Set up for Success initiatives

The targeted 3-year-old initiative provides 2 days per week of free early childhood education and care for priority 3-year-old children, including those experiencing disadvantage and vulnerability.

Up to 500 places are available for priority children.

Up to 100 places are also available for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander 3-year-olds across our 5 Koori Preschools in the ACT.

ACT Government directorates and community organisations work together to identify priority children.

Increasing partnerships with playgroups, playschools and nature playgroups to support children and families, including those experiencing vulnerability or disadvantage, is important.

We created guidelines to help schools determine an appropriate model of playgroup for their setting and community.

The guidelines also help families have discussions with their school about establishing a playgroup.

Read the School community playgroups: guidelines for ACT public schools [PDF 324 KB].

We expanded Koori Preschool to 15 hours per week (600 hours per year), providing rich, play-based experiences in a culturally safe environment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged from birth to 5 years.

Early entry to preschool is also available for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. It provides them with an extra semester of preschool. Children can attend Koori Preschool and their local preschool at the same time if they access early entry.

Up to 100 places are also available for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander 3-year-olds across our 5 Koori Preschools.

Read about:

• Koori Preschool
• Early entry to preschool for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children

We amended the Education Act 2004 to recognise that early childhood education and care:

• has a central role in realising the rights of the child
• should be equally accessible to all.

This is the first time an Australian jurisdiction has enshrined in law access to 2 years of quality early childhood education prior to formal schooling.

We also amended the ACT Teacher Quality Institute Act 2010 to enable the professional registration of early childhood teachers.

Find out about ECT registration.

Our cross-sector workforce strategy is our vision for a well-supported, valued and highly skilled education and care profession.

The workforce strategy includes a range of actions over 4 important focus areas:

• Sector supports
• Capability building
• Career pathways
• Professional recognition.

Read more about the Valuing Educators, Values Children Workforce Strategy.

We established 16 Community of Practice sites for ACT public schools and early childhood education and care services.

These partnerships establish a process for continued engagement through:

• scheduling a meeting each term
• visiting eachothers' sites
• sharing key documents
• identifying opportunities for shared professional learning and collaborative planning.

Each partnership has a Community of Practice Plan as a tool to foster shared expertise, set goals and create new pathways for connection.

Read the Community of Practice Plan [PDF 4.6 MB].

We developed the Education and Care Capability Framework as a set of professional standards for early childhood educators.

The professional standards aim to:

• promote the professionalism of the ECEC workforce by recognising professional practice
• develop a shared language and understanding across the profession
• guide educators to demonstrate their capabilities in the areas of:
  • relationships with children and families
  • educational program and practice
  • inclusion, wellbeing and safety
  • leadership, learning and governance.

Read the ACT Education and Care Capability Framework [PDF 280 KB].

We developed the Peer Support, Coaching and Mentoring Toolkit to support ECEC providers. to make informed decisions about why and how to use peer support, coaching or mentoring in their setting.

The toolkit is intended to be incorporated into existing learning and development processes and can be adapted to suit the needs of individual ECEC services.

Explore the Peer Support Coaching and Mentoring Toolkit [PDF 531 KB].

This initiative aims to:

• lift the level of quality and care provided in ACT’s early childhood education and care services by expanding the skills of scholarship recipients
• contribute to implementing the National Quality Framework in the ACT
• increase the number of ACT degree-qualified educators and their professional profile.

Educators with an early childhood degree also benefit from improved employment outcomes and career paths.

So far, we have awarded more than 100 scholarships to educators working in the sector.

Read more about the Early Childhood Degree Scholarship Program.

We are supporting access to professional learning to help educators meet their obligations under the National Quality Framework (NQF).

All long day care, family day care, preschools and outside school hours care services in the ACT are required to comply with the NQF.

The Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) has developed online learning modules for educators and providers working in the sector.

Visit the ACECQA website to access the NQF eLearning modules.

Free online professional learning and resources are available to help early childhood educators support children affected by trauma. These were developed in partnership with the Australian Childhood Foundation.

The learning and resources aim to build understanding and strengthen best practice to enhance the learning, development and wellbeing of all children.

Find out about professional learning to support children affected by trauma.

Developed with Dr Red Ruby Scarlet, a free training program to enhance the use of the Early Years Learning Foundation (EYLF) is available.

The online learning program for educators:

• explains anti-bias approaches in the ECEC profession
• supports educators to explore anti-bias goals
• creates learning environments where all children, educators and families have a sense of belonging.

A program to support early childhood educators to understand gender-based violence and the impact gender inequality has on children’s education is also available.

The programs are Teaching Quality Institute accredited.

Read more, including how to access the training, on anti-bias professional learning.

We are delivering supports that build capability in culturally inclusive early childhood educational practices.

Online learning program

An online learning program is available to help early childhood educators implement culturally inclusive and responsive practices for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and families. We are doing this in partnership with Community Early Learning Australia.

The program is Teaching Quality Institute accredited.

Find out what's currently available on culturally inclusive and responsive practices.

Excursions at Birrigai Outdoor School

We are offering free Connection to Country excursions at Birrigai Outdoor School. This is for 4-year-old preschool groups from long day care settings only.

To complement the online learning program, preschool groups from long day care settings can access free Connection to Country excursions at Birrigai Outdoor School.

Read more in the Birrigai Connection to Country excursion flyer [PDF 7.1 MB].

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Expert Panel

We developed the professional learning program in consultation with an Expert Panel of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders from the ACT community.

This engagement helped ensure the program content reflects local Ngunnawal culture and meets the community’s needs now and into the future, particularly around cultural safety and integrity.

The Expert Panel were:

• Lee-Ann Daley, Yerrabi Yurwang Child & Family Aboriginal Corporation
• Amanda Fleming, Child and Family Centres (previously Koori Preschool)
• Catherine Law, Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) Yurauna
• Kylee Shae, CIT Yurauna
• Melissa Bulger, CIT Yurauna
• Bek Weddell, Education Directorate.

Local Ngunnawal and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community organisations were also involved.

Commissioned artwork

We engaged LaToya Kennedy of Kalari Art to design an artwork for the professional learning package. LaToya is a proud Ngunnawal and Wiradjuri woman who grew up in Canberra. She now lives on Dharawal Country in Wollongong NSW.

The artwork, called Sharing Knowledge, depicts the strong connections and learning pathways that our educators provide.

It represents equality, relationships, respect, opportunities, trust and growth between educators and our growing boori’s and guudhas (babies and children).