Draft policy and funding guide
Additional funding
Preschool Boost (also known as ‘layered supports’)
Preschool Boost is a funded program designed to support partner services to do more to address children’s developmental vulnerability.
This additional funding may be provided as a mix of cash and/or vouchers for access to services such as trauma-informed practice training, allied health capacity-building for teachers, educators and parents/guardians, and various other evidence-based resources, supports, and training.
Service eligibility
All partner services will receive funding, reflecting that developmental vulnerability occurs in every area in South Australia. Funding amounts will vary based on the statistical likelihood of developmental vulnerability in the service’s location.
All partner services are expected to have access to and are expected to participate in cultural safety training and trauma-informed practice training. It is anticipated this program of professional development will be phased in over the period of roll-out of universal 3-year-old preschool.
We will provide further information before contracting with the first round of partner services in mid 2025.
Spending rules
Funding is to be used to support groups of children and to build service, educator and parent capability, rather than provide direct, individualised support.
The intention is to encourage early intervention to better support children's developmental growth during important stages. Preschool Boost funding is intended to complement other available resources such as the Australian Government (CCS-eligible services) and state (Department for Education services) inclusion funding, that offers support for individual child inclusion.
Financial obligations
The OECD will consult with the sector and experts on an approved menu of Preschool Boost interventions.
Each partner service must ensure that funds are spent on approved interventions linked to identified developmental goals for their cohort or community. A process of identifying interventions should be informed by relevant data (such as AEDC results for their community) and the service’s experience of their community.
To support this process, services will be informed of their Preschool Boost funding amount in the months before the start of the calendar year. Services must submit a simple plan for OECD approval before the start of the calendar year.
A mid-year review will assess alignment with planned supports. Final acquittal of both funding and supports will occur at the end of the year. Unspent funding will be offset against the next year’s Preschool Boost funding amount (this will be the net amount of unspent funds).
We will provide further guidance on eligible spend and program information in 2025.
Outreach
Outreach will provide access to additional resources and targeted supports in areas of high vulnerability to support uptake of 3- and 4-year-old preschool.
Service eligibility
Outreach funding will be available for all 30-hour preschool places from 2026, and for other services in SEIFA 1 and 2 areas from 2027. We will provide further information in mid 2025.
Spending rules
The intention is for this to help reach and retain children and families to address barriers to participation in preschool through additional resources and targeted supports. We will provide further information in mid 2025.
30-hour preschool program
The 30-hour preschool program is a targeted early intervention program of additional hours of preschool for some 3- and 4-year-old children. Evidence has shown that children benefit from an additional year of preschool, and children at risk of being developmentally vulnerable are most likely to benefit from both an additional year and additional hours.
The program comprises the following elements:
- up to 30 hours of preschool program per week for the 2 years before school entry
- outreach funding to support uptake of preschool
- additional Preschool Boost funding to support early childhood services to address developmental vulnerability in preschool-aged children
- fee relief to ensure cost is not a barrier to participation in the program.
We will provide further information in 2025.
The 30-hour preschool program will be capped at 2,000 places at full roll-out. Places will be phased in between 2026 and 2032.
Child eligibility criteria
This program will be delivered through 2 approaches.
Approach 1: Integrated hubs – place-based priority of access
Integrated hubs will be established in areas of high developmental vulnerability. These locations will be chosen based on:
- data on the likelihood of developmental vulnerability among resident children
- the number of developmentally vulnerable children who could access the hub, and
- the practical feasibility of establishing a hub in that location.
Hubs will be a mix of existing services that are expanded and/or better resourced, and new services. At least 2 hubs will be Aboriginal Community-controlled, subject to community support.
Approach 2: Other preschool services – referral and eligibility criteria
To provide greater, statewide accessibility, this program will also be delivered in other services providing a preschool program, including government and non-government sessional preschools and long day care services. A referral approach will be used to manage these places.
In 2026, the first group of children will be identified by the OECD to participate through a referral process established with cross-government partners.
Eligible children and their families will be identified and supported to engage in a local, eligible partner service.
As more places become available, additional referral pathways will be added. We will provide more details in 2025.
Service eligibility criteria
Services may be eligible to provide places in this program, either through integrated hubs or other preschool services if they:
- receive 3-year-old teaching and learning preschool program funding (as a partner service)
- meet or exceed the NQS
- can provide at least 1,200 hours of a preschool program
- have completed or started cultural safety and trauma-informed practice in education training before the service starts providing preschool.
Integrated hubs will provide the 30-hour preschool program as part of their core services (refer to section below Integrated hubs).
Partner services do not need to apply for the 30-hour preschool program.
OECD will identify eligible services and during the first half of 2025, will approach these services to gauge their interest in supporting and providing places for children engaged in the program.
Integrated hubs will be identified through a separate process.
Program hours
The 30-hour preschool program involves delivering 1,200 hours of preschool each year to children in the 2 years before full-time school. Program hours can be delivered flexibly across days and weeks of the year, with a maximum of 8 hours of funded preschool programming per day, with a goal of 1,200 hours per year.
Because children have individual needs, and some parents may not choose to have their child attend the full 30 hours at the start of their intake (either at the beginning of the year or through a mid-year intake), partner services should support families to maximise their participation over time.
We will provide more details in 2025.
Fee relief
Spending rules
Fee relief funding will be available for children receiving 30-hour preschool places, to reduce fees for families with children in the 30-hour preschool program. Fees for these families cannot be set higher than for other families.
We will provide more information in 2025.
Integrated hubs
Integrated hubs will bring up to 30 hours of preschool together with other health, wellbeing, and education services in areas of high developmental vulnerability. This will help families and children receive support and access to the services they need in one place.
All hubs are expected to provide a core offering of child and family health services and support. Other services will be co-designed with local communities.
Service model
A service model for integrated hubs – based on best-practice and evidence from successful child and family hubs – will guide the delivery of high quality and consistent services. Each integrated hub will develop and maintain its own services to meet the needs of its local community.
Core components are:
- a 30-hour preschool program
- child and family health services (such as Child and Family Health Service (CaFHS), child health checks, immunisations, allied health services)
- parenting programs and support (such as playgroup, Circle of Security).
Each integrated hub will develop and maintain their own Service Offer to meet the needs of their local community. The Service Offer will be developed through place-based consultation activities to assist with the identification of additional services and programs to meet the needs of local children and families. These will be tailored in response to each community.