Kindy Care, out-of-school-hours preschool care, trialled from 2024 at 20 South Australia government preschools
Kindy Care, or out-of-school-hours preschool care, was being trialled at a batch of South Australia government preschools from 2024 to see how it could offer more flexible care options for working parents beyond the usual sessional hours of 9am to 3pm.
Image courtesy South Australia government education department
The state-first trial of Kindy Care – out-of-school-hours preschool care – started in 2024 at 20 government preschools across South Australia.
The trial came from the royal commission into early childhood education and care led by former prime minister Julia Gillard. It highlighted the need for government preschools to provide care options to meet the changing needs of working families.
Kindy Care would help support families increasingly needing care for their children outside of regular preschool hours. Families relied on outside school hours care for their school-aged children but often services weren’t set up for preschool-aged children and didn’t generally accept enrolments for preschoolers. The general government schools sessional hours of 9am to 3pm didn’t offer flexibility. In contrast, most non-government preschools offer long day care, from around 7am to 6pm.
Many families needed care for their preschool-aged children after preschool operating hours. The trials would test how different models of preschool out-of-hours care could work.
Kindy Care will allow children to maintain continuity, reduce transitions and engage in out of hours care appropriate to their developmental needs. The South Australian government education department would continue to work closely with the federal government to ensure eligible families accessing the Kindy Care receive the child care subsidy from Term 1, 2025.
The first 10 Kindy Care trial sites delivered by education department staff in preschools across South Australian were at: Adams Road Children’s Centre, Cumberland Preschool Kindergarten, Gabmididi Manoo Children and Family Centre, Gawler & District B-12 Children’s Centre, Gladigau Park Kindergarten, Loxton Preschool Centre, Millicent North Kindergarten, Renmark North Preschool, Seaview Downs Preschool and Salisbury Heights Preschool.
The other 10 government preschools to trial Kindy Care, to be delivered by third-party providers, would be at Bridgewater Kindergarten, Clarence Park Community Kindergarten, Dernancourt Kindergarten, Fairview Park Kindergarten, Glossop Community Preschool, Lantana Kindergarten, Magill Kindergarten, Ocean View College Children’s Centre, Park Terrace Kindergarten and Wattle Park Kindergarten.