Register for Kindergarten
Council provides registration for sessional kindergarten in Maribyrnong. You are required to register for each year that your child will attend kindergarten and list your preferred kindergartens and groups.
Places are offered by firstly applying the Victorian Government's Priority of Access, followed by local Maribyrnong criteria.
On this page you will find:
Who can attend
Three-Year-Old Kinder
Your child must be 3 years old by 30 April in the year they attend. Children can only start after their third birthday. If they turn 3 by 31 January, they can start at the beginning of Term 1.
Children born January to April: You can choose to start in the year they turn 3 or the next year. Talk to your Maternal and Child Health nurse or an early childhood teacher if you are unsure in which year your child should commence.
Four-Year-Old Kinder/Pre-Prep
Your child must be 4 years old by 30 April in the year they attend. They can start at the beginning of the year providing their birthday is by 30 April in the year they attend.
We are currently taking registrations for 3-year-old and 4-year-old sessional kindergarten in 2027.
Families who have already submitted an Expression of Interest will receive a registration form by email.
Registrations for integrated kindergarten in long day care facilities must be submitted with the individual service.
2027 Round 1 timelines
3‑year‑old first round kindergarten offers will be sent out towards the end of July 2026.
2027 Round 2 timelines
Offers sent:
- 4-year-old second round kindergarten offers will be sent out towards the end of July.
- 3-year-old second round kindergarten offers will be sent out in early August.
2028 Kindergarten
See below to express your interest in 2028 kindergarten.
Registering for Kindergarten
Step 1 - Get your documents ready
Before completing a kindergarten registration, you will need the following documents to upload:
- Proof of birth - birth certificate, passport or immunisation statement from the Australian Immunisation Register.
- Proof of your place of residence that clearly states your name and address and is dated within the last six months – a utilities bill, current rates notice, rental agreement or a statutory declaration (PDF, 10KB) verifying your address to be true and correct. We cannot accept a driver's licence.
- Documents from National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), Enhanced Maternal and Child Health Nurse, Early Intervention Worker, Preschool Field Officer confirming high support needs and/or disability or a letter from a doctor for children with complex medical needs.
- Subsidy cards and/or immigration visas.
Step 2 - Complete your registration
Council is currently taking registrations for Kindergarten in 2026 and 2027. For those wanting 2028 and beyond, please complete an Expression of interest.
Before applying make sure you have all your documents ready as outlined at step 1 above.
2026 Kindergarten Registrations
To register for sessional kindergarten in 2026, please complete the online registration form below:
Register here
Supporting information
2027 Kindergarten Registrations
To register for sessional kindergarten in 2027, please complete the online registration form below.
Register here
Supporting information
2028 - Expressions of Interest
To express your interest in 2028 kindergarten please submit only one expression of interest form per child, per year. Duplicate submissions cannot be processed.
Your first preference is collected for planning purposes only. Families will not be held to their initial preference.
You will be able to update or change your preferences when completing the full registration form once registrations open.
2028 Expression of Interest form
Tips for kindergarten registrations
- Your first preference is not guaranteed. It is important that families list several preferences to improve your chances of securing a place.
- It is important that you only choose groups that fit your family’s needs.
- If you only want one specific kindergarten service and are flexible with days and times, you are encouraged to choose multiple groups at the same kindergarten.
- If your child can only attend kindergarten on specific days, you should choose multiple kindergarten services that offer the days that meet your family's needs.
- Some services have mixed age groups that include three and four-year-olds within the same program.
- Changes to family preferences after the Round One cut off period will be processed in later allocation rounds.
More information
Step 3 - Receive an offer
Council offers kindergarten places in rounds using a computer system that follows the Priority of Access criteria (see below). Where multiple children receive the same priority and there are not enough places available, a random ballot will be used.
You will receive offers for kindergarten places by email.
When you get an offer, you have the following options available:
- Accept and confirm the place - the kindergarten service will contact you to complete the enrolment, share orientation eedates and provide program information.
- Decline and wait - decline the offer and remain on the waitlist to try and get your higher peference - make sure you re-submit your preferences.
- Withdraw - cancel your registration and be removed from the waitlist.
Please respond by the deadline in your email. If we do not hear from you after two reminders, the offer may be withdrawn.
Step 4 - Confirm your enrolment
When you decide to accept a kindergarten offer, we will notify the kindergarten directly.
Later in the year before your child is due to begin, the kindergarten will contact you to complete their enrolment.
Priority of Access
The Priority of Access criteria is required by the Victorian Government to help council determine which children are offered a funded kindergarten place first when there are more registrations than places available. The Priority of Access criteria is applied first, followed by the local Maribyrnong criteria.
Priority of Access Criteria for 2026
Victorian Government policy requires us to prioritise children and families who meet priority one criteria as first priority:
| Priority 1 |
- Children at risk of abuse or neglect, including children in out of home care;
- Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children;
- Asylum seeker and refugee children;
- Children eligible for the Kindergarten Fee Subsidy;
- A child or parent holds a Commonwealth Health Care Card, Pensioner Concession Card, Veteran's Affairs Card; or
- multiple birth children triplets or quadruplets or more.
Children with additional needs, defined as children who:
- require additional assistance in order to fully participate in kindergarten;
- children approved for a 2nd year of kindergarten;
- require a combination of services which are individually planned; or,
- have an identified specific disability or developmental delay.
|
Having satisfied the requirements of the Victorian Government Priority of Access Guidelines for kindergarten, remaining places will be allocated by applying the following Maribyrnong City Council's local criteria:
| Priority 2 |
Residents of Maribyrnong City Council who have an existing connection to the preferred service through having:
- Attended a three-year-old sessional kindergarten program in the same service as their first preference for four-year-old sessional kindergarten the following year; or
- Siblings attending sessional kindergarten in the same year with preferences at the same kindergarten.
|
|
Priority 3
|
Residents of Maribyrnong City Council who have selected their closest kindergarten as their first preference
|
|
Priority 4
|
Residents or ratepayers of City of Maribyrnong
|
|
Priority 5
|
Non-resident children
|
Please note - Only the highest priority that applies to your child is used to allocate places, noting that even if your child meets numerous priority areas, they will still only receive the highest priority area that they meet.
Priority of Access Criteria for 2027
The Priority of Access is used to determine which children are offered a funded kindergarten place first. This applies to all allocations through the kindergarten registration system.
|
Tier 1
|
| Children at risk of abuse or neglect, including children in out-of-home care |
- The child is eligible for Early Start Kindergarten or Access to Early Learning, and/or
- The family, carer or legal guardian identifies the child as known to or having had contact with Child Protection or in Out-of-Home Care and/ or
- The parent or carer or child is experiencing family violence and /or has had contact with The Orange Door and/ or
- The child or family has previously accessed Flexible Support Packages and/or
- The child or family is referred by one of the following:
- Child Protection
- Child and family services
- Maternal and Child Health nurse (MCH)
- Out of Home Care provider
|
|
Aboriginal and Torres
Strait Islander children
|
Child or parent identifies as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander or both. |
| Asylum seeker and refugee children |
- The child, a parent, a carer or a legal guardian holds, has previously held, or is applying for, a refugee or asylum seeker visa, and/or
- The child, a parent, or carer or legal guardian holds a current or expired Immicard and/ or
- Children, parents, carers or legal guardians who previously held a refugee or asylum seeker visa and now hold Australian Citizenship or permanent residency.
|
|
Children and/or families
holding concession cards
|
A child or parent holds a Commonwealth Health Care Card, Pensioner Concession Card, Veteran's Affairs Card. |
| Children from families with multiple births |
Multiple birth children (i.e. triplets or more) |
| Children and/or families with additional needs who require additional assistance to fully participate in the kindergarten program |
Child and family with additional needs who meet one of the following.
Child:
- is eligible under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) or undergoing a continuing assessment of a disability under the NDIS (supported by a letter from a medical practitioner or specialist)
- is eligible for Early Childhood Intervention Service Continuity of Support (ECIS COS)
- is diagnosed with a disability or developmental delay or are undergoing diagnosis (supported by a letter from a medical practitioner or specialist)
- presents with developmental concerns that presents barriers to accessing a kindergarten program (supported by a letter or other evidence from a MCH nurse or similar practitioner such as an allied health practitioner)
- has complex medical needs that presents barriers to accessing a kindergarten program (supported by a letter from a medical practitioner or specialist)
- holds a Disability Health Care Card
- previously accessed the Kindergarten Inclusion Support Program, Commonwealth Inclusion Support Program or another similar program
- the child is referred by one of the following:
- the National Disability Insurance Scheme
- Early Childhood Intervention Service Continuity of Support (ECIS COS)
- Preschool Field Officer program, or
- MCH nurse or similar professional such as an allied health specialist, where developmental concerns have been identified
Parent or Carer:
- is eligible under the NDIS or undergoing a continuing assessment of a disability under the NDIS (supported by a letter from a medical practitioner or specialist)
- has complex medical needs that present barriers to accessing a kindergarten program (supported by a letter from a medical practitioner or specialist)
- holds a Disability Health Care Card.
|
| Children accessing an additional year of Three-and Four-Year-Old kindergarten or Pre-Prep |
Children assessed with delays in two or more areas and are identified as eligible for an additional year of funded Three-Year-old Kindergarten, Four-Year-Old Kindergarten or Pre-Prep. |
| Tier 2 |
|
Children currently attending the service
|
Children attending the service in the Three-Year-Old Kindergarten program and seeking to access Four-Year-Old Kindergarten or Pre-Prep at the same service for continuity of learning. |
Having satisfied the requirements of the Victorian Government's Priority of Access for Kindergarten, remaining places will be allocated by applying the following Maribyrnong City Council's local criteria.
|
|
Priority 2
|
Residents of Maribyrnong City Council who have an existing connection to the preferred service through having siblings attending sessional kindergarten in the same year with preferences at the same kindergarten
|
|
Priority 3
|
Residents of Maribyrnong City Council who have selected their closest kindergarten as their first preference |
|
Priority 4
|
Residents or ratepayers of Maribyrnong City Council |
|
Priority 5
|
Non-resident children |
Please note - Only the highest priority that applies to your child is used to allocate places, noting that even if your child meets numerous priority areas, they will still only receive the highest priority area that they meet.