Making kinders more inclusive for victorian children
The Victorian Government is making sure kindergartens across the state are inclusive for children of all abilities by upgrading early childhood education centres and buying specialist equipment to help support learning outcomes.
Member for Macedon, Mary-Anne Thomas today announced a $12,894 of Building Blocks Inclusion Grants for kinders across Macedon to upgrade their kindergarten or buy specialist equipment.
The latest round of Building Blocks Inclusion Grants is worth almost $2.4 million ─ supporting 242 kindergartens upgrade their facilities or purchase equipment to provide a safe and inclusive learning environment for children of all needs and abilities.
Upgrades include infrastructure in playgrounds to make kinder activities more accessible as well as moveable inclusive education equipment like mobility stools and sensory equipment to support learning programs.
Daylesford Preschool – $2,571.49 With the introduction of funded 3yo kindergarten it is identified that some new equipment will provide more opportunities for inclusive learning and play for 3yo children. The purchase of a change table will ensure safe practices for staff to include children still in nappies into the program.
Manna Gum Family and Children’s Centre – $1,980.10 This application seeks funding to purchase padding for external poles at the centre to support children with additional needs, so they feel safe, included and comfortable participating in activities regardless of their ability.
Swinburne Avenue Children’s Centre – $2,038.10 This application seeks funding to purchase padding for external poles at the centre to support children with additional needs, so they feel safe, included and comfortable participating in activities regardless of their ability.
Hepburn Kindergarten – $3,127.80 With the introduction of funded 3yo kindergarten it is identified that some new equipment will provide more opportunities for inclusive learning and play for 3yo children.
Macedon Kindergarten – $1,339.10 This application seeks funding to purchase padding for external poles at the centre to support children with additional needs, so they feel safe, included and comfortable participating in activities regardless of their ability Woodend Kindergarten – $276.50 This application seeks funding to purchase padding for external poles at the centre to support children with additional needs, so they feel safe, included and comfortable participating in activities regardless of their ability.
Lady Brooks Kindergarten – $577.65 This application seeks funding to purchase padding for external poles at the centre to support children with additional needs, so they feel safe, included and comfortable participating in activities regardless of their ability.
Lancefield Kindergarten – $398.65 This grant represents an opportunity to provide for children in low socio-economic areas. Through the provision of sensory equipment, children of diverse backgrounds are able to express themselves where verbal skills are underdeveloped; this helps them succeed in articulating emotions and engaging with their learning and development. So too, a vital function of Emerald’s program is to enhance social and emotional skills development, as well as to improve upon basic movement and sensory consolidation. The grant will bolster Emerald’s resource pool and allow for our educators to engage more meaningfully with children and deliver an individualised program that meets the needs of all children and families.
Romsey Kindergarten – $584.65 This grant represents an opportunity to provide for children in low socio-economic areas. Through the provision of sensory equipment, children of diverse backgrounds are able to express themselves where verbal skills are underdeveloped; this helps them succeed in articulating emotions and engaging with their learning and development. So too, a vital function of Garfield’s program is to enhance social and emotional skills development, as well as to improve upon basic movement and sensory consolidation. The grant will bolster Garfield’s resource pool and allow for our educators to engage more meaningfully with children and deliver an individualised program that meets the needs of all children and families.
Building Blocks Grants is a streamlined overarching funding scheme that supports early childhood providers with new and existing infrastructure and facilities for eligible three and four-year-old kindergarten services.
To find out more about Building Blocks Inclusion Grants and to apply for the next round, visit schoolbuildings.vic.gov.au/Pages/Building-Blocks.
In an Australian-first, the Government is investing almost $5 billion this decade to provide three-year-old children with access to an additional year of funded kindergarten programs.
From 2022, three-year-old children across the state will have access to at least five hours of kindergarten. Services will then scale up their hours to reach the full 15-hour program by 2029.
As part of the Three-Year-Old Kindergarten roll-out, the Victorian Budget 2021/22 has invested $1.68 billion to build and expand kindergarten facilities across the state over this decade.
Quote attributable to Member for Macedon, Mary-Anne Thomas
"We are excited to improve kindergarten infrastructure in Macedon and make sure they are inclusive for all children ─ this will also be critical to ensuring the success of the state-wide roll-out of Three-Year-Old Kindergarten next year."
Quotes attributable to Minister for Early Childhood Ingrid Stitt
"We’re delivering unprecedented investment in early childhood services so our children right across the state can get the most out of their great local kindergartens ─ giving them the best start to life."
"We want to ensure that all children can participate fully at kindergarten so it is crucial that we upgrade facilities and buy the specialist equipment needed to create safe and inclusive learning environments."
