasmania’s already high enrolment and attendance rates for our Kindergarten program.’

‘The evidence is clear – we know that a child’s early years are the foundation for building the skills needed for lifelong learning, engagement and participation in all aspects of Tasmanian,’ Minister Jaensch said.

All states and territories have now signed the Preschool Reform Agreement, and the Commonwealth is working with jurisdictions to ensure their plans to implement the reforms are in place, to allow funding to flow.

This four-year agreement provides long term certainty to more than 300,000 Australian children and their families each year, along with the early childhood education sector.

The Commonwealth’s historic investment in early childhood education also includes more than $10 billion a year to reduce out-of-pocket expenses for families using child care and to improve workforce participation.