Delivering 3-year-old preschool in 2026
3-year-old preschool in long day care services
The Office for Early Childhood Development (OECD) is partnering with long day care (LDC) services from 2026 to deliver 3-year-old preschool.
The information and resources on this page will help partner services to get ready for 3-year-old preschool delivery.
Read the Policy and Funding Guide to understand your responsibilities as a partner service.
Support for our 3-year-old preschool partner services
Partner services will receive funding from the state government to support the introduction and delivery of 3-year-old preschool. This will include access to tools and resources to support service quality, upskill staff through professional development and share knowledge through professional networks. You will also get access to Preschool Boost funding.
Watch the video below to see what the first 3 months of the partnership will look like.
Getting ready for South Australia's universal 3-year-old preschool program
The Government of South Australia is rolling out quality 3-year-old preschool to give every child a flying start in life – and you’re a key part of it.
From 2026, 3-year-old children across the state will start accessing up to 15 hours a week of quality, teacher-led preschool.
By 2032, this opportunity will be available to every child in South Australia, no matter where they live.
The roll-out will happen in stages from 2026 – starting with partnering long day care services, and government and other sessional preschools in regional and remote communities.
More preschool places will become available as the reform rolls out.
Partnering long day care services will go through a simple onboarding process, supported every step of the way by the Office for Early Childhood Development – known as the OECD.
Let's walk through what the first 3 months will look like.
Month 1: Getting started
Once your service accepts the offer to partner, onboarding begins.
With help from your OECD Local Team, you will:
- familiarise yourself with the Policy and Funding Agreement
- meet your Local Team
- share the exciting news with your own teams, and
- join online webinars led by the OECD to learn more.
Month 2: Planning together
Now it’s time to plan for 3-year-old preschool delivery.
In month 2, you will:
- work with OECD Local Teams to prepare for the roll-out
- hold your first internal team information sessions
- explore professional development tools and opportunities like the Preschool Toolkit and Leaders’ Forum
- take part in deeper learning sessions on the 3-year-old preschool model, and
- share the exciting news with your service’s families and communities.
Month 3: Ready to launch
By month 3, your service will be well underway and ready to support families and communities with the transition.
You will be able to:
- host family information sessions
- start developing a Preschool Boost plan to bring extra learning supports and allied health services to your centre
- confidently apply Priority of Access and enrolment processes
- explore the Aboriginal Workforce Strategy and related tools, and
- join local professional networks and webinar sessions.
These steps will help your team feel confident and ready to deliver 3-year-old preschool – making a difference from day one.
To learn more, visit www.earlychildhood.sa.gov.au
3-year-old preschool at government and sessional services
The roll-out of 3-year-old preschool will occur in government and other sessional preschools in line with the geographic schedule. Visit the roll-out plan to understand when your sessional service is eligible to begin delivering 3-year-old preschool.
Current 4-year-old preschool funding arrangements for 2025
For providers seeking information, or to apply for the current non-government preschool funding arrangement, visit Apply for non-government preschool service provider funding.
Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCO)
If you operate an ACCO-run early childhood service currently not regulated under the National Law, you are encouraged to apply at any time. Please contact the OECD (OECD.PreschoolFunding@sa.gov.au) to express your interest to partner with the government to deliver 3-year-old preschool.