Register for 2024 Council kindergarten

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You can register your child for 3 or 4-year-old kindergarten online.

Registrations start on 1 April the year before your child starts kindergarten.

If you are interested in your child attending a Council kindergarten this year, you can register them now.

Key dates

Stage	Date
Registration period	01 April 2023 to 15 July 2023
Allocation of places	August 2023
Receiving and accepting kindergarten placement offers	August 2023 to September 2023
Enrolment	November 2023
Kindergarten program begins	End of January 2024

Registering your child

To register your child in a Council kindergarten program:

your child must be 3 years old before they commence in 3-year-old kindergarten
your child must be 3 or 4 years old by 30 April of the year they start kindergarten to enrol in a kindergarten program
you can register your child from 1 April the year before they start kindergarten.
You need to register each kindergarten year separately in the year before they attend

Register for 2024 kindergarten

Using Central Registration and Enrolment (CRES)

At Knox, you can register your child for a Council kindergarten through an online system called EnrolNow.

EnrolNow allows you to:

register your child
update your details
nominate your kindergarten preferences
accept or reject an offer
enrol your child

Keep your child’s details updated

It is important that you keep your child's details up-to-date at all times. This helps us to process your child's application effectively.

Choosing your preferred kindergarten

You can nominate your preferred kindergarten groups when registering your child.

The first round of kindergarten offers is based on your first preferences. The second and other offers are based on the other preferences you have selected.

Allocation of places

We allocate places using the Priority of Access criteria.

This ensures fair and transparent selection for all eligible children where there are more families than places available.

There are 5 priority of access criteria:

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Priority 1 – High priority children

Children at risk of abuse or neglect, including children in Out of Home Care
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children
Asylum seeker and refugee children
Children eligible for the Kindergarten Fee Subsidy (Health Care Cards, Pension Cards)
Children with additional needs, defined as children who:
- need additional assistance to take part
- need a combination of services which are individually planned
- have an identified disability or developmental delay.

Priority 2 – Local Kindergarten Community Areas OR Knox residents with prior attendance by older siblings

Living in a Local Kindergarten Community Area

A Local Kindergarten Community Area recognises:

families that live in Knox and may want to attend a local kindergarten. They may also have strong links to primary schools in the area.
that local transport and walkability are important factors for families.
that families make better social connections if they attend:
- groups for new parents
- local community and supported playgroups within their Local Community Area.

Note: Families choosing a kindergarten in their Local Kindergarten Community Area as their first preference will receive higher priority.

Priority areas

map of local kindergarten priority areas

Priority 3 – All other children who are Knox residents

Families who live in Knox, but DO NOT fit into either Priority 1 or 2.

Priority 4 – Non-Knox resident, who works or studies in Knox

Residents who do not live in Knox, but work or study in the area.

Priority 5 – Non-Knox resident who does not work or study in Knox

Residents who do not live in Knox, and do not work or study in the area.

Kindergarten offers

You will receive your kindergarten offer by email. You can respond to the offer directly from the email.

Council runs a minimum of 3 rounds of offers beginning in August.

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Accepting an offer

If you accept an offer, you will secure a place for your child in that group.

You will be contacted in October by your kindergarten with general information.

In November you will be invited to enrol your child via EnrolNow.

Declining an offer

If you decline the kindergarten place you are offered your child will be waitlisted for the preferred kindergarten until the following round of offers (in approximately 4 weeks).

Offers will depend on vacancies at that time.

If your child does not receive an offer

Your child may not receive an offer for various reasons, such as:

all the groups you have selected have no vacancies at this stage
you have only selected one group which has no vacancies at this stage
we do not have your most up-to-date information, such as email
you may not have registered your child

If you believe that you have registered with Knox Kindergarten Services, but have not received an offer, email [email protected]

Deferring an offer

If you choose to defer your child's offer, contact Knox Kindergarten Services to ensure your child's registration is transferred to the following year.

Waitlist for offers

We are unable to advise you of where your child is on the waiting list.

Your child's position on the waiting list may change:

depending on new registrations
whether other families accept places
whether they choose to decline and go back on the waiting list.

We have an extensive process to ensure all registrations meet the Priority of Access criteria.

Enrolling your child in kindergarten

Families that receive and accept an offer of a Council kindergarten place must then enrol their child at that kindergarten.

You will receive an invitation to complete the enrolment form through EnrolNow.

From November onwards, you will receive:

An email with a link to the enrolment form in EnrolNow
Once your child begins kindergarten, you can access the EnrolNow Parent Portal. The portal allows you to keep all your details up to date.

Please fill in this form as soon as possible after receiving the link. Your child will not be able to attend kindergarten without a completed, validated and accepted enrolment form.

Kindergarten enrolment policies

Our Funded Kindergarten Policy and Funded Kindergarten Registration and Enrolment Procedure set out how we manage kindergarten enrolment. They are designed to ensure that the process is accessible and places are allocated fairly.

Fees

No fees are charged for 3 or 4-year-old sessional kindergarten at Council services. Kindergarten is funded by the Victorian Government.

Inclusion of children with disability

Preschool Field Officers work with educators and families to support the inclusion of children with additional needs in our kindergarten programs.
This service is funded by Knox City Council and the Department of Education and Training.

About preschool field officers

Knox City Council preschool field officers are experienced kindergarten teachers with extra specialist qualifications.
The role includes:

supporting early childhood educators in the development and delivery of inclusive programs
supporting partnerships between educators and their families
carrying out play-based observations of referred children in kindergarten
linking families into the range of available supports.

Preschool field officers do not work one-to-one with individual children.

No Jab No Play

All children enrolling in our early childhood education and care services must be up to date with their immunisation or have an approved exemption.

No Jab No Play is the Victorian Government legislation requiring all children to be fully immunised before enrolling in any childcare and/or kindergarten in Victoria.

Need help?

Email [email protected] and we will come back to you.

We aim to contact you within 1 business day after receiving your enquiry. This may take longer during the registration period.

Or call our Kindergarten Services on 9298 8000.