Kindergarten allocation and offer process

Young girl holding plastic balls at kindergarten

The annual allocation process starts in August for 3 and 4-year-old-kindergarten.

    Kindergarten offers

    Families are encouraged to visit and speak directly with services before a registration form is submitted.

    You can select up to 4 kindergartens. You should only select kindergartens where you are prepared to accept a place.

    Kindergarten places are first allocated to children who meet the Victorian Department of Education funding Guide and Darebin Priority of Access. Remaining allocations are then made through a randomised electronic software program. 

    Places are filled depending on the vacancies provided to the registration team from individual kindergartens.

    Round one offers are made to families based on their first selected kindergarten, early August for 4-year-old kindergarten and mid August for 3-year-old kindergarten  

    Due to capacity of funded kindergarten places offered, there is no guarantee that you will be offered your 1st selected kindergarten.

    How do I accept a kindergarten offer?

    The registration team will send you an email and sms message to let you know you have been made an offer for a kindergarten place through the Hub Hello system.

    You have 2 business days to accept or decline this offer.

    You can accept or decline by: 

    If there is no response within 2 days your child’s registration will be archived.

    This registration can be reinstated once the family has made contact with the registration team.

    If you accept the place, you will receive an email confirmation, the service will then contact you to complete their enrolment.

    If you decline your offer and want to remain on the waiting list for other services, you will need to contact the Darebin Registration Team on 03 8470 8825.

    Can I make changes to my selected service?

    • You can update your registration through your portal account. If you are unable to access the portal, contact the registration team.
    • Requests for changes to kindergarten selected services will only be accepted up to 31 July.
    • No changes to selected services can be made during the allocation period from 1 August through to the end of September.

    Timeline of allocation process

    Activity  Date What happens

    Registrations open for three and four-year-old kindergarten 

    		 1 March Registrations open for services that are with the Darebin Registration System
    Cut-off date for registrations in round one offers 8 July  Registrations for round one allocation close. Extended for one week. 
    Registrations received after 8 July 1 July Registrations will be processed after 8 July and will still be accepted and will be considered after Round one offers are completed in early September 
    Four-year-old kindergarten round one  Early August Families to accept or decline the offer within 48 hours (2 working days)
    Three-year-old kindergarten round one Mid-August Families to accept or decline the offer within 48 hours (2 working days)
    Four-year-old kindergarten subsequent rounds Early September Families to accept or decline the offer within 48 hours (2 working days)
    Three-year-old kindergarten subsequent round   Mid-September  Families to accept or decline the offer within 48 hours (2 working days)


    Priority of access

    Kindergarten places are prioritised for children through the Department of Education and Training Priority of Access criteria.

    These priorities include:

    • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children
    • Children at risk of abuse or neglect, including children in out-of-home care
    • Asylum seeker and refugee children
    • Children eligible for the kindergarten fee subsidy
    • Children with additional needs: those who need extra assistance in order to fully participate in the kindergarten program, require a combination of services which are individually planned, or have an identified specific disability or developmental delay. This includes children who are approved for a second funded year of kindergarten.

    For more information, please see kindergarten priority of access criteria.

    Darebin gives subsequent priority to the following:

    • Families who are Darebin residents
    • Had a child or sibling who participated in the same kindergarten in the past 2 years
    • First preference kindergarten is closest to the child's address
    • Internal long day care children (who request the kindergarten program within their current long day care service)

    Families who are not Darebin residents and not eligible for Department of Education and Training Priority of Access criteria will be in round three of the process.

    More information

    If you would like more information on the allocation procedure, please contact the registration team:

    Kindergarten Registration
    Phone 03 8470 8825
    Email registration.kindergartenchildcare@darebin.vic.gov.au
    Hours: 9am—5pm Monday to Friday

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