- Published:
- Wednesday 29 April 2026 at 10:00 am
Every child deserves the best start in life, no matter their background.
Labor introduced Free Kinder, Labor is expanding it – and only Labor will continue it.
More kinders – and more Free Kinder
The Victorian Budget 2026/27 invests almost $500 million to deliver up to:
- 22 kindergartens at school sites
- five Early Learning Victoria (ELV) centres
- grants for 27 new and expanded kinders
More Kinders on School Sites and government-owned ELV centres will be delivered where they’re needed most.
The Budget also invests $9.8 million to continue the Building Blocks Improvement and Inclusion Grant program.
This will unlock more upgrades across Victoria to make centres safer and more inclusive.
Free Kinder is one of Victoria’s most significant cost-of-living initiatives.
New data reveals that 570,000 children have benefited from Free Kinder since 2023.
To date, the program has delivered up to $5,200 in savings per child for Victorian families.
More bilingual kinder
Victoria is a multicultural state, with languages and traditions that are proudly passed on to the next generation.
The Budget invests $3.6 million in bilingual kinders – through the nation-leading Early Childhood Language Program.
Around 7,000 children already benefit from learning languages other than English at kindergarten.
This program will support 197 kindergartens to teach 21 languages.
Languages include Arabic, Auslan, Cantonese, Chinese, French, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Karen, Punjabi, Spanish, and Vietnamese – plus six Victorian Aboriginal languages.
As part of the program, kindergarten teachers and language teachers work together to incorporate language into play, art, music, singing, dancing and stories.
Only Labor has new solutions to make life easier, safer and more affordable.
The Liberals cut $1 billion from education when they were last in office – they even cut free fruit Fridays.
Now they have an $11.5 billion black hole in their Budget, and that just means more cuts that hurt kids.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Children Lizzie Blandthorn
“Every child deserves the opportunity to learn, play and thrive at kindergarten.”
“Free Kinder, new kinders, new schools – this is what backing families looks like.”
“Labor invests in Free Kinder – do the Liberals support it, or will they cut it?”
Quote attributable to Minister for Multicultural and Multifaith Victoria Ingrid Stitt
"Bilingual kinders give kids the opportunity to connect and share in language and culture across generations."