In Australia, early childhood education and care is delivered by providers and services in the states and territories and subsidised by the Australian Government.
3 Day Guarantee
From 5 January 2026, the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) activity test is being replaced. All CCS eligible families can get 3 days of subsidised child care per week.
Building Early Education Fund
We are building and expanding ECEC services in areas of need across Australia.
Find out more about the Building Early Education Fund
Quality and safety
Governments across Australia are working together to strengthen safety, improve quality, and protect children in ECEC.
3 Day Guarantee
From 5 January 2026, the Child Care Subsidy (CCS) activity test is being replaced. All CCS eligible families can get 3 days of subsidised child care per week.
Wage increase for early childhood workforce
We’re funding a wage increase for the early childhood education and care workforce through a worker retention payment.
Learn about the worker retention payment
Providers can get extra help to engage with the worker retention payment.
Service closures to support child safety training
The Australian Government is making changes in 2026 to help early childhood education and care (ECEC) staff complete mandatory child safety training while minimising impact on families.
Register for mandatory national child safety training
From 27 February 2026, all staff, volunteers, and students in ECEC must complete mandatory national child safety training.
Provider how-to
Easy how-to guides for early childhood education and care providers to administer Child Care Subsidy.
View our how-to guides
Grants and extra support
There is a range of extra support available to providers, educators and staff, and families.
Learn about extra supportStay up to date
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