Priority of Access (PoA) helps kindergarten services decide which children are offered places first when there are more applications than places available.
PoA applies to all funded kindergarten programs, including sessional, long day care and places allocated through a Central Registration and Enrolment Scheme (CRES).
All funded kindergarten services must have a PoA policy and support fair access to kindergarten.
There are no changes for 2027 enrolments. View the 2027 Priority of Access criteria.
What’s changing in 2028
From 2028, PoA will use three tiers to decide which children are offered kindergarten places first.
The changes aim to:
- continue giving the highest priority to children who face the greatest barriers to accessing kinder
- help children stay at the same service when moving from 3-Year-Old Kinder to 4-Year-Old Kinder
- support the rollout of more hours of 4-Year-Old Kinder.
The existing groups of children eligible for PoA have not changed. However, the order in which some groups are prioritised has changed, and a new priority has been introduced for children continuing at the same service.
When to use Priority of Access
Services must use the PoA criteria when there are more eligible children than available kindergarten places.
Services must:
- offer places in the order set out in the PoA criteria
- work with other local kindergarten services and their local Early Childhood Improvement Branch (ECIB) to help eligible children access a kindergarten place.
PoA must be applied before any locally agreed enrolment criteria.
Long day care services must apply PoA to all funded kindergarten places.
PoA applies to all children, including those who live outside the local government area (LGA) where the service is located.
These requirements apply to all 2028 enrolments.
Priority of Access criteria for 2028
The following sections explain which children are eligible for each tier and what information can be used to confirm eligibility.
| Highest priority children | Priority of Access criteria |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | |
| Children at risk of abuse or neglect, including children in out-of-home care | A child meets this criterion if one or more of the following apply:
|
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children | As part of the enrolment process, service providers must respectfully ask families: ‘Do you identify your child as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander?’ Services must record this information in Arrival. |
| Asylum seeker and refugee children | A child meets this criterion if one or more of the following apply:
|
| Children and/or families with additional needs who require additional assistance to fully participate in the kindergarten program | A child meets this criterion if one or more of the following apply:
|
| Children accessing an additional year of 3- and 4-Year-Old Kinder | Children who have been assessed as having delays in two or more areas of development and are eligible for an additional year of funded 3-Year-Old Kinder or 4-Year-Old Kinder. |
| Tier 2 | |
| Children continuing at the same the service | Children who are attending 3-Year-Old Kinder and want to continue 4-Year-Old Kinder at the same service. These children are given priority to remain at their current service after all Tier 1 children have been placed. |
| Tier 3 | |
| Children and/or families with concession cards | A child, parent or legal guardian holds one of the following Commonwealth concession cards:
|
| Children from families with multiple births | Children from multiple births (i.e. triplets or more). |
| Children with parent or carer with additional needs who require additional assistance to fully participate in the kindergarten program | A parent or carer meets this criterion if they:
|
Services in rollout LGAs offering more hours of 4-Year-Old Kinder
The PoA criteria apply to all 2028 enrolments, including children who live inside the LGA where the service is located.
Services in LGAs offering more hours of 4-Year-Old Kinder must:
- Apply the Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 PoA criteria first.
- Then give priority to:
- children who live in the LGA
- children who live outside the LGA but whose nearest service is in the LGA.
Locally agreed criteria
Kindergarten service and CRES providers can use locally agreed enrolment criteria after applying PoA.
For services in LGAs offering more hours of 4-Year-Old Kinder, the geographic priority rules must also be applied before locally agreed criteria.
Examples of locally agreed criteria include:
- how close a family lives to the service
- whether a family has an existing a connection to the service.
Services must document their locally agreed criteria and share them with families.
All kindergarten places must be allocated in line with anti-discrimination and human rights laws.
Getting ready for 2028 enrolments
Kindergarten services and CRES providers should start planning for the changes before 2028 enrolments open.
This includes:
- reviewing and updating local enrolment policies and processes
- planning how to apply the new three-tier approach
- considering how kindergarten programs can model support children who meet PoA criteria
- preparing information for families about the changes and who is eligible.
The PoA Implementation Guide for 2028 provides more detailed advice to help services apply the criteria.
Information for families
Information to help families understand the 2028 PoA changes and who may be eligible will be available in Term 1 2027.
Families who have questions about PoA or need help enrolling their child should contact their kindergarten service or local CRES provider.
Further advice and support
For help applying the PoA criteria or planning for 2028 enrolments, contact your local Early Childhood Improvement Branch (ECIB).
For more information, see:
Updated