Council will meet on 19 June to decide on a preferred option for its future role in kindergarten services.
There are some big changes coming for kindergarten as part of the state government’s decision to increase hours, make kindergarten free and offer a second year of kindergarten before school.
In light of this, Council has been reviewing its kindergarten services. This is the responsible thing to do when there are such big changes ahead that could have impacts for our services and our community.
Knox is one of very few councils left in Melbourne that directly provides kindergarten on the scale that we do so these changes affect us more than other councils.
There are many services we provide on behalf of state and federal governments where funding has not kept up with the cost of providing services over time, and that is a risk that Council has to consider very carefully.
In February, Council agreed to formally consider three options for kindergarten. In the upcoming meeting, Council will select one option to proceed.
The thorough service review has included financial modelling, staff feedback, community consultation and the assessment of a demographically representative community panel.
No decision has been made yet. Any change to our kindergarten services would be effective from January 2025.
The report and meeting agenda will be published next week. The meeting is open to the public and will be livestreamed on our website.
For more information on the service review and community panel process, visit our Have Your Say page: Kindergarten Service Review | Knox City Council
