Council has begun informing families of 2026 kindergarten offers, with 1,228 places available for over 1,307 applicants.
The introduction of Free Kinder - a state government initiative - has resulted in increased demand for community based kinder, particularly among three-year-olds. Bayside has seen a 14% increase in enrolments for 2026, compared with before the introduction of 'free kinder'.
Bayside Mayor, Cr Hanna El Mouallem said that Council had allocated places fairly and transparently, but demand is currently higher than available places.
"The strong demand for kindergarten places reflects the value placed on high quality, community-based kindergarten by Bayside families - often with multiple generations attending the same kinder over many years," Cr El Mouallem said
"Over the last few years, Council has created an additional 154 places through investment in kindergartens at North Brighton, Hurlingham Park and Fern Street Black Rock. The total cost of these projects was $12.3M, with state government contributing $2.7M, and Council investing more than $9.6 million in these centres. Even with this investment, demand for community kinder continues to outstrip the places available in Bayside," he said.
"Bayside needs greater levels of state funding to support the government's own Free Kinder initiative that is driving increased demand," Cr El Mouallem said.
Council oversees enrolment for 17 kindergartens across the municipality, allocating places through a standardised process in accordance with the Department of Education's Priority of Access policy and local criteria.
Some Bayside families will not receive a place for their child in their preferred community kinder. Following the first two rounds of offers, 126 three-year-olds and 51 four-year-olds remain on the waitlist.
We are also advocating to the Department of Education for funding for further early years infrastructure across Bayside to accommodate the expansion of the Best Start, Best Life reforms and forecast population growth.
Three additional rounds of offers will be made before 8 September 2025. Families without an allocation can contact Family Services for information about alternative options.
